Author: Violeta Paziura, Senior 3D Artist                        

Software used: 3ds Max, Corona Renderer, Photoshop

As Violeta was walking across the Baikove Cemetery, she thought she was losing time. The 3D Artist already had a different building in mind for her new architectural visualization project. Yet she knew she had to take a look before making a choice —  so here she was. 

And then Violeta saw it. Wrapped in a white mist, elegant and outlandish, the Crematorium stood before her. In a flash of light, the 3D Artist saw the concept she wanted to show. She hastily pulled out the camera from her handbag and started taking shots. No need to look at any other buildings after all! 

The task was to create a CGI project where an existing architectural masterpiece would appear in a new light. Violeta decided to go practical and choose a local project. This way, she could visit it and see everything for herself. This allows for way more creative freedom than with photos on the Internet, which do not show the whole picture but only someone else’s vision.

The 3D rendering artist looked for the most renowned architectural objects in Kyiv. She narrowed the list down to top five and went on a tour around Kyiv to visit them — until the Crematorium at Baikovo Cemetery spoke to her.

The crematorium is still functioning, but it’s about to be turned in a museum. Even though the place is little known by locals, a lot of tourists come to admire the architectural jewel. And when Violeta saw the crematorium for real, she was struck by how complex and beautiful it was. It definitely deserved more attention!

So the 3D Artist wanted more people to learn about the building – and decided to do this with her new architectural visualization project. Maybe when people the building see this through her eyes, they will want to visit it.

To find new ideas, it was necessary to learn about the object as much as possible. The 3D Artist needed to know why the crematorium was designed that way, what meaning was put into it, what changes the Architects made throughout the construction process and why.

At this stage, Violeta was deciding on the atmosphere of the future architectural visualization project. The 3D Artists wanted to convey the entrancing, mystical experience of visiting the building. So Violeta decided to show it the way she saw it — on a misty winter day. She looked through the photos of winter landscapes, misty forests, thought about what light to choose.

Once all materials were in place, the 3D Artist proceeded to creating the architectural visualization project. Following are its stages.

At this stage, the 3D Artists created 3D model of the whole project. This way, she could explore as many views as she needed — to pick the best.

Violeta tried different views until she found three absolute stunners. One view she chose because it gave a unique point of view. Only CGI could produce it: a photographer couldn’t have the required shooting position. Moreover, she found the general 3D visualization that showed the building as an architectural complex, with its beautiful symmetry and complexity. With the third render, she revealed the hidden part of the project — its heart.

Next was built what was on the foreground and background. The 3D Artist found and arranged all the objects shee needed for an impeccable, well-balanced composition.

Once all objects were built, it was time to texture them. All objects in the architectural visualization project were created in 3D Max, except for birds – these were cut out from a photo and then added to the 3D render.

As well, the 3D Artist used Photoshop for making the snow surface look more real. She drew a map with footprints on the snow in Photoshop and uploaded it in 3D Max.

When everything was ready, the 3D Visualizer went about polishing the image — adjusting the subtle nuances to get the perfect atmosphere. She experimented with the image — made the mist thicker in some places, highlighted objects by making them lighter or made them less prominent by turning them darker. This gave the image more volume.

This architectural visualization project is definitely a show-stopper. Our 3D Artists marvelled at how amazing the crematorium looks in every render. Moreover, the images are filled with emotions – we could see what Violeta felt when saw the crematorium first, and how her mood changed when she went to explore it.