Pachacamac Woman

 The two pictures above are the screenshot of the Inca woman. The following photo is one of the references. I also combined the face with some other women in the photos, and changed the shape of the face to make it more general.

The following two pictures are the normal body of a female I built recently. I still need to make it more like a Inca woman, that is the shape should not be too perfect. Actually I have some problem realizing the shape of Inca woman. The ideas for now is to give her upper body, the chest,  the abdominal, more sense of expansion.

From Carly - Pompeii and Constitution Center

This is the wiki page of a research team who virtually reconstructed and populated ancient Pompeii. On this page you can find a paper about their process, screen shots, and videos…lots of links so have fun. I think the videos are pretty cool except their faces look weird, some of the cloth seems a little too ‘stuck’ to the body, everyone is walking around alone which is unnatural, and in the large plaza area, I think the cobblestones don’t repeat very well. I can pick out the repeating unit too easily but maybe that is just the textile print designer in me.


This also happens to be about Pompeii but from what I can gather I think it’s actually a different team of people who worked on this project.

“This paper proposes a new development for the innovative revival of life in ancient fresco paintings in ancient Pompeii and creation of narrative spaces. The revival is based on real scenes captured on live video sequences augmented with real-time autonomous groups of 3D virtual fauna and flora.” They refer to this combination as “mixed reality”.

This paper discusses facial and cloth simulation but its overall focus is bringing preserved frescoes from the actual site to life. Maybe we could apply this idea to the friezes on the painted temple or Guaman Poma illustrations somehow? Also if you search around, the same authors have a lot of papers on cloth simulation out there.

In other news I visited the constitution center this weekend. The arrangement of their audio/speaker systems was really impressive. I sketched out some of their set ups that I will share at the meeting today. Maybe we should arrange a meeting with someone there to discuss their engineering process. While there I also saw the vide/projection/performance called Freedom Rising. The visitors sit in a sort of small arena, stadium seating. Above the seats is a large ring of curved projection screens (with projectors in the center of the ceiling), there are also videos/images projected onto the floor, where a speaker stands who tells the story of the constitution, also at one point, and circular screen lowers down around the person telling the story, at this point there is literally projection surrounding the audience members (I have a crappy drawing of this too). Again the print designer in me evaluated the repeat of the projections on 360 degrees of screen and I found it pretty seamless and impressive. Also there were some scenes in this multimedia presentation where there were modern day actors (average people on the street debating politics etc.) layered over old drawings and paintings and it actually wasn’t as cheesy as it sounds. So that is another way we could potentially use Guaman Poma’s illustrations and bring them to life.

If you haven't seen Freedom Riding you should go check it out.

Adam - Mamacona update

Having finished modeling the Mamacona complex based on photos taken of it, I began raising walls that I thought might have existed when it was first built. So, the southeast building now has three floors and an outdoor deck-type area.

Here's the second floor of the southeast building with some poorly put-together lighting to show off its structure.

From Carly - Textiles

You may remember this video that I posted several weeks back, I also played it in a meeting. I have since spoken with the artist who created them and he had this to say:


"I used 3DS Max as the primary software for 3d animation and cloth simulations. Everything was then composited in After Effects where everything was pieced together and color corrected. Textures and the like were created in Photoshop."

I'm not sure if any of our modelers are available to work on this kind of stuff because I know you are all working on several projects but I just thought I should share.

Also I have been in touch with representatives from a company called EAT, they provide software for textile designers that basically communicates instructions to looms. They also provide demos that show a designer what their fabric will look like. This page has a video (click on the 3D textile simulation video, and skip ahead past the slow intro) that demonstrates their programs and demos. While they do not offer actual animation of fabrics in use (to show friction, drapability, etc.) I think that their renderings of fabrics are really realistic and accurate. I especially like how they zoom in to show structures and yarn textures. I received a list of their packages and prices and I have inquired about our specific uses. They have never worked with virtual heritage material in the past but I have been explaining to them that there is actually a market out there for such applications. I think that there is hope here because EAT understands textiles so well. Their website claims:


"EAT’s software packages will cover almost all of the needs occuring when it comes to CAD/CAM for the textile industry. But maybe you have an individual task that is not covered by EAT’s software packages. We also develop custom software tailored to your needs. Whether it is a special function for the existing software that you already have, or in case you need something completely new, starting from scratch...."

Basically they are interested in working with new ideas. An old professor of mine is seeking out training in the yarn info input and fabric simulation aspect of their software and I plan to kind of tag along with her. I'll keep you posted on their interest in our project.

- Carly

revised male model

I exaggerate his cheekbone. Besides, I make the middle part of his face wider.
And I notice that classic Inca people's lower face (section below the eye) is a little bit larger and longer than modern people.

