Digital Sculpting and an Introduction to "Tra-digi" Art
Created for Best of Artists and Artisans web site
By Bridgette Mongeon © 2009

Two versions of a sculpture by Bridgette Mongeon are used to demonstrate "tra-digi" art, the art nouveau mom and baby and the more detailed version below.

Not all sculpting is done in the studio, as mentioned before, slowly computer technology is infiltrating my process of sculpting.  In this month's article we will be looking at digital scanning, an invaluable sculpting tool with many applications.

Digital art has been used for years in the entertainment industry, in movies, and also computer games. Some would worry that the infiltration of digital technology into the traditional sculpting studio would somehow push out the need of a traditional sculptor. However, in the articles featured over the next couple of months you will see that digital technology is just another tool for the sculptor to use.  It helps with the execution of a project, but it still takes a creative, artistic person to use these tools.

Digital scanning is about capturing the data from a physical object. Many are familiar with scanning photographs. Let's review scanning of a photograph into the computer.  When scanning you will concern yourself with resolution.  The resolution of a photograph used for the Web is much less than is needed for a photograph that would print in a newspaper and you would need an even higher resolution for a photograph that is to be printed in a magazine. It is just as important to know what you are going to use your 3D scan for.  How much information do you actually need?  This will help you to determine what type of scan is best for your project. Capturing 3D data can be done in several ways. For our purposes we will talk about non-contact scanners.  A non-contact scanner is a scanner that does not touch the art. The two non-contact scanners that are used often are structured light scanners and laser scanners.  Both of these scanners measure and collect distance information. Often many scans are taken from different angles and then the scans are registered together in the computer to be able to obtain all of the data on a physical object.  Structured light scanners use light projected on the subject to collect this information; where as laser scanners use a laser.

I was first introduced to digital scanning when visiting Synappsys Digital Services and then writing the article Exploring Digital Technologies as Applied to Traditional Sculpting, and the article The American in the Winter 07 Sculpture Review Magazine. In my January 5, 2009 Best of Artists and Artisans sculpture column article titled Milling An Additional Tool of Advanced Technology for the Traditional Sculptor the reader was introduced to how some traditional artists are using digital techniques to scan their small hand sculpted maquettes, enlarging them within the computer and then having a computer mill them out in foam. This new technology can save an artist hours and hours of time as compared to enlarging by hand and building a large armature. After reviewing this technology I wanted a digital scanner in my own studio.  I just could not understand, if I could own a 2D scanner, why couldn't I have a 3d scanner, or why couldn’t I have a local service bureau scan my art for me?  Synappsys Digital Services in Norman, Oklahoma or Blue Genie in Austin, Texas, are the closest scanning facilities to my Houston, Texas studio, and they would do the scan for me, but shipping a maquette might be tricky. Some artists create a mold of their small artwork, pour waxes and then send a wax to the Synappsys or Blue Genie for scanning. But that would be a bit of extra work, and the wax would need to be cleaned up as well. It seems like 3D scanning should be more readily available, like something you could find at Kinkos. Now that I am becoming more aware of the uses of digital technology in my studio I wondered, “Is there a way to revise my sculpture even more once it is created into a digital format.  Could I perhaps, smooth out the mom and baby or do other revisions that would be time consuming or prohibitive in the traditional media that I created the artwork in. Could digital tools be used to enhance my artwork?”

It was at the 2008 SIGGRAPH convention where the missing link to my process was revealed to me—the Next Engine Scanner.  It is the first affordable desktop scanner. The uses for this scanner in our studio are many.  You will see over the next few months as we go through the steps of, what I call " tradigital" or “tra-digi” creations. "Tra-digi" creations are a mixture of both traditional and digital art. 

