Everything

Everything (2008) is a looped 3 channel digital video (extracted from a 3D computer animation) that appropriates a range of media including photography, drawing, painting, and pre-shot video. The work departs from traditional time-based video which is generally based on a recording of an external event. Instead, “Everything” constructs an event and space more like a painting or drawing might. The works combines constructed events (including space, combinations of objects, and aesthetic relationship of forms) with pre-recorded video footage and pre-made paintings and drawings. The result is a montage of objects, images – both still and moving – and abstracted ‘painterly’ gestures. This technique creates a complex temporal displacement. 'Past' refers to pre-recorded media such as painting and photography, and 'future' refers to a possible virtual space not in the present, that these objects may occupy together. Through this simultaneity between the real and the virtual, the work comments on a disembodied sense of space and time, while also puncturing the virtual with a sense of materiality through the tactility of drawing and painting forms and processes. In so doing, te work challenges the perspectival Cartesian space synonymous with the virtual. In this work the disembodied wandering virtual eye is met with an uncanny combination of scenes, where scale and the relationships between objects are disrupted and changed. Everything is one of the first international examples of 3D animation technology being utilised in contemporary art. The work won the inaugural $75,000 Premier of Queensland National New Media Art Award and was subsequently acquired by the Queensland Art Gallery. The work has been exhibited and reviewed nationally and internationally.

Understanding the Aquifier : 3D Visualisation and Groundwater Time-Series Animation in Lockyer Valley

The Lockyer Valley, southeast Queensland, hosts intensive irrigated agriculture using groundwater from over 5000 alluvial bores. A current project is considering introduction of PRW (purified recycled water) to augment groundwater supplies. To assess this, a valley-wide MODFLOW simulation model is being developed plus a new unsaturated zone flow model. To underpin these models and provide a realistic understanding of the aquifer framework a 3D visualisation model has been developed using Groundwater Visualisation System (GVS) software produced at QUT.

Metamorphic epiphany -- 3D animation

As far back as I can remember, I have always been interested in studio art. Whether it be painting, drawing, printmaking, or photography, it has consistently been a part of my life. Upon enrolling in Colby, I became interested in computers and decided to major my undergraduate college career in Computer Science. Not forgetting past interests, I continued my studio art education, taking several classes within the Art department. In due time, I began combining interests and began studying Computer Graphics and Design. With limited resources in this field at Colby, the majority of my computer graphic education and experience has been done on my own time apart from regular classroom work. As time progressed, so did my interests. Starting with simple image manipulation of digitally scanned photographs, I moved on to Web Page design, eventually leading to Desktop Publishing. Ultimately, I wanted to take a step further and expand my overall computer graphic knowledge by learning 3D modeling and animation. With even fewer resources in 3D animation at Colby, I perceived having trouble finding the information and tools I would need to gain the necessary skills for this new field. The Senior Scholars program gave me the opponunity to find and acquire the necessary tools to pursue my interest. This program also allowed me to devote the proper amount of time required for learning these new tools.

VIRTOPSY--scientific documentation, reconstruction and animation in forensic: individual and real 3D data based geo-metric approach including optical body/object surface and radiological CT/MRI scanning.

Until today, most of the documentation of forensic relevant medical findings is limited to traditional 2D photography, 2D conventional radiographs, sketches and verbal description. There are still some limitations of the classic documentation in forensic science especially if a 3D documentation is necessary. The goal of this paper is to demonstrate new 3D real data based geo-metric technology approaches. This paper present approaches to a 3D geo-metric documentation of injuries on the body surface and internal injuries in the living and deceased cases. Using modern imaging methods such as photogrammetry, optical surface and radiological CT/MRI scanning in combination it could be demonstrated that a real, full 3D data based individual documentation of the body surface and internal structures is possible in a non-invasive and non-destructive manner. Using the data merging/fusing and animation possibilities, it is possible to answer reconstructive questions of the dynamic development of patterned injuries (morphologic imprints) and to evaluate the possibility, that they are matchable or linkable to suspected injury-causing instruments. For the first time, to our knowledge, the method of optical and radiological 3D scanning was used to document the forensic relevant injuries of human body in combination with vehicle damages. By this complementary documentation approach, individual forensic real data based analysis and animation were possible linking body injuries to vehicle deformations or damages. These data allow conclusions to be drawn for automobile accident research, optimization of vehicle safety (pedestrian and passenger) and for further development of crash dummies. Real 3D data based documentation opens a new horizon for scientific reconstruction and animation by bringing added value and a real quality improvement in forensic science.

