Cultural Innovators Are Digitizing Rome’s Heritage

The way that tourists and locals consume the history of Rome is about to change. In an article published in Forbes, Italian travel writer Livia Hengel reports on how technology is changing the way that people view the historical sites scattered around Rome. Spearheading the project are Italian physicist Paco Lanciano and Italian television host and science journalist Piero Angela.

The project was first tested at Palazzo Valentini where projectors cast images on the interior walls, showing the layered history of the site. It was an instant success and proved that this melding of technology, history and art could show Rome’s unique sites in a whole different and immersive way.

Lanciano and Angela moved on to create a visual experience called Viaggio nei Fori at the Forum of Augustus and Caesar. With this site they had to work a little differently because of the open air nature of site. To solve this the team decided to hold events at night during the summer, projecting two narrative based visuals on the Forum of Augustus and the Forum of Caesar. While walking through the forums guests are treated with a narrative that walks them through the events that surround each site in beautifully choreographed projections. Viaggio nei Fori has since then become a staple of the Rome historical experience.

Lanciano and Angela’s latest project though is a wildly ambitious 30-minute multi-dimensional immersive film experience titled Welcome to Rome. The film takes audiences through almost the entirety of Rome’s history, starting from the the very beginning up until present day. It is displayed on 4 separate screens in order to fully immerse the audience in visual experience in addition to 3D models of historical sites.

“It was quite a challenge to synthesize the story of Rome…”, Lanciano said, but he is excited “…to let people experience the pleasure of discovery and understanding.”

While there are only a few other historical visual experiences that are at the level that Lanciano and Angela’s projects achieve, their success no doubt shows that more and more historical sites will be incorporating visual elements similar to that of Lanciano and Angela’s work.

– Jasper LaBonte