First, lets take a look at the process of scanning. I searched my studio for a perfect piece to use in this article and to exhibit the use of “tra-digi” art.  Last year I created a bronze sculpture of a mom and baby. The client wanted a graphic, more art nouveau style of art and had a special style in mind. My style is extremely detailed, and at first a detailed mom and baby was what came out. After working out the detailed design it was modified into a simplified pose (seen at the top of the page).  It felt odd to have to go to the detail first before going back to a simplified sculpture.  And I like both equally. The piece was created in wonderful wax based clay called Classic Clay.  This clay allows you to sculpt without having to keep the sculpture wet, as you would with water based clay.  The one downfall of this clay is that no matter how hard you try; you just can't seem to get it perfectly smooth, which is an obsession of mine.  Maybe we will be able to remedy that with our “tra-digi” creation. These two versions of mom and baby will follow us through this “tra-digi” creative process.  The two are perfect for exhibiting the scanning process, modifications digitally, and output in various materials.  This month we are going to start with scanning.

We were up and running in no time at all with the Next Engine scanner. The scanner runs only on PC, but I was able to run it in Bootcamp on my Mac. It sits nicely on the corner of my desk. I plugged it into the wall and the computer, downloaded the software and we were ready to begin. The attentive support team at Next Engine quickly answered any questions or concerns that I had. We scanned the art nouveau sculpture first. Because it does not have any undercuts it is easier to scan.  An undercut is a place that goes around something else.  For example, if you put your hand on your hip the space around your arm and between your body creates and undercut.  Deep folds in cloth also create undercuts or hair can create an undercut, as seen in the more detailed version of mom and baby. 

The sculpture is placed on the scanning bed.  With the Next Engine scanner you can scan objects the size of a breadbox or smaller objects.  The scanner bed is pulled closer to the scanner for smaller object and a micro setting is indicated.  I have opted for scanning at a longer distance.  The scanner bed turns as a laser moves slowly over the sculpture. This process captures the digital information from all parts of the sculpture, which appears on the computer screen as the sculpture is scanned. To rid the scan of excess data once it is scanned, for example the scanning bed (see photograph), you simply"trim" the excess data in the scanning program that comes with the Next Engine scanner.

Often the sculpture requires scanning from a variety of angles to obtain all of the information that is needed to create a scan with no holes. Once the scanning was complete I laid the sculpture on its side and scanned horizontally to obtain more information. Then the two scans can be registered and joined together in the scanning program that come with the Next Engine scanner by placing corresponding dots on the two images and fusing them together. Within no time I had a scan of the art nouveau piece and proceeded to the more detailed sculpture. Because the mom's left hand is separated from the sculpture on the detailed version, she is barely touching the child's head, this is causing not only a deep undercut, but makes it impossible for the laser to scan the area between moms arm and baby's blanket. I first scanned the piece with the arm intact and then took the arm off and scanned it separately. When sending sculptures to Synappsys Digital Services or Blue Genie the sculpture is often cut apart and individual pieces are scanned and joined together in the computer. Scanning individual segment ensures that you are capturing as much data as possible.

I now have a 3D computer model of my physical art. The detailed zoomed in view shows the geometry behind this digital art—but what now? If this were a life-size or monumental commission I could take this 3D model and enlarge it to life-size or even monumental size and have it milled out in foam. Then a layer of clay could be applied to the foam where fine details could be sculpted. This new process of enlarging thrills me as building armatures and enlarging a sculpture is my least favorite part of my job. Or perhaps the art nouveau style of mom and baby could be reduced down and have it digitally printed as jewelry.

Over the next few articles we will be watching the transformation of this "tra-digi" art and reviewing the many types of output. Next month I'll introduce the process of bringing these mom and baby 3D models in a sculpting program so that some editing and revisions can be done. I can hardly wait.

By now you are probably asking, how much does a Next Engine scanner cost. The website lists the price as $2,995. Which may seem steep to some. It is important to remember that if one small maquette was sent for scanning, the price would be somewhere around $1,000. Depending on the intricacy of the sculpture. With that in mind a Next Engine scanner will more than pay for itself in just a couple of jobs. In the up and coming months we will be showing you the many applications that this scanner is being used for in our studio. The new technology is exciting. It changes regularly and I look forward to sharing with you what I learn. My goal is to help bridge the gap between the traditional studio and the digital studio creating many"tra-digi" masterpieces!

Ms. Mongeon is an artist and writer living in Houston, Texas. If you would like to use this article for your publication or would like Ms. Mongeon to write an article for your publication please fill out the contact form. Ms Mongeon is also available as a public speaker on this and other topics. A list of published works is available.