My Freestyle Journey Through Form, Texture And Light

About me

Hi, I'm Iva Nikolic and my archviz journey began in March 2023 when I began my training at The Factory School in Madrid. The projects I am presenting to you have been created with 3D Studio Max, Vray, Forest pack, RailClone and Photoshop. 

Beyond the Blueprint: Reimagining Villa Cumulus

I loved working on this project. I created it at the end of 2023 during my Master’s in Architectural Visualization at The Factory School in Madrid and it is dear to me because it evolved alongside my own skills as an archviz artist over the past year. I began working on it with only basic understanding of 3D Studio Max and Vray having done just one interior project before it, which is shown bellow. But, inspired by the photographs I saw of the Villa Cumulus designed by Arkana Architects and despite my limited knowledge of archiviz tools, I was determined to bring my renders as close to the original as possible, which, hopefully, I accomplished. 

With the project's progress, however, as we all know as artists, a moment comes when we want to go a step beyond the mere representation of a concept and leave our personal creative mark on it. To me that opportunity came with the challenge of creating an exterior suitable for my project without access to actual plans and few inspiring references. Throughout this process I let my imagination go wild playing with Forest pack and creating a secluded bay area with vegetation suitable for the Indonesian setting of the original project. I got to play with various terrain generating techniques and had to overcome a few hiccups when it came to integrating the road into the terrain but all in all it was a steep learning curve and I am grateful for it.

Nostalgic Hideaway: Where Imagination Meets Serenity

Ever since I was a small girl I loved crooked trees, dense jungles, small cabins in enchanted forests, caves, and nooks, and make-believe shelters under a fallen tree. It’s a common thing, I assume. Nowadays, most of us are still fascinated with exploration, nature, and hiding, I suspect. This primal search for shelter doesn’t entirely fade away, regardless of the perks offered by our busy modern lives. So, my eye keeps searching for that nest and keeps reinventing that warm nook where the days are quiet, the mind runs wild, and time is measured in sunrises, sunsets, and cups of tea. Here, I leave you with my latest playful escape—a house that feels like the childhood home I wish I had given my children, with the dog I hope they’ll someday play with, surrounded by books and memories I crave to share with them in a space that, even though imaginary, makes me smile.

The Little Things

Planning my morning over a cup of tea and enjoying the cool breeze before the summer heat takes over.

Waiting for my guitar practice to begin.

Coming back from school and leaving my heavy backpack on the floor and checking what's for snack in the kitchen.

(In the following photos I wanted to play with Vray environment fog to create a dusty humid afternoon atmosphere and chase the God ray effect.)

Lazy moments around the house when we accidentally notice how the light plays with the dust and the trinkets we have left around. 

(Here I was playing with the glare effect, the lens scratches and the lens dust.)

Moody Elegance: Creating Comfort in Valencia's Dim Interiors

Spain undoubtedly is fascinating with its architectural charm. Valencia in particular is splendid with its picturesque calles and plazas livened with orange, olive and palm trees. When it came to the interiors, however, a common remark of most foreigners residing here is the absence of light and the predominant darkness of the living spaces. This, of course, is by design and anyone roasting under the scorching august sun can appreciate its benefits. However, instead of excusing this as a practical necessity, I wanted to embrace that moody elusive light and try to transform it into an inviting comfortable nest.

(This was the first complete archviz project I did in 3D Studio max and Vray after three months of training at The Factory School.)

From Photo to Form: A Study in Chair Sculpting

This chair is a modeling exercise I did using 3D Studio Max and Vray without additional software or plugins. It was a work contest which I accepted because I wanted to test my own sculpting abilities and practice the fundamental polygonal modeling techniques learned throughout my training. I had photographic references of the model along with a sketch with the dimensions and I tried to bring my model as close to the original as possible, working on the cushion folds, the wrinkles on the upholstery, the stitches, the bolts and even the label.

Thank you for spending the time to get to the end and allowing me to share my first steps with you!