Richmond has recently been host to numerous charettes, and planning sessions, and master planning sessions, and major development debates, including several that continue, such as Echo Harbor, a baseball stadium in Shockoe Bottom, VCU expansion, etc.
What if people could really SEE what the result of development could be?
What if you could create a 3D image of what a developed space would look like, and how it would interact with the existing landscape?
What if you could create a "photo-realistic" view of Shockoe Bottom's development, and you could explore options, like the possible interactions of a GRTC bus transit terminal, and a Slave Trail Heritage site, and a baseball stadium?
What if you could provide an image of what a City block would look like WITHOUT an existing building, and you could "add" or "subtract" buildings with a few mouse clicks, virtually "playing" with a range of development options?
Actually, you can. The technology exists now. It's called "architectural visualization," or "photo-realistic rendering," and it's amazing stuff.
Right now, it seems to be used mainly by architects and developers, when they are trying to develop a more comprehensive and detailed view of how an architectural design, which is created in two dimensional space, would look in THREE dimensional space.
OK. That may have sounded like gobblety gook. Let's use an example that most people understand. Video games. Or movies that have a heavy 3D animation component, like the "Lord of the Rings" trilogy.
In the video game context, game creators develop a "virtual world," that in many games is surprisingly real-looking and real-feeling. In movies, it's the same concept and technology. "Live" actors act in front of a blue screen, and the rest of the film is created out of whole cloth, using computer-generated imagery, or "CGI" for short.
Well, an architectural visualization firm can do the exact same thing, and actually uses much of the same technology developed and used by the gaming and movie industry. They call themselves "3D artists." Their work place is a "studio," which is so much cooler than an "office," BTW. But they use the technology and their artistic talents to develop 3D images of BUILDINGS.
And we have such a firm right here in town, ProViz. Here's the website. Here's a recent article on them in the Spring 2009 Creative Workspace Magazine, found on Page 3. You can look at their demo reel (accessible on the left side, bottom of their homepage) and see the amazing stuff they have done, including renderings for the Rice House, and Miller & Rhoads, and Movieland at Boulevard Square. Let's just use the Miller & Rhoads project on Broad Street as an example These virtual images of Miller & Rhoads are what they imagined that project to look like, BEFORE it was built. In fact, the nighttime image includes a photographic component, and the entire rest of the image was created using just technology and artistic skills. Now, compare the 3D "imagination" with a virtual tour of what Miller & Rhoads ACTUALLY looks like now. Pretty amazing stuff.
This post could get lengthy, so I just wanted to introduce "architectural visualization" as a concept. Next time, I'd like to discuss the broader based applications of architectural visualization in two areas where they could have great impact, and are (IMHO) currently underutilized: (i) "virtual restoration" of historic properties; and (ii) major community development projects, like the baseball stadium in Shockoe Bottom.
[DISCLAIMER: A very dear friend is the Director of ProViz. This post could be seen as a blatant attempt to drum up business for him. Trust me, he's doing plenty fine on his own. But if that's a consequence of this post, more business to him, I think that is great. He and his guys, Jon and David, need to be recognized for their talent.
But the major motivator for this post is because, before I met him, I wasn't aware of the possibilities inherent in architectural visualization. Heck, if you had asked me what "architectural visualization" WAS I would have looked at you blankly. But because of our association, I do understand what architectural visualization is now, and I think it has amazing potential - for development, for urban planning, for fund raising - you name it.]
So take a look-see. This stuff gives real meaning to the phrase, "a picture is worth a 1,000 words."
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