Open in art, nature and emergence

The interactive art system +-now is modelled on the openness of the natural world. Emergent shapes constitute a novel method for facilitating this openness. With the art system as an example, the relationship between openness and emergence is discussed. Lastly, artist reflections from the creation of the work are presented. These describe the nature of open systems and how they may be created.

An Analysis of the Character Animation in Disney’s Tangled

This paper offers an analysis of the character animation in Tangled to develop a deeper understanding of how Disney has approached the extension of their traditional aesthetic into the CG medium.

Can the use of supplementary video and audio materials support student understanding of 3D animation? Some results, analysis and conclusions

A project within a computing department at the University of Greenwich, has been carried out to identify whether podcasting can be used to help understanding and learning of a subject (3D Animation). We know that the benefits of podcasting in education (HE) can be justified, [1]; [2]; [3]; [4]; [5]; [6] and that some success has been proven, but this paper aims to report the results of a term-long project that provided podcast materials for students to help support their learning using Xserve and Podcast Producer technology. Findings in a previous study [6] identified podcasting as a way to diversify learning and provde a more personalised learning experience for students, as well as being able to provide access to a greater mix of learning styles [7]. Finally this paper aims to present the method of capture and distribution, the methodologies of the study, analysis of results, and conclusions that relate to podcasting and enhanced supported learning.

Creating replicas of scultural heritage through 3D reconstruction and low cost 3D printer in Education

The process of making replicas of heritage has traditionally been developed by public agencies, corporations and museums and is not commonly used in schools. Currently there are technologies that allow creating cheap replicas. The new 3D reconstruction software, based on photographs and low cost 3D printers allow to make replicas at a cost much lower than traditional. This article describes the process of creating replicas of the sculpture Goslar Warrior of artist Henry Moore, located in Santa Cruz de Tenerife. To make this process, first, a digital model have been created using Autodesk Recap 360, Autodesk 123D Catch and Autodesk Meshmixer MarkerBot MakerWare applications. Physical replication, has been reproduced in polylactic acid (PLA) by MakerBot Replicator 2 3D printer. In addition, a cost analysis using, in one hand, the printer mentioned, and in the other hand, 3D printing services both online and local, is included. Finally, there has been a specific action with 141 students and 12 high school teachers, who filled a questionnary about the use of sculptural replicas in education.

Using 3D Animations in Teaching Chemistry

This paper discuss possibilities of use of 3D animation as a tool for teaching Chemistry support. The research proposes to investigate the conception process and development of educational animations to use in a Blended Learning environment in undergraduate chemistry. Associated with general chemistry teachers, were raised the demands and difficulties on the content transmission, and the most relevant topics, about "Atomic Theory" with propose to create appropriate animations to meeting needs of themes. Thinking about offering more dynamic materials, we elaborate animations in a format of "micro-documentary", with a length between 4 and 7 minutes. We use the narration aloud to the subject-matter understanding, leaving the external text as a complement of the animation. The conclusions are positives, students accepted well the format and they proved are able to remember, organize and systematize several information presented in animations. These skills don't ensure knowledge acquisition, but may be considered prerequisites to learning occur.

