Our modelmaking team received a request from IWM Churchill War Rooms to remove an old 1:12 scale metal model of Chartwell House, Churchill’s beloved home, due to its limited information content, outdated failing technology and replace it with a new upgraded model with interactive displays.

Unusual Projects collaborated with IWM to deliver a model that provides visitors with a sense of what Churchill’s favorite home looked like, including key visual elements as well as acting as a portal for three internal AV ‘Pepper’s Ghost’ room displays that deliver focused moving content about the July 1933 visit of Albert Einstein.

Amongst the many design considerations was the use of materials to ensure the model met strict safety standards, the size of fabricated pieces to ensure it was deliverable to a basement site and peppers ghost displays that are at suitably accessible heights to be viewed by all users.

During this project, we were responsible for collaborative interactive design development, detailed design, joinery, finishing, physical interactive builds, and model production and ensuring the AV content would work with the room sets that were to be projected via the angled reflection glass (beam splitter glass) .

We created scale modelled room sets of the drawing room, dining room and study that had accurate representation of the walls & furnishings even down to the fabric on the chairs! Good communication with the AV consultant (Clay Interactives) ensured peppers ghost projection content and physical modelling aligned seamlessly to produce the sharpest and most believable lifelike effect possible.

Photo Credits to IWM Churchill War Rooms