Archviz

An 18th-Century Country House plan (Attingham, Shropshire).

Originally, drawings were made using pen and ink. For most projects, copies were produced by hand, sometimes aided by a 'pricker out'. This was a person who would push a pin through several sheets of paper at key points of the geometry, so that copiers could then 'join the dots' on each copy.

In the 1890s the invention of cyano and later diazo 'blueprints' made copies easier to produce but the originals were still as hard to produce.

Perspective of interior, Attingham House.

A perspective, in particular, took a skilled artist many hours to produce and was usually used to 'sell' a design to the client. The artist would naturally choose the most flattering view.

This is of course still the case today….

When cost was not an issue, one way to bring extra realism and to try out colour schemes was to build a scaled model. Nostell House in Wakefield has a large 18th Century 'doll's house' which was used for this purpose.

Some artists, notably Poussin, used a form of peep-show. In the 17th Century, Poussin's 'Great Machine' allowed him to study in detail the effect of lighting on materials. This example is in the Fitzwilliam, Cambridge, with the models made of wax and the clothing being small pieces of silk.

Nowadays, using 3D CAD, perspectives can be produced more or less on demand, aiding the design and communication process. A 360˚ panorama (see below) or video can be particularly useful when trying to see all round or into a space.

The ultimate is a VR view using a suitable headset. We use Twinmotion software from Epic Games. This allows for a fully immersive walkthrough the whole project, getting the 'feel' as well as the 'look' of the spaces.

Feel free to contact us for more information or to discuss your project.

History of Archviz