Remember when churches first started adding video to their sanctuaries? So many choir lofts became a hodgepodge of awkwardly angled projection screens. Pale images beamed from underpowered projectors hanging via plywood and chains from the ceiling.
And now?
So much more is possible. Recent advances in technology enable the blending of audio, video and lighting with a church’s building style or architecture, whether contemporary or traditional, creating a whole new experience.
Contemporary services can now be hosted in traditional churches
The traditional architecture of sacred spaces was mostly abandoned by contemporary churches over the past 25 years. It was replaced by auditoria styles that were friendlier to the technology used in worship. After all, amplified music and speech didn’t play nicely in reverberant rooms with lots of glass and high ceilings. Not only that, but it was awkward to cut in large control booths or add catwalks to more traditional churches.
Yet there have been some game-changers in the past few years, driven by advances in LED lighting, falling costs of LED video displays, loudspeakers with tight pattern control, and the shift of control systems from hardware to apps. These technology developments are allowing churches to celebrate both architecture and technology--concurrently.
Thin LED video displays make it possible to bring back the windows
The recent trend has been to recreate black box theatres to support video projection and stage lighting. In fact, one of the quickest ways an architect could make a technology designer cringe was when they began talking with a church about walls of windows.
The good news for church designers and those like you that serve the church in worship is that the cost of LED displays is approaching the long term cost of projection—and LED displays are bright enough to not be compromised by ambient light streaming into a sanctuary.
If you are visualizing an old-school scoreboard obscuring the stage, think again. The newest technology is thin, can be framed with millwork, is crafted into shapes other than rectangular, and can curve to support whatever architectural form suits the church.
For designers focused on sacred space, this technology can free them to create the scale and light that makes walking into a room a holy experience—even for churches with the most contemporary of worship styles.
Historic structures can be transformed at the touch of a button with color-changing lighting
Before the days of electricity, sunlight created dramatic color in cathedrals as it streamed through stained glass. The Christian worship experience became known for the art of this “technology.”
Recently, the Moment Factory teamed with the almost 200-year-old Notre-Dame Basilica of Montreal. LED color lighting and environmental projection highlighted the craftsmanship of the historic structure to tell the story of creation. What was already beautiful was suddenly animated, revealing even more dimension as the delicate curves and ornate craftsmanship were revealed through the power of the colored light. It is a great example of how technology can team with spectacular church buildings to tell a story.
The ability to retrofit LED lighting into architectural fixtures not only [brings] low energy, longevity, color variability and saturation to the room, but also makes it possible to bring a unifying color map and incredible control. And, it is relatively easy. A one-time cost for sure, but amortizing lower maintenance and operating costs.
Image-mapping can create subtle, integrated experiences
One of my favorite unexpected technology moments was while going through the Stations of the Cross at the Basilica of Montreal.
As I stood before the historic painting of Mary holding baby Jesus, a subtle shift in lighting caused the Christ child to glow slightly, drawing my gaze to him. It was an unexpectedly emotional moment.
Given what I do for a living, I immediately turned to spot the projector. A high-resolution photo was being projected onto the painting which included the vibrancy, making Jesus come to life. My guess is that most of the people viewing the painting simply experienced the deep emotion of it without realizing there was any projection involved at all.
Environmental projection has been around in worship for a long time, but it is usually used to transform the architecture. This was a powerful example of someone using the technology in a worship space to celebrate what was already there.
The switchover between contemporary and traditional services can be automated
Until recently, hosting contemporary and traditional services in the same room was difficult—after all the needs for each type of service were often in conflict. Now it is possible to integrate technology that supports both, allowing a room to support both services well. Better yet, digital presets can make the shift with the touch of a few buttons.
Everything from downlighting to cove lighting can be LED RGB, allowing control of every part of the room to change from traditional white light to a variety of color palettes and patterns. Video projection can be aimed onto walls and balcony fronts to envelope the congregation in moving video and color. LED screens on motorized hoists can close off the choral terrace and create a backdrop for a contemporary band, and loudspeakers with tight pattern control can keep energy off walls with reverberant finishes.
Variable acoustic systems can significantly change the acoustics of a space from one that works well for organ to a space that is more suitable for amplified music.
Never before has it been more possible to create an integrated experience that supports both traditional and contemporary worship.
Lines can be blurred between stage and congregation
One challenge—culturally—for contemporary churches is that a stage with video and lighting creates a clear separation from the congregation. When you walk into a room and one part is brightly animated and another is dark and hidden, there is an inherent prioritization of focus.
Environmental projection—where images are digitally mapped onto the walls—immerses the congregation in the same environment as the people on the stage, creating connection rather than hierarchy.
LED color washes can “paint” the walls around the congregation with the same colors and textures on the stage and screens. Talented worship and arts directors are using this to incredible effect such as producing an Easter sunrise experienced not only by the choir and orchestra, but also surrounding every worshipper in the room, creating a shared experience.
Control systems now include touchscreens
While most professional audio and lighting designers have a preference for the full control that large consoles provide, it is possible to mix audio, control lights and even video from a smaller touchscreen surface.
When working within a limited footprint, designers now give churches more options for decreasing the size of control systems and recapturing floor space.
Why did technology stop fighting architecture? It became architecture.
It isn’t unusual for architects to conceptualize technology as part of the architecture. Architects have been making the most basic building technology into art for years. (Consider Renzo Piano’s Centre Pompidou in Paris.)
Church culture is rapidly stepping away from a presentational model to more of an immersive one. And immersion has always been architecture’s job.
