Robert Trempe: Height Restriction
Artist(s):
Title:
- Height Restriction
Exhibition:
Creation Year:
- 2009
Category:
Artist Statement:
Information visualization affords us the opportunity to view subjects in a way that is not possible by a 1:1 interpretation, with new toolsets and techniques providing a springboard for discovering new and emergent patterns that are not visible to the naked eye.
This work uses techniques in procedural modeling to visualize the density of tall buildings in central Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The rules for the work’s execution are simple: Notate the heights of existing buildings within the limits of Center City Philadelphia using procedural modeling to quickly reach an analytical result. While this is possible with more conventional analog means, the use of procedural modeling (specifically the Grasshopper plug-in for Rhinoceros) allows quick and precise visualization of large fields of data. In this case, 24,000+ circles are used to notate the building heights of Center City on a block-by-block basis, using “distance” and “division” objects to generate a field of generic circles, one field for each building, each building “field” composited one atop the other. The emergent patterns formed by densities and gradients begin to notate gaps in building heights while providing information on potential locations for new large structures.
