Are computer generated 3d printed sculpts cheating?

[Damien]

I'm anxious for when we are finally scientifically able to take genetic material from an actor and clone a living 1/6 version raised to the appropriate age then taxidermied to perfection. Yay!

but those damn taxidermy cuts would show

 

[Deak Starkiller]

Art is art to me, digital or otherwise. It takes just as much talent, just a different medium.

 

[darthviper107]

There's two ways a sculpt might be made in the computer, one is by hand, and the other is by scanning. Most of the time the actors can't be scanned so it's not much of an issue---although I will note that many action figure companies get scans of the actors for their toys (Hasbro) when new movies are made.

For hand sculpting, it might be in the computer and there might be tools that make things easier, but there's also things that make it harder. Like topology isn't a thing you have to worry about with a clay sculpt, but you have to think about it all the time when you're working on the computer. .

Plenty of companies are using computers though, many of Sideshow's new dioramas and maquettes are computer sculpts. And really any hard-surface objects (guns and armor) are done in the computer.

 

[user 1190]

This isn't new either. Companies have been using scanning for years now.

That is what Gentle Giant was doing as primary business(scanning) and then turned it into a side business(using it for collectibles).

 

[MarfMaster]

Absolutely not, 3D sculptor's need to be just as talented as any traditional sculptor, it's just a different medium. What would be cheating is a digital scan of an actor's face, shrunk down and printed at 1/6 scale.

 

[thenammagazine]

From an evolutionary standpoint, I'd say no. You get more detail, more accuracy (with some exceptions), etc, so in many cases the end result will be just as good if not better. But from an artistic standpoint, I'd say yes. You no longer get your hands dirty with tooling clay, taking a more voyeuristic approach and letting the machine do most of the work (I've seen many cases where artists do half a face then mirror it for the other half before beginning to work on the details) vs. physically creating something with your bare hands out of a lump of clay. Kinda takes the soul out of it.

 

[The Batman Professor]

For figures it is fine, but I much prefer statues and busts to be sculpted in traditional media. You cannot achieve the "noise of life" pushing pixels around. Much like oil painting, "happy accidents" can occur when working in wax, clay, or sculpy. Polygons? Not so much.

 

[King Darkness]

If the end product is a well done sculpt on my shelf, I don't care if Baby Jesus comes down from heaven and poops it out.

 

[karamazov80]

If the end product is a well done sculpt on my shelf, I don't care if Baby Jesus comes down from heaven and poops it out.

Now that would be cheating

 

[flamingdead]

as a cg artist myself i'm totally behind 3d printing and think its an incredible and exciting new opportunity for people that would otherwise be unable to bring their ideas to life, to actually be able to have an actual tangible item created from their ideas, without having to approach a sculptor to interpret their designs.
3D modelling is an art in itself and its not like you just type in 'create human' and the computer does it for you! Also, with packages like Zbrush you can achieve "happy accidents" in your models!

 

[Ryanfromindiana]

but those damn taxidermy cuts would show

In the future there is just one small stitch in the butthole.

 

[SwedishHeat]

From an evolutionary standpoint, I'd say no. You get more detail, more accuracy (with some exceptions), etc, so in many cases the end result will be just as good if not better.

There's actually less detail in a 3D printed sculpt than a hand-sculpted head. You are limited by the capabilities and quality of the 3D printer. Just like how you will get a better looking poster by going to your local print shop and having it printed on high-end professional machinery rather than printing it on a desktop printer. You can make amazing artwork in Photoshop but if you print it out on a $150 desktop printer, it's not going to look very good. There are very few printers that will print the fine details needed to make a 1/6 head look as good as a hand-sculpted head.

Gentle Giant showed that there is always a need to hand-sculptors. Their 3D scanned stuff turned out poorly for something that was "an exact 3D scan of the actor". You always need someone to go back in and sculpt in the fine details by hand.

 

[kl241]

If it makes the sculpts more realistic and lifelike then what's the question?

 

[Janssen]

For hand sculpting, it might be in the computer and there might be tools that make things easier, but there's also things that make it harder. Like topology isn't a thing you have to worry about with a clay sculpt, but you have to think about it all the time when you're working on the computer. .

With the new ZBrush you don't have to worry about topology anymore. They bought out a program called Sculptris and are beginning to add it into ZBrush. It retopologizes your object where it needs the necessary details.

 

[nash]

why would it be cheating? it's not like you push a button and it automatically spits out the generated sculpt. it's just a different form of art that is still done by 'hand' in a sense.

 

[darthviper107]

It's not just about having an even amount of polygons according to the amount of detail, but the way the topology flows. There's a very specific flow to doing human faces for instance.

And BTW--you can get just as good detail in computer sculpts--it just depends on the method being used to make the sculpt into something physical.

For instance if it's mass-produced, the high cost of something like laser-cutting molding plates is much more reasonable compared to printing. And as for printing, there's some extremely high detail printers, and companies like Sideshow use them.

I think for the issues with Gentle Giant is more of the painting rather than the sculpts themselves.

 

[**16k**]

I voted 'no'

Boeing a mediocre sculptor, I Know How difficult it is to get a likeness right, so any possible way to make things better is appreciated.

 

[galactiboy]

I've been really impressed with the quality if 3D sculpts that are being made by companies and individuals. And I'm fairly certain it takes a great deal of talent and time to make these.

I don't like the scanning technology though... not real issue with it being used, but often times the end product is kind of boring looking.

 

[gagaliya]

Are the technology really there that can sculpt a 1/4 or bust statue with likeness equal to or better than those by artist? To be clear, i dont mean the software programs i know those are very mature and capable already, i mean the physical machine that will create the sculpt based on the computer rendering. Is the technology there that it can actually sculpt out the fine details, wrinkles, uneven face/skin etc..per the computer rendering?

If the answer is yes, anyone have an example?

 

[darthviper107]

This is a Zbrush sculpt:
https://www.sideshowtoy.com/?page_id=4489&sku=200042

And this:
https://www.sideshowtoy.com/?page_id=4489&sku=26261

There's printers that print in wax that have extremely high resolutions.