CNRS-MAP (Models and simulations for architecture and heritage) laboratory is a French research unit under the authority of the National Centre for Scientific Research (UMR 3495) and the Ministry for Culture. CNRS-MAP’s profile was formed around the development and implementation of ICT methods and tools at the disciplinary intersection between the humanities and engineering sciences with a focus on the study of architectural heritage. Many CNRS-MAP initiatives are carried out within the framework of regional, national and international partnerships by means of research collaborations and the sharing of technologies and scientific methods.
The principal aim is to enhance the documentation and understanding of heritage artefacts by introducing innovative solutions for surveying, analyzing and visualizing these artefacts and for the management and dissemination of data related to them. CNRS-MAP is the result of an integration of all the technical skills necessary for the design and development of these ICT tools and processes. Reflections on the methodological and scientific issues raised by the study of these objects are embedded within these tools. Architectural models are useful for researchers and engineers to study and explain architectural heritage. CNRS-MAP hosts several projects which explore the ways in which a bridge between physical and digital models can be created and used to make architectural heritage more accessible.
For instance, the Tactichronieproject, involves a physical model produced with a 3D printer which was initially designed for the visually impaired, whereas the Urbania project aims to valorize Town Scale Models through the creation of virtual models. In both cases, models constitute ‘experiments’, which embody and ‘validate’ knowledge procured from different agents. Physical, digital and hybrid models are also vehicles for conveying information between architects, patrons and the public. CNRS-MAP laboratory is happy to be a partner in the Architectural Models Network, contributing to the ongoing dialogue concerning these topics, as well as providing experimental methods and tools for the enriched 3D digitization of architectural models.
Name of Institutional representative in network:
Dr. Livio De Luca
Institution location:
Marseille, France
