“(Un)seen Sacred Spaces” is a project that deals with the (in)visibility of different sacred buildings in the cityscape. It questions why some sacred buildings are visible while others are not, as well as why some sacred buildings are deliberately made invisible and the effect that has on its communities.
Based on three sacred spaces in Austria, this team explores different communities and makes their concerns visible. Many buildings that look like a normal house from the outside actually host significant spaces. Despite their invisibility, they are part of the city and only known to those who are aware of them. Their (in)visibility says a lot about social integration in society.
These buildings are invisible because of their history, like the former synagogue in Turnergasse in Vienna or because making them visible leads to major political and social discussions, like mosques. There are also new spaces that are created or redefined, like many Orthodox or free churches that were former Catholic churches which are not used anymore and given to other Christian groups that are growing in size.
Through this project, people have the opportunity to learn about these stories and to sharpen their views on social injustice, while also addressing what (in)visibility does to individual communities and how it affects their external images and impressions.
Experience it on Mozilla Hubs >>
About the Project Experience
“(Un)seen Sacred Spaces” guides you through a virtual tour of 3 different sacred spaces in Vienna. They all share a history of (in)visibility, power struggle, and specific discourse on social justice.
Our project experience features diverse community voices and untold stories about these spaces. Through our project, the visitor can experience the exterior of each space and enter a 3D environment. For further information, the visitor can then start navigating the 3D space by clicking on different images to gain a deeper understanding and impression of the available content.
This is an opportunity to contemplate sacred spaces in an immersive environment and engage with the topic of (in)visibility of diverse communities through accessing behind-the-scenes footage, video content, and featured sound excerpts from these sacred spaces.
They have created a project landing page through which visitors are able to access a virtual tour and receive additional information about the project.
Acknowledgements
To all community members who contributed their testimonies and have become the co-creators of this project.
Community Project Members:
- Asma Aiad
- Parisa Ayati
- Ines Mahmoud
- Rebecca Merlic
- Mateja Rot
