The Gaia System: Revolutionizing Museum Storytelling with Projection Mapping

Update 10/11/2025: The Gaia System academic article is published: https://doi.org/10.3390/virtualworlds4040049

The Gaia System is an innovative tabletop projection mapping installation designed to transform how museums present information. Exhibited at Sortland Museum in Norway’s Vesterålen district, it merges physical models with digital storytelling, offering an engaging and interactive experience for visitors. Developed under the Gaia Vesterålen project¹, the system is now in its third iteration, continuously evolving to push the boundaries of museum technology.

At its core, the Gaia System projects dynamic content onto a physical 3D model of Vesterålen, offering an immersive way to explore environmental, historical, and societal topics. This content is delivered in two complementary forms: Narratives and Video animations.

The narratives – developed by SINTEF – are interactive, map-based scientific visualizations that present historical, forecasted, and real-time data on themes such as settlements, waste management, climate, and wildlife. To date, more than 40 narratives have been created. In parallel, video animations – produced by Deadline Media – offer story-driven, popular science content that brings specific historical topics and events to life. Together, these elements combine high-resolution projections, animated storytelling, and live API data to create a rich, interactive, and up-to-date experience for visitors.

Designed for both independent exploration and guided presentations, the system offers two interaction modes. In Visitor Mode, visitors navigate content through touchscreens, diving into different themes at their own pace. In Demonstration Mode, museum staff lead groups through the experience using a tablet, making it ideal for educational demonstrations.

A key strength of the Gaia System is its flexible and scalable content structure. Narratives and user interface elements are stored in JSON format, allowing for easy updates and expansion. Based on this, a new content management system (CMS) is currently under development based on the Sanity platform, enabling museum staff to easily add and edit narratives and user interface elements. In addition, a second CMS – the Gaia System Playground – is in the planning stage. Designed as a user-friendly platform, it will allow visitor groups such as students and stakeholders to experiment with and create their own narratives either before or during their visit, while also giving museum staff a space to draft content. Other supportive tools include the Gaia Data Platform, a MediaWiki-based platform that helps museum curators collect data from special interest groups for later integration into Gaia System content, and GaiaCrowd, a user-friendly crowdsourcing webpage designed to gather points of interest from the public.

Looking ahead, the Gaia System is poised for even greater innovation. Future developments could include augmented reality overlays, object tracking for interactive experiences and gamified elements, bringing the entire projection mapping system into an immersive digital space.

Beyond its technical capabilities, the Gaia System is also a subject of ongoing research in sustainability, usability, and user experience². Several studies have already explored its impact, and continued development aims to refine its effectiveness as an educational and storytelling tool.

By combining cutting-edge technology with interactive storytelling, the Gaia System redefines how museums engage audiences, making complex topics more accessible, visually engaging, and immersive. Beyond its technical capabilities, it also empowers museum staff and visitors to become content creators themselves, offering intuitive tools and platforms to shape narratives, contribute data, and co-create experiences. By opening access to projection mapping technology, the Gaia System becomes more than a static exhibit: it is a living, evolving installation shaped collaboratively by those who use it. As research and innovation continue, it represents a powerful step toward the future of museum experiences—dynamic, participatory, and ever-adapting.