Most current CAD packages offering freeform surfaces employ so-called NURBS
(Non Uniform Rational B-Splines). The visualisation of a sculptural project
- proposed and subsequently built by Kathryn Sherer for the
"Artful Park 95" event in Centennial Park, Sydney - shows the power of
NURBS. A surface originating in a precise geometrical structure bends
smoothly to form a curved
ridge and then undulates away into the distant
landscape. This surface can be intersected, trimmed and texture-mapped
with images of grass and a transparency ramp to blend into the
surrounding terrain. These images were created with Alias Animator
as a more or less routine job.
