Projection Mapping on an Ancient Church

Case Study

Historic and sacral architecture is one of the most demanding canvases in projection mapping: ornamented geometry, protected building substance, and an audience that knows the facade intimately. For the City of Gorlice we produced the full CGI narrative and delivered the projection system as a turnkey package.

The venue itself shaped the show. The Basilica of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary is the oldest Catholic parish church in Gorlice and home to the Sanctuary of Jesus in Prison. Built between 1885 and 1892 in the neo-Renaissance style to a design by Fr. Mariano Pavoni — an Italian Dominican and prior of the Kraków Dominicans — it was heavily damaged in the fighting of 1915, rebuilt between 1921 and 1932, and elevated to the rank of minor basilica by Pope Benedict XVI in 2009. Its main altar holds a painting of Mary Immaculate by Jan Styka.

That layered history became the storyboard. The animation was modelled on the basilica's exact facade geometry, so every arch, cornice and rose window is part of the choreography rather than an obstacle to it — architectural projection mapping that respects the building while transforming it.