Adam, Jeanette and Carly's trip to D.C.

Yesterday (June 20th) the three of us went to Washington, D.C. to visit a few relevant museum exhibits. The most relevant exhibit we saw that we will focus on in this post was called "Echoes of the Past" which is in the Sackler Gallery.

First we went on a docent-led tour of the exhibit so we could experience it like other visitors would, and so we could learn about the culture, artifacts, and site. There are three galleries of artifacts that lead to a video projection gallery, followed by more artifacts. The set up had a nice flow to it because there were no obstructing, distracting, text panels. It didn't feel cluttered, and the artifacts were arranged in a way that mimicked their original orientations in the caves. The directive lighting and minimal color palette allowed us to focus on the sculptures and prints.

After our tour we met with the curator, Dr. Keith Wilson, and the project assistant, Ms. Daisy Wang, to discuss their decision-making process leading up to the installation of the exhibit. This was informative because they gave us insight on the logistics of working with an artist, other institutions, and a foreign country.

Things we learned:
Projection decisions/animated camera
Mirrors for physical projection
Artist being an artist
Cost of having tech people on standby + for travel
Backup projectors
No technical difficulties so far
More effective than actually being in cave (lighting) (convince board)
Research kiosks with extra info + text
Silent intro video of caves and nearby city to set the scene
Touch panels to interact with digital artifacts
Out of time for color reconstruction and ceiling
Wish they had discussed color reconstruction
Lack of sound except for fans
Show simplified mesh
Old photos confusing
Walls angled outward to prevent claustrophobia
Slowed down video to prevent motion sickness

If this is vague or confusing, please ask us about it in person.

Update from Jeanette

This week I spent a lot of time attempting to create virtual artifacts using the ARC 3D program. The ARC 3D program was made by EPOCH, European research network on excellence in Processing Open Cultural Heritage, that created this program for free use to virtually simulate artifacts. In theory it sounds very simple: download program, create username & password, upload photographs of artifacts, wait, open the files they send back. Sadly my experience wasn't quite so stress free. One vital stipulation that Clark and I were hoping could be overlooked is the way in which the pictures are taken. When we were taking photographs it was easiest to set the lights up stationary at the edge of a table and then move the artifact. However, because this makes the light inconsistent in relation to the vessel (when the vessel moves the light then shines on a different side of the vessel) the program mailed back a giant unconnected blob of nothingness. Even when I attempted to take photographs as they direct the light was still too inconsistent because I was using primarily overhead lights. Adam had the idea of placing an LED light (no heat to damage the artifact) on a turntable with an artifact, turn off the rest of the lights, and then photograph it from all angles. While this may work in theory I feel that it would be too time consuming of a process and we should move on to look for other ways to create virtual artifacts.

Since the ARC 3D program didn't work I've been looking for different examples of successful virtual archaeology. This website, while older than I would like, is a good example of showing artifacts where they would be found in a site and then being able to interact with the artifact directly. The walk through of the kiva itself is even well done. One problem with it is that the viewer is fixed within the space, they cannot zoom in or out or have a lower or higher viewpoint. I envision the Pachacamac project as more of a video game where the visitor can interact with the landscape which means varying their point of view and allowing them to move throughout the space. Currently I'm systematically going through this site which lists lots of wonderful virtual archaeology pages. However, I'm having some issues working on my laptop and will dig into them further when I get to the lab. Of special interest to me is the Paloma World link that advertises being able to virtually participate in an archaeological dig.

The Giza Project is in contention for my favorite 3D reconstruction of an archaeological site. While they did rely on archival photographs, their reconstructions of the above ground and even subterranean spaces are incredible. I find the expanse of the mastabas amazing. Granted, it's 'sterile' looking but I think it's something to strive for. My favorite part is when the camera cuts underground and you can see the subterranean chambers from straight on. With Clark talking about plugging Uhle's photos into the reconstruction it would be interesting to then have the burial chambers intact in the simulation.

Finally, I participated in an eye tracking experiment yesterday. This is in response to a paper that Carly found a week or two ago discussing the usefulness of eye tracking technology within visual heritage contexts. The way that eye tracking is achieved without the use of head gear is to beam a light into the eye, which is then reflected by the retina and picked up by a receptor on the same plane as the light source. Even though it sounds like a great idea in theory, there are problems that make it not possible for museum use yet. One problem is that visual correction apparatuses (eye glasses and contact lenses) cause a large error. I wear soft contact lenses and my eyes were not able to be accurately tracked. Another problem is that the reflection from any eye makeup causes for false readings also. Eye tracking is a great idea for finding out how the eye moves within a museum display and may want to be kept on the back burner until the technology evolves.