"Virtual project": The future for the representation and the restoration of historical-artistic buildings

The definition of a restoration project for a historical-artistic building is a highskill operation. The preliminary survey and the following graphic representation of the artefacts, in particular, are two critical phases for good final results. The representation techniques called vectorial, including also the analytic photogrammetry, are nowadays surpassed by the wide introduction of digital techniques like the digital photogrammetry because of to exceIIent reproduction and low cost. Our paradigm for building restoration starts with a threedimensional model of an edifice extracted from a set of 2-dimensional image using specific Image Assisted Modelling software. This digital model represents the artefacts both in its metric and morphologic complexity. Basically the result is a fully 'three-dimensional wirefiame model with dimensional information while the appearance features are defined as a collection of bi-dimensional textures attached to the faces of the model. The most innovative aspect is the possibility to simulate the restoration process in two separate streams. On one side it is possible to adjust the original textures using common bi-dimensional digital painting software or specific tools that allow the user to interact with a three-dimensional image. On the other side, virtztal environments permit to modify the model defining the dimension according to the desiderate restoration goal. We propose a new restoration project paradigm that integrates these innovative tools where artists and engineers work together and interactively. The restoration process is visualized in a specific immersive virtual environment developed by the authors in the VR3lab at Polytechnic of Bari-Italy. This is definitively an efficient way for designers, control agencies and building companies to immediately evaluate different solutions.