Explore the Sistine Chapel in UE4 at SIGGRAPH

Epic’s Lead Technical Animator Christopher Evans is volunteering as Games Co-Chair for SIGGRAPH 2019 where he unveils his project “Il Divino: Michelangelo’s Sistine Ceiling in VR.”

The project will give viewers a chance to visit the walls of Vatican City’s Sistine Chapel and study Michelangelo’s masterpiece. “Access a guided audio tour and explore the ceiling’s more than 300 meticulously crafted individual figures sprawling across 6,000 square feet,” states the team. “Step upon Michelangelo’s very own scaffold to learn how it was painted to gain historical context, and board a Vatican mobile aerial platform to learn about the site’s conservation. In total, more than 100 clickable locations and an hour of enlightening audio expose the nuances of this iconic work.”

Evans used high-resolution scans and photographs to build an experience that has over 90 4K maps, running live in Unreal Engine with the help of Valve’s brand-new INDEX headset.

Don’t be upset if you can’t make it to SIGGRAPH. “Il Divino: Michelangelo’s Sistine Ceiling in VR” will be released later this year as a free download on Steam. You can learn more here.