Subdivision surface modeling has been adopted for architectural design although it was originally developed for film and animation industry. As a background, this research investigated the definition of subdivision surfaces and why this technology was invented for use in computer animations. In addition, the analysis has been made on their implementation in architectural design. The main feature of subdivision surface techniques including smooth aesthetic quality, ease of manipulation, and ability of dealing with complex curved volume makes this technology beneficial for architectural design. Moreover, widespread adoption of subdivision surface techniques has reversely affected the recent avant-garde architectural design. However, little attention has been given to the meaning of this new technology and its difference from other conventional modeling method such as NURBS (Non-uniform rational B-spline). The purpose of this research is to provide clear understandings of the subdivision surface technology and analyze its implementation on architectural design.
