Graphics Programs Reference
In-Depth Information
this competition was the conversion and renovation of a derelict, 10-unit
apartment block and the construction of a new complex containing 28
apartments.
The architects Jean Filhol and Mathieu Guéroult of the SEPRA practice - an
office with wide-ranging experience in public-sector architecture - decided to
enter the competition and called upon Frédéric Blanc's expertise to create the
renders for the competition entry.
Project Context
In an open competition, the architect has to respond quickly and decisively to
the client's brief.
Using plans, sections, and elevations, architects tried their best to respond
to the expectations of the client and to describe the solutions that they put
forward. Perspective renders of the project allow those involved to judge the
esthetic quality of the building and, if needs be, to get an idea of its integra-
tion into the existing built environment.
The SEPRA practice uses PowerCADD drafting software on the Mac. This
technical drawing package allows them to produce all the necessary
plans, sections, and elevations for a project. The first step in this
development was to create a 3D model using the 2D technical drawings
provided by SEPRA. In a public competition, the time factor is vital, since
the deadline for submission cannot be missed. It is also not unusual for
architects to be making modifications to their proposals right up until the
last moment.
In the case under consideration here, only 3 days were penciled in for building
the model, creating two perspectives and compositing the model onto a site
photograph: an extremely tight deadline.
Techniques Used
Before beginning a job, it is essential to choose the tools that best meet the
constraints of the project. SketchUp showed itself to be the best choice for
modeling for the following reasons:
• Itcaneasilyimportplans,sections,andelevationsinDWGformat
that can then be used as reference drawings. For this project, only the
building facades needed to be modeled: there would be no interior
perspectives.
• SketchUpallowsyoutoworkquicklyandeiciently.
• CreatingrepeatingelementsintheprojectasSketchUpcomponents
helps to manage any changes made to those elements as the project
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