Advanced Applications of 3D Dosimetry and 3D Printing in Radiation Therapy

As complex radiotherapy techniques become more readily-practiced, comprehensive 3D dosimetry is a growing necessity for advanced quality assurance. However, clinical implementation has been impeded by a wide variety of factors, including the expense of dedicated optical dosimeter readout tools, high operational costs, and the overall difficulty of use. To address these issues, a novel dry-tank optical CT scanner was designed for PRESAGE 3D dosimeter readout, relying on 3D printed components and omitting costly parts from preceding optical scanners. This work details the design, prototyping, and basic commissioning of the Duke Integrated-lens Optical Scanner (DIOS).

The convex scanning geometry was designed in ScanSim, an in-house Monte Carlo optical ray-tracing simulation. ScanSim parameters were used to build a 3D rendering of a convex ‘solid tank’ for optical-CT, which is capable of collimating a point light source into telecentric geometry without significant quantities of refractive-index matched fluid. The model was 3D printed, processed, and converted into a negative mold via rubber casting to produce a transparent polyurethane scanning tank. The DIOS was assembled with the solid tank, a 3W red LED light source, a computer-controlled rotation stage, and a 12-bit CCD camera. Initial optical phantom studies show negligible spatial inaccuracies in 2D projection images and 3D tomographic reconstructions. A PRESAGE 3D dose measurement for a 4-field box treatment plan from Eclipse shows 95% of voxels passing gamma analysis at 3%/3mm criteria. Gamma analysis between tomographic images of the same dosimeter in the DIOS and DLOS systems show 93.1% agreement at 5%/1mm criteria. From this initial study, the DIOS has demonstrated promise as an economically-viable optical-CT scanner. However, further improvements will be necessary to fully develop this system into an accurate and reliable tool for advanced QA.

Pre-clinical animal studies are used as a conventional means of translational research, as a midpoint between in-vitro cell studies and clinical implementation. However, modern small animal radiotherapy platforms are primitive in comparison with conventional linear accelerators. This work also investigates a series of 3D printed tools to expand the treatment capabilities of the X-RAD 225Cx orthovoltage irradiator, and applies them to a feasibility study of hippocampal avoidance in rodent whole-brain radiotherapy.

As an alternative material to lead, a novel 3D-printable tungsten-composite ABS plastic, GMASS, was tested to create precisely-shaped blocks. Film studies show virtually all primary radiation at 225 kVp can be attenuated by GMASS blocks of 0.5cm thickness. A state-of-the-art software, BlockGen, was used to create custom hippocampus-shaped blocks from medical image data, for any possible axial treatment field arrangement. A custom 3D printed bite block was developed to immobilize and position a supine rat for optimal hippocampal conformity. An immobilized rat CT with digitally-inserted blocks was imported into the SmART-Plan Monte-Carlo simulation software to determine the optimal beam arrangement. Protocols with 4 and 7 equally-spaced fields were considered as viable treatment options, featuring improved hippocampal conformity and whole-brain coverage when compared to prior lateral-opposed protocols. Custom rodent-morphic PRESAGE dosimeters were developed to accurately reflect these treatment scenarios, and a 3D dosimetry study was performed to confirm the SmART-Plan simulations. Measured doses indicate significant hippocampal sparing and moderate whole-brain coverage.

Relating Innovative 2D Ideas into 3D Garments in Terms of Structure, Using ‘Sculptural Form Giving’ as an Intermediate Step in Creation.

This research focuses on finding a fashion design methodology to reliably translate innovative two-dimensional ideas on paper, via a structural design sculpture, into an intermediate model. The author, both as a fashion designer and a researcher, has witnessed the issues which arise, regarding the loss of some of the initial ideas and distortion during the two-dimensional creative sketch to three-dimensional garment transfer process. Therefore, this research is concerned with fashion designers engaged in transferring a two-dimensional sketch through the method ‘sculptural form giving’. This research method applies the ideal model of conceptual sculpture, in the fashion design process, akin to those used in the disciplines of architecture. These parallel design disciplines share similar processes for realizing design ideas. Moreover, this research investigates and formalizes the processes that utilize the measurable space between the garment and the body, to help transfer garment variation and scale. In summation, this research proposition focuses on helping fashion designers to produce a creative method that helps the designer transfer their imaginative concept through intermediate modeling.

