This paper presents a study that aims at exploring the possibilities brought by recent technologies to visualize in a quasi-real way an existing building survey. By doing so we discuss two recent technologies that are useful for the ideation stage in architecture design, 3D laser scanning and Immersive Virtual Reality, namely for interventions on existing buildings. To do so a 3D scan survey was performed to an existing building and the resulting 3D point cloud model was used in an immersive Virtual Reality environment during the rehabilitation design for an existing building. The results show that point cloud models bring more rigorous and consistent information about buildings than traditional surveys. Additionally, the use of immersive virtual reality to visualize point clouds enables a type of experience of the “real” building not possible by any other mean. Indeed, virtual reality provides designers with an incredible source of authentic building elements that allows them to have a quasi-real experience of the building. The visualization of such point cloud in immersive VR enables to transport designers to a new dimension where not everything from the existing building has a place but just the main essence of it levitating in a virtual world.

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This publication is an output of the following project(s):

• Artificial Realities, Virtual as an aesthetic medium in architectural ideation