'Woodstock Trees' by Sebastian Mariscal
We here at Dwell are big fans of Sebastian Mariscal's work; we've featured his projects in the magazine several times over the years (see here and here) and have an amazing house he designed in southern California for a Japanese couple in our upcoming September 2011 issue, which hits newsstands August 2nd. So I was intrigued to receive a notice that he'd made a video, "Woodstock Trees," to illustrate a recent project he was working on, a vacation house in Woodstock, New York.
Even more surprising is how effective this video is at conveying a real sense of space and movement through the house—something you can't really achieve with your more traditional blueprint or architectural rendering. It imparts a sense of what it will feel like to move through the space, from the entryway through to the living room, dining room, and a detached sleeping pavilion. It's atmospheric (complete with chirping birds, new age massage music, moving shadows) and almost cinematic, with slow fades between "scenes" and a steady pan through the wood-paneled living room, where a fire blazes in the concrete fireplace and a table light casts a warm glow on a weathered leather chair.
Here's the video:
I asked Mariscal about his goal in creating the video and he replied: "The video helps us better explain the spatial qualities of the project and more and more is becoming a design and presentation tool."
What do you think: Is this an effective presentation tool? If you'd hired an architect to design your house, would you find a video useful to further the conversation, and get a sense of what the final built structure would look like?
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In this design climate it has become imperative that the presentation of an idea almost be equal to the idea itself. I would hazard to guess that most good ideas that see the light of day were not chosen because the idea itself was perfect, but because the presentation of the idea was the most compelling. Sagi Haviv championed this idea in an webinar. He gave one cased study that while creating a new logo for Conservation International they presented the identity concept several times, finally creating a beautiful motion graphics piece, before Conservation International accepted the idea. I think this is especially true with spacial design, it is hard for someone to internalize an idea from a rendering. A virtual experience that includes multiple senses helps to convey the idea in a way that just can't be overstated.
I liked the video of Trees, and it seems a very lovely presentation of the built structure. If I were a prospective client, the video could present a good sense of what the architect HAS done. I wonder whether the technique might be adapted to videoing a "model" of a proposed design. It would be technically challenging, I recognize, and somewhat risky for the architect in making the model very "realistic" to a client's eye.
Bill, I don't think that you noticed that the video was of a digital model of the house, not the built structure. It was a beautiful piece, loved it.
Very beautiful. It had me going for a while - thought it was a fully built house. The video did a great job at showing a prospective client what the house would look and feel like. However, this video made the house seem a bit creepy. The emptyness and the oddly moving water felt cold and uninviting.
This may sound strange, but to answer the question of whether clients would find it useful to have a visual animation done prior to construction, I would have to compare it to having children - some people want to know the sex and see the baby before it is born, others don't. I personally enjoy developing visualizations for clients - not only for them, but as a design tool to move from concept to schematic design development to construction plans and documents. Check out our Homestudio page to see "The Farm" which is a project currently on our boards. http://influencedesignforum.com/# Best, Influence Design Forum studios
I believe video is really the way to go. 80% of people are visually driven anyway, and video's cheap, so why not fully exploit the persuasive power of the medium? My biggest biz breakthrough was converting my text proposals into video, works like a charm. :)
stunning. i wonder though if the real thing can live up to the idea. speaking toward the "feel", this type of presentation is seemingly superior to discussion and description. great idea.
Wow, that design is really wonderful, though I would prefer it to be situated in a prairie. But it's really nice looking forward to Sebastian Mariscal future works it would be great he would design a commercial property.
Absolutely phenomenal use of sound and video to convey the qualities that he created in the structure.
I thought the video was very nicely done. However, it just seemed so sad to me. A video of an empty house with sad music would kind of turn me off. There should be life and happiness associated with the prospect of a new home.
In answer to the question, "is this the way of the future", my first thought was: "Well, of course, obviously!" This video though... no, not so much. The space is dark and cold, and the early shot down the hallway shows a disconnection from nature. There's also a disconnect in the extreme rectilinearity of the building. Nothing in nature is shaped like that! I'm sorry, I know he's a really accomplished architect, but I've seen moe compelling videos from students.
agree with T Butler..empty house with such kind of music left mix feelings..
I rather liked the mood and feel of the house. I wanted to sit and think. It seems to me to be a place of reflection, a place to examine one's life. Strange that it doesn't feel restful or peaceful considering the setting. In the end, I wanted to live there. I can't wait to see the built product.
I'm kind of confused. I found this article by Googling Mariscal after seeing a listing of this house on a real estate site. There were many of the same photos posted, with a description of the house, but no mention that the house isn't actually built. It's listed for $1,499,000, on 9.4 acres. Unless someone is definitely sure that the house isn't real, the video could look artificial if it had been animated from still photos and enhanced with effects. Perhaps the real estate listing is misleading in the way it's written. The address is listed as Lot#1 and then the name of the road, so maybe it sort of a come on. Anyway...
there are some great videos by this guy but as a lot of people have mentioned its a bit 'sad' and soulless, maybe erring on the side of tom ford style over relevant commercial use. to see it done 'properly' with emphasis on the elements that matter to the developers and the buying clients, google for glass-canvas . these guys know what they are doing and are the go-to choice for some of the worlds leading architects.
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