Cultural Data Sculpting 2026: A Partnership with EPFL
Proudly presenting student projects from Prof. Sarah Kenderdine's Cultural Data Sculpting Course at eM+ Lausanne
As part of its efforts to support the study of cartography, The Sunderland Collection is delighted to contribute high-resolution images of maps from the collection as a data set for Digital Humanities Masters students on the Cultural Data Sculpting course, taught by the pioneering Prof. Sarah Kenderdine at École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL).
The Cultural Data Sculpting course is located at EPFL’s Laboratory for Experimental Museology (eM+), a specialist research centre focused on experimentation in galleries, libraries, archives and museums.
The course teaches students how to approach and handle archive data sets and transform them into cutting-edge, immersive experiences for audiences engaging with cultural heritage objects.
We are proud to share what the students created in for Spring 2026 below using data from The Sunderland Collection.
2026: A Cultural Curation
For the Cultural Data Sculpting module in 2026, the students were given two datasets from The Sunderland Collection to transform; an eighteenth century Buddhist Meru Mandala from Eastern Tibet and a Map of Jain Cosmography from circa 1770.
The students envisioned transforming both cartographic artefacts into an immersive cultural showcase. They devised an exhibition that would allow visitors to delve into the two religions while examining the objects through interactive displays and informative videos that would offer historical context. A central ‘cupola’ full-dome planetarium would serve as the exhibition's focal point, providing guests the choice between a self-directed exploration or a structured guided tour of the works.
Eighteenth century Eastern Tibetan Meru Mandala ©The Sunderland Collection
The first item is a Buddhist Meru Mandala from Eastern Tibet. This three-dimensional gilt-copper Mandala shows a five-terraced pyramid-structure at the centre which represents Mount Meru (also known as Mount Sumeru). Meru is the cosmic mountain that serves as the axis of the universe and the home of the Gods in Indian Cosmology.
In Buddhist tradition, the world system is a vast disc called a Cakravala which contains seven concentric golden mountain ranges which circle Meru. Spaced equidistantly around the Mountain, there are four continents: Jambudvipa in the south (triangular); Aparagodaniya in the West (circular); Purvavideha in the East (crescent-shaped); and Uttarakuru in the North (trapezoid). The continents lie within the waters of the heavenly lake Anavatapta, which is known for its association with immortality. The gilt sides of the Mandala are tooled with Buddhist symbols and botanical motifs.
Mandalas like this would have been created for ceremonial functions, such as to welcome distinguished guests to a monastery and symbolically, the mandala may signify the recipient’s connection to Meru.
Map of Jain Cosmology (1770) ©The Sunderland Collection
The map of Jain Cosmology is a richly detailed chart presenting Aḍhāī-dvīpa, or Two and A Half Continents. It shows the universe according to the Jain religion, which is spatially boundless - a multiverse containing both known and unknown worlds. This hand painted map on textile was created circa 1770. It shows the Earth and its universe centred on Mount Sumeru (also known as Mount Meru).
The continents on this map are arranged as symmetric petals of a lotus blossom, or as concentric circles of alternating seas and continents. The inhabited earth, Jambudvīpa lies at at the centre of the world system. You can explore more about this map here in the Collection environment of Oculi Mundi.
The significance of Mount Meru is shared by both Hinduism and Buddhism, but their cosmographies differ. Using this starting connection, the students set about building the exhibition. Firstly the students spent time researching each object, looking for appropriate connections and differences in order to consider the look and feel of the environment. For each work the students' intention was to decode the richness of maps, explaining the spiritual world and the physical geography.
A visualisation of the dual exhibition space © eM+
The exhibition space was envisioned as a circular environment by the cohort, reflecting the physical form of the objects and the natural representations of both world systems. This design further emphasised the circular connections within both religions to the themes of rebirth.
Exhibition on the Buddhist Mandala © eM+
Exhibition on the Jain Cosmographical Map © eM+
Each half of the circular exhibition would be centred around the authentic artefact, and have a different look and feel to the other. The half containing the Buddhist Mandala would be presented in gold to mirror the materiality of the piece, whereas the side of the exhibition dedicated to the Jain Map would be a rich blue colour matching the colour of the prominent oceans on the map.
