Preserving Historical Transformation: Augmented Reality at the San Baudelio de Berlanga Hermitage

Until 1926, colorful wall paintings covered the interior of the San Baudelio de Berlanga Hermitage, making it a masterpiece of medieval art and architecture. However, due to spoliation, these iconographic paintings were removed from the walls and sold to museums around the world. Now the monument stands in a plundered and dismantled state, giving visitors an incomplete and impoverished experience of the site. Augmented Reality technology presents itself as the most viable and optimal preservation treatment for this monument. This non-invasive technique allows the monument to continue serving as a spiritual sanctuary, while documenting and preserving its transformation over time. Offering users such an immersive, interactive experience of the site blurs the line between the site’s present remains and its digital restoration.As the lead developer on this project with SOE Studio, I helped create a cross-platform app that turned the Hermitage into a living document of the historical deterioration that architectural spaces suffer over time with the goal of redefining preservation practices.