Techniques
Animation opens up Leonardo's process, showing why his methods still matter to painters and image-makers now.
National Gallery / Leonardo social campaign
Leonardo Experience a Masterpiece
For the National Gallery's immersive Leonardo exhibition, Sentio Space created a series of short social-first animations that introduced online audiences to Leonardo, his techniques, and the world around The Virgin of the Rocks.
4 short films
designed to introduce key themes from the exhibition
Social-first structure
each chapter designed for cutdowns and Instagram stories
One painting, many angles
technique, context, display, and close looking held together
New audiences
art history translated into elegant, watchable motion
A social campaign that made one painting feel expansive.
The work introduces audiences to the exhibition by opening out from a single masterpiece: how it was painted, how it was originally seen, and why the National Gallery built an entire immersive experience around it.
Full project film
A full piece designed to draw audiences in before they arrive.
The complete film carries the same tone as the chaptered edits: visually refined, historically informed, and built to make the exhibition feel approachable to viewers who might encounter it first on social media.
Watch on VimeoBuilt for short attention, shaped for deep looking
The National Gallery wanted a format that would resonate with younger online audiences while still respecting the seriousness of the exhibition. Each film had to stand alone, but also be cut into shorter segments for use across platforms.
Sentio Space responded with a chaptered structure: introductions to Leonardo's techniques, to the world in which he lived, and to The Virgin of the Rocks itself. One film also highlighted the recreated altarpiece installation, helping audiences understand how the work would originally have been seen inside its full devotional setting.
The result is a campaign language that feels both scholarly and social. It welcomes viewers in quickly, then rewards them with real depth.
The time in which he lived
Context becomes cinematic, placing the painting back inside the intellectual and material world that shaped it.
The Virgin of the Rocks
The painting itself takes focus, with motion used to guide attention rather than compete with Leonardo's image.
A visual tone of care
Typography, colour, and pacing create a serious but inviting tone, helping the campaign feel museum-grade without becoming distant.
Case Study
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