Client:
GEMA DIGITAL
Work:
AUDIOVISUAL INTEGRATION
WOW Porto is a tourist and cultural district located in Vila Nova de Gaia, on the banks of the River Douro, which brings together several experiential museums featuring interactive technologies and multimedia resources. Proasur worked alongside Gema Digital on the production and installation of museum displays within the complex, taking charge of the audiovisual integration in two of its museums: The Chocolate Experience by 20|20 and Planet Cork.
The integration of audiovisual elements in experiential museums requires finding a way to reconcile the coexistence of modern technology, scenographic furnishings and dynamic content within the same space. In both cases, Proasur’s engineering team took the scenographic constraints as their starting point to design technical solutions that enhance them without interfering.
The Chocolate Experience by 20|20
Vintage televisions in ‘Wrapping up a Wonder’
The ‘Wrapping up a Wonder’ installation recreates the world of chocolate advertising through televisions from different eras. Proasur manufactured and installed the display: a collection of televisions combining vintage units with scenographic screens, simultaneously broadcasting adverts with background sound and synchronised video.
The technical challenge lay in integrating modern audiovisual panels into vintage casings, mounted on a bespoke wooden plinth fitted with wheels to facilitate mobility. The result combines technology, dynamic content and the exhibition setting in such a way that visitors perceive the narrative before they notice the equipment.
Touchscreen directory at ‘The Factory’
For the industrial area of The Chocolate Experience by 20|20, Proasur manufactured and installed a bespoke metal structure to house an information touchscreen. The technical design had to address seemingly contradictory requirements: a visually slender, structurally stable structure with a minimal footprint, whilst incorporating accessible entry points and integrated ventilation grilles.
Planet Cork
Robert Hooke’s microscope at ‘Cork Experience’
Robert Hooke discovered cells whilst observing a cork slide through his microscope. Planet Cork recreates that moment, and Proasur developed the technical integration: a hyper-realistic replica of a 17th-century microscope mounted on a bespoke wooden cabinet, connected to an electronic circuit board that transmits a real-time image of a slide showing the molecular structure of cork to a screen on the wall.
The piece combines the handcrafted detail of the microscope — faithfully inspired by 17th-century instruments — with a concealed electronic installation that transforms the scenographic object into a functional interactive piece.
‘Trap de Genie’ Bottling Interactive
Proasur was responsible for the technical development, production and installation of this interactive, hands-on exhibit integrated into the wall. The game challenges players to bottle as many bottles as possible in 30 seconds: a physical lever built into the wall, connected to an electronic circuit board that controls its rotation, communicates in turn with the software and the screen where visitors interact by placing corks.
It is the integration of the physical and digital elements that gives meaning to the learning experience: visitors do not simply read about the bottling process; they experience it first-hand.
