3D Archives - Pacific Northwest Sculptors

After years working online, up to my eyeballs in technology, I really appreciate the tactile sensation of hands-on work. It’s the fundamental connection and eye/hand coordination that I find fulfilling. However, I have not lost my fascination with what technology can do. And, since my marketing communications genes are still alive and well, I cannot ignore the potential of what is happening in the digital 3D realm.

I was approached by a representative of Prefixa recently. She offered to convert one of my existing sculptures into a 3D model. Once I saw their example, I couldn’t resist exploring further.

Scan this QR code with you phone to see and interactive 3D sculpture.

This is still an emerging technology. It’s not perfect, but it does work and it is impressive. The AR version of this file can be placed in your environment using your phone. Put the sculpture in the middle of your dining room table and walk around it. Scale it. Zoom it. This is incredibly effective way to visualize sculpture in situ. If you would like to see the AR version, let me know. I’ll text you the file and you can drain your phone battery while you amaze friends.

In January 2019, I participated in a conference in NYC on NFTs (non-fungible tokens). The event was about creating and selling digital versions of art for cryptocurrency. It’s a bit out there, but there are artists actually earning real money and cryptocurrency for their art.

I met up with a couple of other participants from that conference last week. We talked about the future of digital art and commerce. Here’s is a short summary of possibilities that are in development or already in the market.

Virtual galleries exist, mostly for 2D art. Technology also exists to create a 3D gallery for viewing sculpture in the round. These galleries may deal in actual (not just virtual) dollars. Selling digital copies of a sculpture means you man create limited edition digital copies and set your price. That may also contribute to the value of the original.

Remember the Monopoly game? Check out Upland. You buy a space (think URL) that is mapped to a physical, real-world address. In this metaverse, you build it up with houses, hotels and other assets like music, video, paintings and sculpture. Turn the property into a gallery filled with 3D sculptures. It’s an immersive experience. If a visitor likes a sculpture, they can purchase a digital copy. Here’s how Upland describes the experience:

Join a brand new NFT metaverse that is mapped to the real world and quickly becoming the largest and most dynamic blockchain-based economy in existence. Buy, sell and trade virtual properties mapped to real addresses. Build your dream house, start a virtual business and earn UPX coins or U.S. dollars by selling your NFT properties in a free and open marketplace.

In Monopoly, commerce is conducted with blue, purple, yellow and green money. In the virtual world, it may be crypto or real currency. All of this is evolving quickly. I have not taken the step to actually sell my work through this platform. I’m still exploring and learning how it all works. I do believe that this is one version of the future of art marketing. Success will depend, as always, on the quality of work and getting it in front of the right potential buyers. As I have said before, you never know until you try. Then you know.

Experiences Of 3D Technology In Virtual Environments

In a virtual world, one can define their own laws of nature. One can redefine material properties. Weightless, magnetic marble? Winged kittens? How about a room full of creepy statues that respond to your emotional state. I am pondering all this and imagining entire constructed worlds when, sculptor, Andy Kennedy sends me a video. I find myself in a real gallery, with sculptures that can only be seen when viewed through a phone, tablet, or 3D goggles. This is augmented reality, the real world with 3D technology digital constructions superimposed upon it. Here was a way to focus on virtual sculpture without the distraction of having to construct the environment as well and the consequent problem of how one would move about in it realistically. Using the real world as the stage resolves that nicely. I’ve posted some links below.

Here is a link to an artist. His name is Maxim Zhesthov. This is an example of redefining material properties. I thought this was real until something happened that could only be digital. Remember all those people wandering the streets staring at their iPhones playing Pokemon, peeking under bushes with their phones looking for little creatures? That is an example of augmented reality.

In the above image, only the little man is digital. The full video can be seen if you follow the link. The artists are Adrian M and Clair.

The argument can be made that such things are not sculpture because they don’t have a physical presence, but isn’t that what a painting is, an image of a real thing? And does it matter anyway? The point here is that this is a new brush, a new tool.