Interactive cupola (full-dome) © eM+
The ‘cupola’ planetarium - which sits at the centre of the exhibit -would also feed into this visual symbolism as this icon resonates in both religions with regards to temples. The thought being that this environment would bring together both cultures.
A physical wayfinding controller was created and based directly upon the physicality of the Tibetan Mandala. This was designed to help the viewer navigate around the physical map within the projection space.
Interactive cupola (full-dome) in the exhibition Cosmic Collisions (2022) © eM+. Photo by Julien Gremaud.
This protype is based on a working model of a full-dome projection, and uses existing technology with custom interfaces developed and programmed by Prof. Kenderdine and her team at eM+.
This interactive cupola was deployed in Cosmic Collisions, an astronomical collaboration with EPFL's Laboratory of Astrophysics (LASTRO); and in the award-winning travelling exhibition Songlines: Tracking the Seven Sisters that originated at the National Museum of Australia.
A visualisation of how the holographic explainers would present outside of the cupola ©eM+
Like all exhibitions and particularly those featuring cutting edge technology, considerations would need to be made around accessibility. The students were concerned that this controller may not be as intuitive as other wayfinding controllers so they created two holographic explainers which would greet visitors as they approach the cupola dome, which would instruct them how to use the mandala-shaped controller which would serve as striking instructional devices as the internal controls.
In the cupola, there would be suggestive messaging to invite the guest to interact with the Mandala-shaped controller which would be positioned in the central console. Touch would launch the animations. Using AI tools such as Veo AI, the students were able to visualise these interactions.
And here are some test visualisations - again made using Veo - that show the different user interactions required to enact the guided and self-guided tours in the dome. These movements were inspired by contextual research (video by SOFTWARE?) which showed how the artefact would be used in ceremonial practice.
Visualisations showing the actions of the interactive controller
All presentation images © eM+
Using Unreal Editor, a world-building software, the students were able to visualise and evaluate functionality within the dome. The animations and scripts for the projected animations were developed through a combination of AI tools and drawing directly from the students' investigations into each cartographic object.
The students devised two settings in the cupola environment: a guided-tour mode and a self-exploration mode;
The guided tour offered a curated exploration of the map with oral explanations. The Mandala-controller would feature light-up markers to guide its ordered use so that visitors could the progress through the tour, which would be approximately 5 minutes in length. This would be a short and engaging tour that covered the important elements.
The self-exploration mode is designed for higher interactivity, allowing users to navigate the map via the Mandala-controller and zoom into specific features. By touching different zones on the controller, visitors can trigger various sections of the Jain map, resulting in a significantly more detailed experience of the animations and exploration process. The time spent in the cupola by the visitor could be tailored to as long or as short as they desired.
During the project presentation, Prof. Kenderdine and her colleagues raised questions regarding the suitability of pairing these two cultures, noting their distinct worldviews and world systems. Additionally, they questioned the appropriateness of utilising the Mandala as a control mechanism for the Jain maps.
To enhance the planetarium experience and reduce its didactic tone, it was suggested that traditional music be incorporated into the self-exploration mode. Furthermore, the installation could benefit from increased visual representation of each specific culture and religion, alongside voice-over collaborations with academic experts.
In conclusion, the sophisticated presentation and depth of research within these projects were once again really impressive. The strong evolution of the work was evident, and the inclusion of various mixed media elements was highly engaging. The primary area for consideration involves the user experience - more specifically ensuring that visitors can easily navigate the instructions for the mandala controller, given the intricate nature of the work.
Visualisation within the cupola dome ©eM+
The Sunderland Collection is honoured to partner with eM+ and wishes to thank the brilliant Prof. Sarah Kenderdine for inviting us to submit data sets for her classes. We are inspired by the next generation of digital humanities innovators, and looking forward to seeing what they create next!
To find out more about Prof. Kenderdine's work, watch her presentation at 'Maps Are Too Exciting! Digital innovations in mapping", a Sunderland Collection Symposium held in October 2024 at the Bodleian Library.
All images courtesy of EPFL / eM+ and The Sunderland Collection.
