Client – University of Stanford/Çatalhöyük research project
Funding – Stanford Institute for Research in the Social Sciences (IRiSS)
CGI model – Grant Cox (ArtasMedia)
Specialist Consultant – Gesualdo Busacca
Programs used – 3DS Max/Vray/After Effects/Photoshop/PhoenixFD
The Turkish Neolithic site of Çatalhöyük was discovered during a survey in November 1958 by James Mellaart where he uncovered incredible buildings, artwork and material remains of a culture dating back to 7500BC. The original excavations were cut short, but in 1993 the project was continued by Professor Ian Hodder to discover more about some of the earliest examples of urban civilisation.
The reconstruction work on building 49 was primarily a research driven study aimed at relocating a series of excavated paintings back into a simulated environment (3DS Max/Vray) in order to acertain how specific research questions could be digitally applied in a controlled virtual context, specifically in relation to visibility, annual light analysis and the use of lumination in varying places within the space.
After visiting the site in 2017, internal photographic and light readings were taken from the reconstructed physical spaces at the site of Çatalhöyük and were used as a standard for these studies inside the virtual 1:1 environment.
More information regarding these experiments will be released in future publications that will be documented here.