The effective and the evocative : reflecting on practice-led research approaches in art and design

Early in the practice-led research debate, Steven Scrivener (2000, 2002) identified some general differences in the approach of artists and designers undertaking postgraduate research. His distinctions centered on the role of the artefact in problem-based research (associated with design) and creative-production research (associated with artistic practice). Nonetheless, in broader discussions on practice-led research, 'art and design' often continues to be conflated within a single term. In particular, marked differences between art and design methodologies, theoretical framing, research goals and research claims have been underestimated. This paper revisits Scrivener's work and establishes further distinctions between art and design research. It is informed by our own experiences of postgraduate supervision and research methods training, and an empirical study of over sixty postgraduate, practice-led projects completed at the Creative Industries Faculty of QUT between 2002 and 2008. Our reflections have led us to propose that artists and designers work with differing research goals (the evocative and the effective, respectively), which are played out in the questions asked, the creative process, the role of the artefact and the way new knowledge is evidenced. Of course, research projects will have their own idiosyncrasies but, we argue, marking out the poles at each end of the spectrum of art and design provides useful insights for postgraduate candidates, supervisors and methodologists alike.

Three primary school students’ cognition about 3D rotation in a virtual reality learning environment

This paper reports on three primary school students’ explorations of 3D rotation in a virtual reality learning environment (VRLE) named VRMath. When asked to investigate if you would face the same direction when you turn right 45 degrees first then roll up 45 degrees, or when you roll up 45 degrees first then turn right 45 degrees, the students found that the different order of the two turns ended up with different directions in the VRLE. This was contrary to the students’ prior predictions based on using pen, paper and body movements. The findings of this study showed the difficulty young children have in perceiving and understanding the non-commutative nature of 3D rotation and the power of the computational VRLE in giving students experiences that they rarely have in real life with 3D manipulations and 3D mental movements.

Relics

Relics is a single-channel video derived from a 3D computer animation that combines a range of media including photography, drawing, painting, and pre-shot video. It is constructed around a series of pictorial stills which become interlinked by the more traditionally filmic processes of panning, zooming and crane shots. In keeping with these ideas, the work revolves around a series of static architectural forms within the strangely menacing enclosure of a geodesic dome. These clinical aspects of the work are complemented by a series of elements that evoke fluidity : fireworks, mirrored biomorphic forms and oscillating projections. The visual dimension of the work is complemented by a soundtrack of rainforest bird calls. Through its ambiguous combination of recorded and virtual imagery, Relics explores the indeterminate boundaries between real and virtual space. On the one hand, it represents actual events and spaces drawn from the artist studio and image archive; on the other it represents the highly idealised spaces of drawing and 3D animation. In this work the disembodied wandering virtual eye is met with an uncanny combination of scenes, where scale and the relationships between objects are disrupted and changed. Through this simultaneity between the real and the virtual, the work conveys a disembodied sense of space and time that carries a powerful sense of affect. Relics was among the first international examples of 3D animation technology in contemporary art. It was originally exhibited in the artist’s solo show, ‘Places That Don’t Exist’ (2007, George Petelin Gallery, Gold Coast) and went on to be included in the group shows ‘d/Art 07/Screen: The Post Cinema Experience’ (2007, Chauvel Cinema, Sydney) , ‘Experimenta Utopia Now: International Biennial of Media Art’ (2010, Arts Centre, Melbourne and national touring venues) and ‘Move on Asia’ (2009, Alternative space Loop, Seoul and Para-site Art Space, Hong Kong) and was broadcast on Souvenirs from Earth (Video Art Cable Channel, Germany and France). The work was analysed in catalogue texts for ‘Places That Don’t Exist’ (2007), ‘d/Art 07’ (2007) and ‘Experimenta Utopia Now’ (2010) and the’ Souvenirs from Earth’ website.