For the past 8 months, I have been working on the Paris: Past and Present project. Run by Professor Meredith Cohen of the Art History department the project seeks to mediate the art historical with the digital, creating 3D architectural models of 13th century Parisian structures. As you may have seen from Raphael and Haley‘s posts, they are also involved with the project. If this is a project you find interesting, please read Raphael and Haley’s posts and don’t hesitate to ask all of us for more info!
Reading Lisa Snyder’s Virtual Reality for Humanities Scholarship really got me thinking about notions of pedagogy behind 3D modeling and the creation of virtual realities. Over the past quarter, my main duties on the Paris: Past and Present project have been to create tutorials which explain both historical context and technical steps. This task has made me appreciate how massive the scope of virtual reality projects are. As Snyder explains, there is a necessity to define the scope: will the project be process or product based? As the name suggests, process-based projects are created with the intent of investigating a new type of process or creation. They are made without the intention of longevity. Product based projects are meant to create a resource which will continue to exist as a stand-alone resource.
Using 3D modeling in the classroom brings up questions of product and process: to what extent should both be explained? Should students be trained to use/alter the resource to their own needs (product) or trained to create their own replica (process)? This is perhaps more a question of what type of class is being taught, but it is, none the less, something I think about when creating tutorials.
Over the past month, I have been compiling a comprehensive guide to making 13th century Parisian arches in Vectorworks (an architectural-grade CAD program). I am continually amazed by how long this process has taken! It seems that making a tutorial would be simple, but when it is necessary to establish “process,” things get more complicated. In a digital humanities virtual reality project, process does not simply refer to a single discipline. Process requires the explanation of the program, project protocols (naming, document size), keyboard short cuts, sourcing of raw data, documentation of sources, and historical context. These “sub-processes” are technical, administrative, and humanities based. It can be a lot to juggle and requires highly structured explanation! In the article, Snyder briefly mentions how level of technical proficiency (using sketch up vs a more complicated software) effects the ability to adapt software to the classroom. This thought haunts me as I look at my 40 page 2D Tri Arch tutorial, how should one judge scope of process?
I hope that in her presentation this week, we will hear more from Lisa Snyder about VSim and pedagogical applications of virtual reality. I am really excited to hear what she has to say! I am curious if anyone else has any 3D modeling/virtual reality pedagogy thoughts!