"The Ships of the Emperors" Interactive Installation

Kazan lies on the left bank of the Volga river. Many natives affectionately call the great river “Mother” as the city, to a large extent, owes its prosperity to it. The Volga always had a busy trade. The city has always been famous for its advanced shipbuilding. Kazan had business connections with China, Bukhara; hundreds of Arab and Persian merchants, as well as tradesmen from other Russian areas, came there.

The river also brought great Russian Emperors with their magnificent vessels to the city. So, it would be strange not to reflect these facts in the exposition of the Kazan Museum, dedicated to the history of the city. Therefore, here it is, a great exhibition "Ships of the Emperors". It demonstrates wooden scale models of Peter the Great’s strug boats and Catherine the Great’s galley. The third one is the "Kazan" corvette. It was built at the local shipyard.

The models are undeniably very beautiful, but they cannot tell you the story of their ancestors, and besides, they are under glass windows.

The interactive installation created by the specialists of United 3D Labs tells in detail about every ship and visit of historical figures to Kazan. It is not only possible, but even necessary to touch it! Visitors can learn a lot about the “Ships of the Emperors " on the 55-inch touch monitor, which is conveniently located next to the layouts. The text has been translated into four languages: Russian, Tatar, English and Chinese. This has become a strict rule for all interactive exhibits of the Museum. The same essential rule is the requirement for the visual part of the content: everything should be beautiful and photorealistic. That is why the game engine Unreal was used in the development of the installation. Amazing quality of content, created using Unreal Engine, makes the ships come to life again right in front of you.

So, the wind has filled the sails, it’s time to explore!