3DVIA®

Corey Papadopoli provides us with some great images, project descriptions and comments that all add up to a clear window into how 3D computer modeling is now an integral part of architecture. 

Corey has worked in Boston, New York City, Puerto Rico, Seal Harbor, Maine, and Florence, Italy prior to joining Elliott Elliott Norelius in Blue Hill, ME.  His design experience ranges from single-family residential to office buildings and religious structures.

Corey received his Bachelor of Architecture degree magna cum laude from Wentworth Institute of Technologyand holds an Associates Degree in Architectural Engineering Technology summa cum laude from the same institution.  While at Wentworth he received the Henry Adams Medal and the President’s Award for Academic Excellence and Co-Curricular Involvement. 

He has entered several competitions, winning the ASHRAE Architectural Systems Design Competition in 1998.  He is currently licensed in Maine and Massachusetts and is NCARB certified. 

When not drawing or modeling he can usually be found atop a mountain or hitting a volleyball.

Q1: How did you first become interested in 3D modeling?
When I was in architecture school I actually stayed away from 3D modeling as long as possible, choosing to work by hand.  Most 3D programs available to me at the time felt clumsy and were not good design tools.  Handwork was quicker, more expressive, and easily manipulated to achieve the effect I was after.  I still work in large part by hand.  My 5th year of school I was working for a firm in Boston.  The project I was working on was a residence in Maine and the clients were having a difficult time comprehending the design.

I was simultaneously taking a class using 3D Studio Viz and began creating a model of the house.  From this model I was able to generate rendered perspectives and animations but also cut-aways and exploded views that the clients could understand better than the 2D drawings and sketches we had been showing them to date.  It was then that I began to realize the potential the computer model had as a design and presentation tool.

Port Clyde Residence
Peter Forbes, FAIA, Architects
This was the first project I modeled.  It was for the firm I was working for, Peter Forbes & Associates in Boston.  Its initial purpose was as a design tool and learning model.  It became useful when we were able to show the client the 3D cutaways of the interior.  These initial models were just hidden line renderings but the model became more refined as time went on.

Q2: What type of 3D models do you do?
I essentially model buildings and furniture.  Models are used early in the process to help establish spatial relationships and site connections.  They allow us to look at, through, around, and under the building in a way that can quickly shape design decisions.  Light is the lens through which architecture is seen.  Modeling the play of light and shadow on a model is extremely informative in the design process.

Q3: What role do your models play in the work you do?
Models are essential to the design process, not only as a visualization tool but also as a design tool.  Models allow us to present ideas to clients from a number of viewpoints.  As design tools they provide a way to check the vision in our minds against the “reality” of three dimensional space.  Is what we conceived plausible?  How do structure and systems integrate into the architectural concept?  How does light affect the space at different times of the day and year?  What is the site relationship?

97 Sylvan Way
ARCHITECTURE RobertCollins
This was a house that I helped design with Robert Collins.  The model initially served as a design tool for us to study the exterior envelope, interior spaces, and structural components.  It became very involved.  We later refined it with the help of Paul Kempton for lighting studies and marketing purposes.

Lights off

Lights on

Outside stairs and the studio

Different plan views cut through the building at different levels.

Q4: How much time do you spend, on average, on one particular model?
It varies depending on the use of the model.  Some models are done quickly to look at a design decision three-dimensionally.  These might take minutes and are mostly about space and light.  Clients generally never see these.  Presentation models are at the opposite end of the spectrum and can take days or longer depending on the level of detail required or if animation is necessary.  Usually what we do falls somewhere in between: not quite presentation quality but more than schematic.

Q5: What additional software do you use to create your images?
Photoshop is used to touch up almost any image.

Studio

ARCHITECTURE RobertCollins

This was a separate structure for the clients to utilize as both a studio and an observatory.  They had a great interest in the stars and the model was used to demonstrate the structure’s relationship to the sky.

Q6: What is your work day like?
It can be all over the place.  Some days I may be out at a site observing the state of a project under construction.  Others I am behind the computer working back and forth between drawings and models.  Sometimes specifications and schedules can absorb an entire day of my life which I will never, ever get back.

Q7: What are your tips for staying focused on a big project?
For me a large project translates into a complex building (typically).  I find it is good to move back and forth between a small detail and the entire exterior of the building.  Work inductively.  Move from the bottom up.  There should be a concept that drives every project.  This concept should not only describe (in my case) the way the exterior is designed but also what derives the smallest detail.  Knowing that concept is there to help resolve any issue that comes up is the biggest key for me.  In a successful and solid project that concept is traceable down to every decision made. 

Freeport Residence
Elliott Elliott Norelius Architecture
This project was fairly complex and one of the first I worked on for my current firm.  We had a compressed period of time to work on this: design began in July with construction starting in November.  We were still working on construction drawings while they were pouring concrete.  We needed to convey to the clients the relationship of the modern glass elements to the traditional wood boxes, the underlying concept of the project.  This model was fairly schematic and served its function well. 

As modeled

As built

Q8: Where do you go (web sites, museums, race tracks, anywhere) for help, tips and inspiration?
Museums are great places to go but I am unfortunately no longer surrounded by many of them.  I do try and go when I can.  I find a lot of inspiration in books.  The connection between literature and architecture is more relevant than it seems.  As architects we are generally trying to tell a story; how well the story is told is a direct relationship to the success of the project.

Q9: What part of 3D modeling do you find most rewarding?
When a 3D model can be used to inform a design decision or help me see something I had not previously thought of or considered, it definitely becomes worth it. 

Q10: Do you do 3D modeling at home on personal projects?
I created a model of our house which I used as a design tool.  It is now under construction.

Sylvan Way
This is a model of my house, currently under construction which can be seen here: http://sylvanway.blogspot.com .   The model was used as a design tool quite heavily as I would constantly make changes in it while evaluating it from different angles.

As modeled

During construction

Q11: Just for fun, what is your favorite game? movie? comic book?
I am definitely a Trivial Pursuit kind-of-person.  Movie is a lot tougher.  I guess I would have to say The Godfather.  Never got into comic books; prefer to read literature or poetry. 

Q12: What is your favorite subject other than 3D modeling?
Architecture, of course.

Thank you Corey for your great project descriptions, process insights and comments about the value that you find using 3D modeling in your chosen profession.  And good luck and good weather as you finish the house!