What’s the Future of Heritage?

In the Absence of Things: Re-Imaging the Lost Palyra Arch

This project explores the use of digital imagery and photogrammetry software to recreate the destroyed Palmyra Arch. This project challenges and redefines traditional architectural preservation by designing unique reproductions based on digital images available on the Internet.



Project Type    
P{roject Year      
Advisor              
Methods          
Media       : Academic (Undergraduate Thesis)
: 2018
: Jonathan Louie
: Technological and Material Experimentations, Research, Speculation, and Iterative : : : Design
: Photogrammetry, Digital Images, Monument, Catalog, and Architecture

Diagram

Photogrammetry Reconstruction

 


Image

Pre-Destuction, Post-Destruction, and Reconstruction 

In the face of decay and destruction of a physical monument, cultural heritages now circulate as JPEG, OBJ, and YouTube videos. Through the indefinite reproduction and alterations of these digital files, images are no longer mere representations of the original. They have become a reactivation of lost memories and different historical objects themselves. This project’s creations challenge and redefine the conventions of architecture preservation practice. 





In order to achieve the most precise reproduction of a scanned object, photogrammetry software relies on a substantial number of images with corred.sponding feature points. However, the limited availability of images on the internet means that the resulting scan only captures the front of the monument, missing the other sides. Due to the lack of images available on the Internet, the resulting scan forms a single, dimensionless surface suspended in space. It consists of a mesh onto which an image is projected.





Through the process of photogrammetry reconstruction, the Arch of Palmyra has been subject to numerous variations from the original, utilizing available internet images. This emphasizes the multitude of potential interpretations of the past and the transient nature of memory. Furthermore, with each iteration of the reproduction, information degrades, hinting that restoring it to its original state may not be the most suitable course of action.“In the Absence of Things” considers each deviation from the original monument as an equal interpretation of the past. To present the various interpretations of the Palmyra Arch, an infrastructure site showcasing the unique reproductions of the monument was speculated. The use of images as the main data source in photogrammetry software is crucial. In cases where physical objects and a complete set of images are unavailable, this project utilizes an image projection technique based on how digital scans work to fill in the missing parts using images of the scan itself. This allows for a complete reproduction with full-body dimensions, which can be placed on the ground for on-site interventions.