A world premiere: A+D Museum tells the story of arch viz


From the earliest wireframes to current explorations in AR and VR, the A+D Museum reveals the history of architectural visualization and examines its future.

 

Wireframes: The Visualization of Architecture opened on September 8, 2018, at the A+D Architecture and Design Museum in Downtown Los Angeles. The exhibition tracks the evolution of architectural visualization, from its beginnings, through the significant milestones, to where we are today. Of key importance to the show is the technology that has revolutionized the way artists work, with stunning examples documenting the use of various technology right back to the early 1980s.


The exhibition opened with over 600 attendees from Los Angeles and beyond, including top talents from Kilograph, DBOX, FloodSlicer, Shimahara and many more world-renowned arch viz studios

The goal of Wireframes is to tell the story of architectural visualization by the people who have lived it. Curated by visualization experts from Kilograph, Gensler, ​​​​​​​CGarchitect and Chaos Group with the A+D Museum, the work on display encourages attendees to explore the practice that defines how we view structures and space.

Photography by Hans Koesters.


Over 30 artists and firms are participating in the exhibit, including Hayes Davidson, DBOX, Kilograph, Studio amd, Neoscape, Mir, and Luxigon

As the first exhibition to tackle this important subject, the curatorial team worked hard to bring in as many perspectives as possible, drawing from throughout the field’s rich history. Over 30 artists and firms are participating in the exhibit, including Hayes Davidson, DBOX, Kilograph, Studio amd, Neoscape, Mir, Luxigon, Alex Roman, as well as architect-turned-director, Joseph Kosinski.

One of the most enlightening aspects of the exhibition are the story panels, each created by a different architectural visualization artist or studio to give their take on a particular subject that the curatorial team defined as an essential part of the history of arch viz. From the very first wireframe through to today’s explorations in AR and VR, the story panels discuss the evolution of the field, examine its impact on the future, and look at the origins, inspirations and workflow-changing technologies along the way.

Photography by Hans Koesters.


Many of the featured artworks utilize V-Ray and Corona Renderer, both industry-standard and widely used tools in architectural visualization

“The history of architectural visualization tells the story of architectural communications,” said Anthony Morey, executive director and chief curator at A+D Museum. “From the first ‘wireframe’ to future updates in multi-sensory experiences, this is an art form that continues to mold public expectations about built environments that shape their lives. As these images enter the public realm, they broaden our imaginations by pushing forward advances in urban environments and architecture. As architectural visualization practices advance, they give us a new form of freedom to explore where we are and our possible futures.”

Showcased alongside Wireframes at the A+D Museum is Architecture in Perspective, an exhibition that proudly presents this year’s winners of the American Society of Architectural Illustrators’ Architecture in Perspective Competition. This international-juried competition recognizes the world’s best architectural illustrations across a wide spectrum of traditional and digital media, and winners include Sergei Tchoban, Steelblue, Paul Stevenson Oles and Forbes Massie. The CGarchitect Architectural 3D Awards are also a highlight of the exhibition as the largest and most prestigious awards event for the architectural visualization industry; winners in the show include top studios, freelancers and students from around the world.

Photography by Hans Koesters.


In addition to having their award-winning artwork displayed at the A+D Museum in Los Angeles, the winners, nominees and participants shared over $436,000 in prizes through the CGarchitect Architectural 3D Awards

Wireframes, Architecture in Perspective and the CGarchitect Architectural 3D Awards exhibits are open to the public through to Sunday, November 25, 2018, during regular business. Learn more at aplusd.org.

Photography by Hans Koesters.


A collection of large image panels and narrated stories told by multiple artists and studios tell the history of architectural visualization at the A+D Museum in Downtown Los Angeles

The A+D Museum is a place for individuality, creativity, discovery and continuous questioning. Established in January 2001, it is the only museum in the country to exclusively and continuously host architecture and design exhibitions, symposia, multi-disciplinary projects, educational and community programs. The A+D Museum is located at 900 E. 4th Street, Los Angeles, CA 90013. See opening hours at aplusd.org.

Wireframes branding created by Kilograph, Los Angeles
About the author

Lynette Clee

Lynette works in the Strategic Marketing team in Los Angeles where she assists with the coordination and management of all editorial content and PR, as well as writing copy for marketing materials including newsletters and the blog. Lynette has 12 years of experience as a writer and editor, with previous roles including the editor of 3dtotal.com and 3D Artist magazine in the UK, and senior editor and event producer at Gnomon School of Visual Effects in Hollywood, California.