Computer rendering has come a long way in the last 20 years. But is it going in the right direction? Is the glossy photorealistic image the only goal worth pursuing? And does the process of making it contribute enough to a design or to the continuing dialogue with the client? There certainly are alternative modes of image-making. According to legend, Frank Lloyd Wright could conceive a whole building in his head and set it down rapidly in plan and section. He would leave these drawings overnight to his assistant, who would set up a perspective. In the morning FLW would spend an hour or two completing the rendering ready for a lunchtime meeting with his clients. Today, many architects use their computers in the same way as FLW used his night-staff- to set-up an outline perspective over which a rendering is produced by hand.
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