Dallas-based experience design agency 900lbs helped mark the beginning of America’s 250th birthday in the nation’s capital with a six-night projection display on the Washington Monument. 

The event began on New Year’s Eve, as an immersive, projection-mapping spectacle lit up the famous 555-foot marble obelisk, creating “an immersive, luminous canvas that narrates our nation’s discovery, expansion, independence, and vision for the future.”

That’s according to Freedom 250, a national, non-partisan organization that’s leading America’s year-long 250th celebration.

900lbs helped create the projection mapping display on the Washington Monument to celebrate America’s 250th birthday year. [Video still: Freedom 250]

900lbs was one of five teams that collaborated on the projection-mapping experience, which covered all four sides of the monument and ended Monday night in a final presentation, which also included a fireworks show. (The other teams taking part included LMGSI, ESI, DCE, and Yellow Dog.)

900lbs Founder and CEO Steve Deitz, told Dallas Innovates that his team collaborated to create “large-scale visual content and animation telling special stories of our country’s 250-year history on a scale of 555 feet tall.”

“Projection mapping creates a shared experience at a scale few mediums can achieve,” Deitz added in a statement. “You’re standing inside the story. That’s especially powerful for a milestone like America’s 250th year.”

‘A technical challenge’ throughout the process

[Photos: 900 lbs]

“At 555 feet tall, the unique aspect ratio of the structure was a technical challenge throughout the planning, storyboarding, and creative direction process,” Deitz added in a LinkedIn post. “We had to think through the best ways to crop, shift, and transition through the various scenes and ‘screensavers’ for 2.5D and 3D animation production.”

“Onsite projection tests helped us get a good understanding of how the structure would catch light with contrast,” Deitz added. “The amount of viewership that saw our visuals [over the last six nights] gives me goosebumps. This has been so magical and so memorable.”

900lbs helped create the projection mapping display on the Washington Monument to celebrate America’s 250th birthday year. [Video still: Freedom 250]

It’s not the first time 900lbs has partnered to do something notable. In 2024, the company teamed up with Dallas retail technology powerhouse Glass-Media to launch PeerVsn (pronounced Peer Vision), a new venture that makes life-size, real-time streaming communication accessible across industries.

You can see a video showing the Washington Monument projection mapping on the Freedom250 website.

Don’t miss what’s next. Subscribe to Dallas Innovates.

Track Dallas-Fort Worth’s business and innovation landscape with our curated news in your inbox Tuesday-Thursday.