devil's advocate

[L. Lanham]

I'm pretty new to this sight, and I'll bet this has been discussed before...BUT here goes anyway...
As cool as zbrush and maya are, they aren't really sculptures.
Are they?

[Epho]

Well, as I see it, 3D is digital sculptures. Why do you ask, anyway?

[Kaete]

Since they're 3D objects (even if it's just in the digital world), then artistically, they need to be critiqued as 3D objects. For instance "that line is clumsy" is less meaningful to a 3D artist than "the depth of the eyes seems a little too deep." You're using the same language as if it were a clay sculpture sitting right in front of you.

If you have trouble wrapping your brain around that, just imagine this - in today's world of 3D printers, most of these 3D pieces could easily be printed out and given "life" in the real world. So just act like they've already been printed, and you're looking at photos.

[jlamarche]

As cool as zbrush and maya are, they aren't really sculptures.
Are they?

Well, in the same sense that a digital painting isn't really a painting. It's not a physical work of art - it doesn't exist in a physical sense, it's just data.

But, that's a relatively stupid distinction. Digital is just another medium - one with some distinct advantages and some disadvantages over traditional sculpting. Personally, I don't like digital sculpting as much as getting my hands dirty with physical media, but there are times when I would LOVE an undo button in real life. :)

It still takes knowledge of anatomy and the ability to wrap your head around the thing you're sculpting and visualize it in three dimensions. The computer does not create for you, it only facilitates creation, and talented digital sculptors deserve just as much respect as traditional media sculptors. Sure, there are ways to "cheat" on the computer, but there have been ways to "cheat" with physical medium for years (buying pre-made armatures, life casting, etc.).

When technological advances during the industrial revolution began to allow editions of sculptures (prior to that, all sculptures, whether carved in stone or modeled in clay and then fired or made into a bronze resulted in one and only one final piece), many people felt the same way about these editions. To put that in perspective, it would mean that Rodin's thinker was not "really" a sculpture and neither were countless other nineteenth and century sculptures that we think of today as classics. Hell, did you know that you can still get a "new" authentic Rodin? Several of his pieces have uncast editions and the foundry he worked with still exists and still has the ability to make new casts of those that have remaining editions. I've seen "authentic" Rodins cast in the 1980s. There's not really much difference, when you think about it. The digital file is just a virtual master.

[dark_wraith]

The digital realm is just another media for artists to work in, nothing more. I could go on a rather lengthy rant but I wont, I will just say this. If Renaissance painters can use pin-hole cameras and musicians can use sound boards, then a sculptor can certainly sculpt digitally.

[Artifex83]

jlamarche...well said!

[L. Lanham]

I suppose it won't be long before all artists have a 3-D printer and sculpture will be just mass "printed."
I'ts like that new craftsman compu carve thing: delicate wood inlay and relief is just a mousy click away.

There used to be a whole industry of graphic artists, layout & design people, typesetters...

DUUUuust in the Wiiiiind, all we are is Duuust in the wind (sung mournfully to the old Kansas tune.)

Thanks for all the serious and insightfull thoughts shared by all

[Pezz]

Look at it from my perspective:

Creating a 3-D object in maya is like sculpting with math. You go from a bloody cube, stretch it out, and in many hours time it's a flipping shark. The computer doesn't know you want it to be a shark, so you have to methodically decide "what verticies should I pull where?" "What vertices to merge?" "when should i smooth?" "What angle of light would make the rendered scene look best?"

[Seedling]

I'm pretty new to this sight, and I'll bet this has been discussed before...BUT here goes anyway...
As cool as zbrush and maya are, they aren't really sculptures.
Are they?

Only someone who has never tried their hand at 3D modeling could say such a thing. :dead: