The Ghent Altarpiece is one of the world’s most famous and influential works of art. It is also an artwork with a long and turbulent history.
In recent times, it was decided to renovate the Sint-Bavo cathedral in Ghent (Belgium), and to restore the Ghent Altarpiece which is on display in the cathedral. Given these dramatic changes, the council governing the church decided to use this opportunity to bring the visitor experience into the 21st century.
Our company was chosen for this prestigious project to create an Augmented Reality (AR) tour that runs on a Microsoft Hololens 2 in the crypt of the cathedral. The tour explains the extensive iconography and the rich and long history of the altarpiece.
I worked on this award winning project as an environment artist, 3D artist, animator and Unity developer. As a 3D and environment artist I created various scenes based on historical sources, including the atelier of Jan van Eyck. I also animated various characters and moving objects such as the sawing machine. Finally, I also wrote scripts and fixed bugs.
The atelier of Jan van Eyck
The Ghent Altarpiece 1432
The Vijd chapel
A sawing machine
Reviews
I strongly recommend you to join the VR tour as it details the history of the cathedral and mystic lamp, the famous painting. You will have a wonderful time there!
Yiu
Absolutely stunning cathedral. It’s a must in Gent. Also checking the lamb’s God is a must. It was an amazing museum experience that even has augmented reality!
Claudio
A beautiful cathedral, and the virtual reality tour takes the Ghent Altarpiece to another level!
Koen
I had to get used to the AR glasses, but the explanation you receive through this medium about this great triptych will stay with you for a lifetime and can even be a good start to delve more into art history.
Kees
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