TSR 006: From 3d modeling a Valtra Tractor to Visualizing Architecture by Rem Koolhaas and Isay Weinfeld with Jakub Cech

The SpectRoom

Today I’m joined by Jakub Cech from eesome in Slovakia. He’s well known on the blog and has worked with architects like Rem Koolhaas and Isay Weinfeld. This session comes out after one year, in which Jakub took time off to create a collection of 30 images in his book Beautiful Computer Generated Images. This effort recently culminated with a new website and brand called eesome.

In this session, we’ll discuss how he started with CGI, Alex Roman, the phone call from Watson&Co. that made a big change and more.

Teenage Passion Turned ArchViz Career

Jakub’s work on behance.net was noticed by a major American branding company when he was just 18 years old. He received a phone call from Watson&Co., created a rendering for them, and began working remotely for them. That was a turning point for the direction of his career, but he has always maintained the overarching goal of creating images that he likes.

Jakub’s Approach for Crafting Visualizations

As someone who has only had three or four clients so far in his career, Jakub’s approach to each client is understandably varied. The workflow starts with understanding the project and the type of people that are being targeted. He has discovered that understanding his client’s perspective is essential to getting the best images created. He can spend up to eight months with a client in America, while a client in Slovakia may only require up to six weeks of non-stop work to produce the same images. While the approach may vary, the work that is done is always completed to his personal and unique standard of satisfaction.

Working with a Branding Company

Even though he’s never worked in an office with multiple CGI artists, working with a branding company like Watson&Co. gave Jakub a different view of the overall process, from fonts and color to lighting and branding. While there, he worked with designers, graphic designers, web designers and more, and he calls his time there “very intense.” Interacting with multiple disciplines was very enriching for him, and helped to widen his point of view while crafting his images.

All about Beautiful Computer Generated Images

In comparison to the time spent on commercial projects, Jakub is working more now than ever. His decision to take time off from work to focus on a project that he believed in was inspired in part by Alex Roman. In our conversation, he shares his comprehensive goal of always creating images that he likes, as well as his desires for future collaborations.

Key Takeaways

[02:20] Jakub details his first encounter with 3D imaging, and the path it took him down.

[8:25] Visualization became the subject of Jakub’s work while he was still in high school.

[20:00] Jakub’s goals and challenges in the architectural visualization field.

[22:17] An elevator pitch to a dream client.

[24:58] Jakub’s approach for crafting visualizations.

[33:15] How working with a branding company enriched Jakub’s view on the overall process.

[38:20] Jakub’s tool-set has a surprising component in it.

[42:08] All about the Beautiful Computer Generated Images series.

[48:16] Thoughts on VR and real-time technologies.

[55:05] If still images alone aren’t enough anymore, add this to your client offering.

[57:40] How you can connect with Jakub.

Main Quotes

“I’ve always felt different a bit in terms of how I see things.” — Jakub Čech

“My main goal was always to do a picture that I’m going to like.” — Jakub Čech

“I like totally different elements in pictures than I think most people do.” — Jakub Čech

“I always try to represent my own taste.” — Jakub Čech

“I don’t think still image is going to die … it’s going to be there for ages.” — Jakub Čech

Software Mentioned