CS798: Nonphotorealistic computer graphics

Computer graphics has traditionally been driven by the quest for photorealism: the accurate depiction of the bahaviour of light and surfaces. But photorealism need not be the only goal of computer graphics. A deliberate departure from realism unlocks additional modes of communication that are physically inaccurate but aesthetically rich. Nonphotorealistic graphics has applications in art, design, entertainment, and scientific visualization.

The goal of this course is to explore the power and potential of nonphotorealistic computer graphics. It will cover popular techniques and algorithms, and survey successful applications.

Current offering: Winter 2004

Lectures

A current lecture plan with references and pointers to more information is given on a separate page.

Assignments

There are two programming assignments in the course. You'll need to read a couple of papers and implement a part of the techniques they describe. You're free to do your programming however you like, though some skeleton code may be provided. Your submission will consist of a web page that reports on your implementation and results.

Assignment 1: painterly rendering
Assignment 2: silhouettes

Art presentation

Students in this course are also required to give a short (5-10 minute) presentation about a style of art.

Details and schedule

Project

The focus of the coursework is a final implementation project that explores some aspect of nonphotorealistic graphics.

Information about projects

Marking

Marks for the course are broken down as follows:

Assignment 1	20%
Assignment 2	20%
Project proposal	5%
Project content	20%
Project presentation	10%
Project write-up	10%
Art presentation	10%
Participation	5%