Dallas-based experience design agency 900lbs helped launch America’s 250th birthday celebration with a spectacular six-night projection mapping display on the Washington Monument, transforming the iconic 555-foot marble obelisk into a massive storytelling canvas in the nation’s capital.
Beginning on New Year’s Eve, the immersive visual experience showcased used large-scale projection mapping which animated on all four sides of the Washington Monument. The show narrated key moments in the nation’s discovery, expansion, independence, and future vision as part of the kickoff for the Semiquincentennial, America’s year-long 250th anniversary celebration. The event was produced in partnership with Freedom 250, a national, non-partisan organization leading the commemoration.
900lbs was one of five creative and technical teams collaborating on the projection mapping event, alongside LMGSI, ESI, DCE, and Yellow Dog. The installation concluded Monday night with a final presentation and fireworks display, drawing thousands of spectators across six nights. From a global visibility perspective, the experience was viewed by countless numbers of people who saw it through streaming site and social media. Most major news and media publications covered the story.
900lbs Founder and CEO Steve Deitz said the project required technical production of large-scale visual storytelling that is unlike any traditional medium. “Our team collaborated to create large-scale visual content and animation telling special stories of our country’s 250-year history on a scale of 555 feet tall,” Deitz said. “Projection mapping creates a shared experience at a scale few mediums can achieve. You’re standing inside the story. That’s especially powerful for a milestone like America’s 250th year.”
“At 555 feet tall, the unique geometry and tapered aspect ratio of the structure was a technical challenge throughout planning, storyboarding, and creative direction,” Deitz added. “We had to think through the best ways to crop, shift, and transition through the various scenes for both 2.5D and 3D animation production.”
Onsite testing was critical to achieving the final visual quality.
“Projection tests helped us understand how the structure would catch light, color and contrast,” Deitz said. “The amount of viewership that saw our visuals over the six nights gives me goosebumps. This has been magical and memorable.”
According to Deitz and the 900lbs.com website, The Washington Monument projection mapping is the latest in a series of high-profile projects for the company. Other recent projects include a Holiday-themed Augmented Reality at the Marriott Marquis in Times Square New York City, designing the content for the interactive visitors center in Katy Texas, and creating interactive exhibits for vendors at Amazon Web Services' AWS re:Invent trade show in Las Vegas
Founded in Dallas, Texas, 900lbs is an experience design agency specializing in immersive environments, large-scale projection mapping, animation, spatial storytelling, and interactive software development. The agency works with Fortune 500 organizations, cultural institutions, and technology partners to create memorable, high-impact moments that connect audiences to stories at scale.
Parties interested in discovering more about how 900lbs may help their objectives are welcome to contact the company through the information contained with this release. Media interested in learning more about the Washington Monument project and other methods of new technology to increase customer and audience engagement are welcome to contact Steve Deitz through the same means.
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Media Contact
900lbs
Steve Deitz
sdeitz@900lbs.com
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Published by: Randy Rohde