Cinematic Objects & Temporal Aesthetics

Course: VS 4120: Visual Studies III Seminar 

Cinematic Objects & Temporal Aesthetics

Architectural Dimensions of the Past, Present, & Future

Instructor: Marcelo Spina, James Piccone 

Teaching Assistant: Yi Bo Yuan

Collaborator: Allen Ming Fei Teng, Mark Hui Hao Ma

3D Software: Rhino, Cinema 4D

Visual Studies III is the last of three core VS seminars in the M. Arch 1 program; VS I and VS II are prerequisites for this class. The course builds on digital modeling techniques acquired in the first year by focusing on rendering and animating architectural objects with a specific focus on buildings. The exercises emphasize a material exploration of models and environments through texture, tone, atmosphere, grain, focus, contrast, and other photographic qualities. The course aims to instill a means for questioning generally accepted modes of representation by developing a sensitivity to how rendering and animation enhance existing contexts as well as construct new realities. Exercises are closely coordinated with the studio curriculum to provide a supportive technical framework for design. 

The Xinxiang Cultural Tourism Center is the architectural icon of the new tourism district, which will be dedicated to winter sports, including the presence of the future indoor ski slope. The ambition of the project is to create a strong urban indicator that unites the whole district. The project does not look like a classic building. It is a sculpture out of scale, a pure and monumental volume.