Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/398245
s e p t e m b e r . o c t o b e r 2 0 1 4 c g w 3 1 M O D E L I N G . 3 D P R I N T I N G even wrote soware that simulated 17th century lenses for his 3D re-creation. Within LightWave, he was able to set up the sky and angle of the sun as it came through Vermeer's northwest-facing window – in effect, replicating the Del light. Vermeer's room had three large windows, and Jenison discov- ered that if he used area lights within LightWave, he was able to match the Vermeer lighting – leading him to conclude that the painter likely had cloth or oil paper over his windows. "I proved I was on the right track and that Vermeer's walls [in the paintings] were consis- tent with the laws of physics, but not consistent with the nor- mal behavior of our eyeballs," Jenison says. Jenison's preliminary Light- Wave findings encouraged him to continue his quest. "Everything pointed in the right direction and I had the smoking gun [showing] that Vermeer was painting physically accurate rooms and his contemporar- ies were not, so he must have had a way to trace the col- ors," he explains. While a few other artists were employing a similar technique, it seems that none had the same setup as Vermeer – and the secret died with Vermeer, as there was no documentation hinting to the use of a device. This is about the time when this experiment got real, or as real as it possibly could. In early 2009 over dinner with his friend Las Vegas Magician Penn Jil- lette, Jenison relayed his interest in Vermeer's technique. Jillette also found the topic interesting, and together they decided to make a movie about Jenison's quest to solve this 350-year- old mystery. "With this turn, I had to really do it right. Copying Vermeer's picture would prove nothing. I had to build the Vermeer room and make it look just like it did in 1650, and then I would set up my machine and try to paint," says Jenison. P R E P A R I N G F O R T H E T E S T Again, LightWave proved invaluable when it came time to physically building an accurate re-creation of the Vermeer room depicted in The Music Lesson, selected because it would be the easiest to replicate and had a large expanse of the back wall visible. The process was not as difficult as it seems. Thanks to Vermeer's numerous paintings, there are many known factors about the structure of the room and the objects inside. So, it was just a matter of duplicating the room and then using an optics machine to paint a picture – and see how close it comes to the real Vermeer piece. The room was subsequently built over a year's time in a corner of a NewTek ware- house, with some demolition and construction required until it was indeed a replica of the Vermeer room. Next, Jenison began search- ing for the 17th century objects, reproducing many of them via 21st century methods: modeling replicas in LightWave and repro- ducing them with computer- controlled machine tools. (In this regard, he has experience from making prototypes of NewTek products over the years.) For instance, the Vermeer harpsi- chord was made by a Flemish company, and Scottish harp- sichord expert Grant O'Brien provided Jenison with the plans; he even reproduced the ornate block-patterned paper on the top of the instrument. The paper on the lower part of the keyboard was unique, but O'Brien had seen it before on a harpsichord in Paris and made a reproduction of that, as well. "Copying VERMEER'S PICTURE WOULD PROVE NOTHING. I HAD TO BUILD THE VERMEER ROOM AND MAKE IT LOOK JUST LIKE IT DID IN 1650, AND THEN I WOULD SET UP MY MACHINE AND TRY TO PAINT." (TOP) JENISON REPLICATED THE VERMEER ROOM, OFTEN USING CNC MILLING AND A LATHE (BOTTOM) TO BUILD REPRODUCTIONS.