i.M.A.D.E :: innovation in manufacturing + design :: the new site of the Institute for Digital FabricationBall State University
iMADE@i-m-a-d-e.org

Virtual Reconstruction

Supported by i.M.A.D.E, this project led by Michele Chiuini studied the architectural decoration of the demolished Chicago Stock Exchange, designed by Louis Sullivan in the early 1880s, through the analysis and digital modeling of the fragments acquired by Ball State. Currently stored in the College of Architecture and Planning, these fragments have never been studied. Using a ZCorp hand-held scanner, the fragments were documented as three-dimensional digital models and cataloged. They were then digitally reassembled in their original location in the building. This digital model will provide a visual resource together with a database for scholarly research. The significance of this project extends to the future use of digital technologies in two main directions: as form of visualization and documentation of lost historic architectural heritage, and as a support for the digital fabrication of architectural elements for historic preservation work.

 


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i.M.A.D.E INFO
i.M.A.D.E acts as a catalyst of digital design and fabrication techniques for both industry and education related to architecture and allied arts. Through immersive projects deploying interdisciplinary, applied design and fabrication research, the institute is a conduit between students, design professionals, and the manufacturing sector.
As an institute within Ball State University, i.M.A.D.E supports curricular components offering expertise with state-of -the-art software and devices using simulation, analysis, fabrication, and a rigorous examination of the craft inherent in digital design and production. With strategic industry partners, students test knowledge through team-based projects dealing with the translation of bits into atoms, shifting scales between models, prototypes, 1:1 construction, and the development of solutions to real problems by managing a complex set of design constraints.