Architectural Virtual Reality

Architectural Virtual Reality

Last year we posted a video that architect Sebastian Mariscal shared with us; a cinematic architectural rendering that takes viewers on a virtual tour of a project he designed in Woodstock, New York. You can see it here (and check out his other videos here). I recently found my way back to that post and was delighted to see all the comments my question had sparked. In response to my query—"Is video an effective presentation tool for architects?"— the flurry of responses ranged, effectively, from "hell yes" to "meh."
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One Adrian Jon Miller replied: "In this design climate it has become imperative that the presentation of an idea almost be equal to the idea itself… 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."
 
Another reader wrote: "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?"

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Others, though, felt that the combination of an empty house and the moody music was a turnoff; some wondered what would happen if the real, finished project doesn't live up to the virtual space depicted in the video... a strange new 21st century hazard, and a testament to today's powerful rendering tools.

I'm putting together a panel for Dwell on Design in June and I'd love to speak with other architects and designers about how they use new or unconventional forms of rendering and modeling... any suggestions for people I should reach out to? Please comment below!

Mariscal recently posted his latest video rendering, depicting Casa Juanita, a design-in-progress—what do you think of this latest video venture?

casa juanita from Sebastian Mariscal Studio on Vimeo.

Jaime Gillin
When not writing, editing, or combing design magazines and blogs for inspiration, Jaime Gillin is experimenting with new recipes, traveling as much as possible, and tackling minor home-improvement projects that inevitably turn...

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