Week 3- Modeling Reading

Modeling

Our selected reading for this assignment included "Building 3D Worlds – 3D Geometric Graphics I". The Computer in The Visual Arts by Anne Spalter, Addison Wesley Longman Inc. 1999, pp 212-253 and “On Geometric Modeling”. Excerpt from “Modeling”, Architecture’s New Media by Yehuda Kalay, The MIT Press, 2004, pp 141-147.

Exercise A

Summary:

The Spalter chapter shows the concept of what 3D graphics are and how they are created.  In Kalay’s writing, it was nice to have a basic description of the three categories of models: the wire frame, surface, and solid models.  The wire frame is aware of only edges or boundaries of the object. The surface model can show greater relationship in space with other objects, but lacks advanced information. The solid model is the form most used today in architecture and design. The importance of 3D modeling is its ability to rapidly adjust and change objects which allows for designers to make more detailed and accurate designs with easier exploration. Volumetric sculpting using voxel-based models was news to me and creates interesting results. The Spalter text was written prior to a standard computer's ability to truly utilize this method, but our current computing power can utilize this as a powerful organic production tool. A good website I found that shows a little more on this topic is http://www.3d-coat.com/voxel-sculpting/.  This shows some of the modern abilities of this method in comparison to traditional 3D modeling. 

Starting from the basics with Spalter:  the primitives are the basic building blocks, sweeps are the 3D form of a profile, and Boolean operations use the addition or subtraction of objects to create more complex and also more organic shapes than by simple addition or subtraction.  This being said it has been a process of exploration for me in the past to try and figure out what way to approach a new object. I will show examples of these methods in the second part of this exercise. These and the following topics are all topics that I have just been learning about in the 3Ds max tutorials, especially those done by TheNewBoston on YouTube.

Wow, do I wish I knew about hierarchy, which allows for objects to be grouped with a parent/child relationship that creates parameters for modification that can be helpful with larger multi-object designs.

The main thing that I want to discuss is about the section on fractals. This is a part of biophilic design (the human affinity for nature) that I have been researching and is a “geometric way to express seemingly irregular ‘non-geometric-looking’ forms such as trees, coastlines, and clouds by noticing that they exhibit, at many levels of detail, patterns of self-similarity”(Spalter, 1999, p. 240).  The author continues on to say that “rigorous, infinite self-similarity is required for a true fractal, but with computer graphics a few rounds, or iterations, of substantially self-similar forms can create a variety of realistic-looking plants or trees”(Spalter, 1999, p. 241). There are also grammers and graftals.  Graftals are the combination of the fractal and a graph and also new to me.  An interesting idea for more organic looking objects.

Contextualize: The ability to utilize this information has greater effect now on me than it would have previously. The last semester I spent working with 3Ds max to create objects and animations which allowed for a backdrop as to why this is important to interior design. Designers can utilize programs such as Autodesk 3DsMax to create specific objects or interior spaces that we are able to see inside and around and subsequently modify in ways that we are not able to while using other media. The general ability to create more realistic presentation views for clients is also an advantage in communicating designs. The amazing diverse ways which you can use 3D as a tool throughout the design process can create designs that otherwise would not be created.

Argument: This topic has been a big part of my life last fall and I believe the 3D tool is one that will only become greater relied upon. There is also an exciting artistic and expressive side, especially with the utilization of fractals that can be explored to further positively express biophilic design in the interior. This tool can continue to positively impact interior design in the future, but the importance of adding biophilic features into the equation allows for the creation designs that are not inherently dead and unsupportive of the human for whom it is designed.

Evidence: The fractal design component discussed above is similarly defined as “complex geometric shapes that appear to repeat at finer scales; such shapes are often found in nature and can be defined mathematically.  Wise believes that the beneficial psychological effects of fractals have the same evolutionary basis as other aspects of Biophilia…” (Kellert, Heerwagen, & Mador, 2008, p. 332).  Thus the powerful proven impact of nature to heal that was found by Ulrich’s in “View through a window may influence recovery from surgery” could be further researched to include the fractal’s power (Ulrich, 1984). The noted listing of “The Poetics of Space” as suggested readings at the end of this chapter is also applicable as it relates to exploring the ideas and spaces of the imagination and home, which can be created within the 3D realm in ways that we are unable to otherwise. In summation, we will be brought forward by tapping into our imagination and using 3D tools to help us explore nature and ourselves. I end with the following quote. “By the swiftness of its actions, the imagination separates us from the past as well as from reality; it faces the future”(Bachelard, 1994).

Assignment #2
Model of a pen using the following methods

Pen using methods #1-4

Pens method #5

1. primitives - the basic shape for the tip, main shaft of the pen, and the initial shape of the eraser are all made from standard primitive shapes

2. sweeps - the clip is made with a line outlining the shape and then extruded

3. boolean operations - the finger indents are made with a sphere intersecting the center cylinder and then the volume that is intersecting with each other is removed

4. ‘digital clay’ approach - the eraser is converted to an editable mesh and then some of the vertices are pulled to customize the shape

5. other means - master-instance was used to make identical copies of the pen and then the image adjusted to focus on the eraser end