{"id":2842,"date":"2023-01-18T16:14:24","date_gmt":"2023-01-18T16:14:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/salarydistribution.com\/machine-learning\/2023\/01\/18\/artist-zhelong-xu-brings-chinese-zodiac-to-life-for-lunar-new-year-this-week-in-the-nvidia-studio\/"},"modified":"2023-01-18T16:14:24","modified_gmt":"2023-01-18T16:14:24","slug":"artist-zhelong-xu-brings-chinese-zodiac-to-life-for-lunar-new-year-this-week-in-the-nvidia-studio","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/salarydistribution.com\/machine-learning\/2023\/01\/18\/artist-zhelong-xu-brings-chinese-zodiac-to-life-for-lunar-new-year-this-week-in-the-nvidia-studio\/","title":{"rendered":"Artist Zhelong Xu Brings Chinese Zodiac to Life for Lunar New Year This Week \u2018In the NVIDIA Studio\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"<div data-url=\"https:\/\/blogs.nvidia.com\/blog\/2023\/01\/18\/in-the-nvidia-studio-january-18\/\" data-title=\"Artist Zhelong Xu Brings Chinese Zodiac to Life for Lunar New Year This Week \u2018In the NVIDIA Studio\u2019\" data-hashtags=\"\">\n<p><i>Editor\u2019s note: This post is part of our weekly <\/i><a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.nvidia.com\/blog\/tag\/in-the-nvidia-studio\/\"><i>In the NVIDIA Studio<\/i><\/a><i> series, which celebrates featured artists, offers creative tips and tricks, and demonstrates how <\/i><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nvidia.com\/en-us\/studio\/\"><i>NVIDIA Studio<\/i><\/a><i> technology improves creative workflows. We\u2019re also deep diving on new <\/i><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nvidia.com\/en-us\/geforce\/graphics-cards\/40-series\/\"><i>GeForce RTX 40 Series GPU<\/i><\/a><i> features, technologies and resources, and how they dramatically accelerate content creation.<\/i><\/p>\n<p>To celebrate the upcoming Lunar New Year holiday, NVIDIA artist Zhelong Xu, aka <a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.nvidia.com\/blog\/2022\/12\/27\/in-the-nvidia-studio-december-27\/\">Uncle Light,<\/a> brought Chinese zodiac signs to life this week <i>In the NVIDIA Studio <\/i>\u2014 modernizing the ancient mythology in his signature style.<\/p>\n<h2><b>Chinese Tradition Brought to the 21st Century<\/b><\/h2>\n<p>NVIDIA principal artist Zhelong Xu is also co-founder of the Shanghai Magicstone Images studio and an art consultant for the Tencent TiMi Studio Group.<\/p>\n<p>Xu is deeply passionate about modeling Chinese zodiac signs in 3D. His first serious attempt, <i>Carefree Sheep<\/i>, was chosen by Adobe Substance Painter, <a href=\"https:\/\/blog.adobe.com\/en\/publish\/2019\/01\/23\/adobe-acquires-allegorithmic-substance-3d-gaming\">previously Allegorithmic<\/a>, as the artwork on its first software launch screen.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_61902\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-61902\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.nvidia.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/studio-itns-zhelong-xu-wk40-render1-1280w.jpg\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-large wp-image-61902\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.nvidia.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/studio-itns-zhelong-xu-wk40-render1-1280w-500x500.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"500\" height=\"500\"><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-61902\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">\u2018Carefree Sheep\u2019 by 3D artist Zhelong Xu.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Xu creates at least one piece for his zodiac series each year. <i>Harboring a Cute Tiger<\/i> is his most popular work, which reached over 16 million people on the Chinese social media app Weibo.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_61905\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-61905\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.nvidia.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/studio-itns-zhelong-xu-wk40-render2-1280w.jpg\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-large wp-image-61905\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.nvidia.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/studio-itns-zhelong-xu-wk40-render2-1280w-672x448.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"672\" height=\"448\"><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-61905\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">\u2018Harboring a Cute Tiger\u2019 by Zhelong Xu.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>\u201cI had the idea to turn this series into ceramic works, so I continued working with my friends in Jingdezhen to turn this series into physical objects,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_61908\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-61908\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.nvidia.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/studio-itns-zhelong-xu-wk40-render3-1280w.jpg\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-large wp-image-61908\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.nvidia.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/studio-itns-zhelong-xu-wk40-render3-1280w-387x500.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"387\" height=\"500\"><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-61908\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Zodiac piece for the Year of the Rabbit.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>\u201cI wanted to do something different in the Year of the Rabbit, so I chose to color the rabbit in NVIDIA green to match the classical Chinese atmosphere and to bring out the Chinese New Year energy,\u201d said Xu, who joined NVIDIA last year.<\/p>\n<p>The two emerald rabbits, one with its ears up and the other with them down, are designed to look like they\u2019re teeming with anticipation for the arrival of Lunar New Year.<\/p>\n<p>Xu deployed ZBrush for initial modeling with its custom sculpting tools. He then UV mapped the 3D model in preparation for applying a special emerald texture made in Adobe Substance 3D Painter. NVIDIA RTX-accelerated light- and ambient-occlusion features baked and optimized the scene assets in mere seconds, letting Xu experiment with textures quickly and easily with his <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nvidia.com\/en-us\/geforce\/graphics-cards\/40-series\/rtx-4090\/\">GeForce RTX 4090 GPU<\/a>.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_61911\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-61911\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.nvidia.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/studio-itns-zhelong-xu-wk40-blender-ui2-1280w.jpg\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-large wp-image-61911\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.nvidia.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/studio-itns-zhelong-xu-wk40-blender-ui2-1280w-672x362.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"672\" height=\"362\"><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-61911\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Lighting adjustments in Blender.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>The artist quickly exported files to Blender to set up the environment and tinker with lighting. He added many Eastern-style architectural and furniture options from the PBRMAX.com asset library.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_61914\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-61914\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.nvidia.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/studio-itns-zhelong-xu-wk40-pbrmax-1280w.jpg\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-large wp-image-61914\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.nvidia.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/studio-itns-zhelong-xu-wk40-pbrmax-1280w-672x260.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"672\" height=\"260\"><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-61914\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">High-quality 3D assets gathered from the PBRMAX.com asset library.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Movement within the viewport was seamless with Blender Cycles RTX-accelerated OptiX ray tracing for interactive, photorealistic modeling.<\/p>\n<p>Xu then deployed his secret weapon: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nvidia.com\/en-us\/omniverse\/\">NVIDIA Omniverse<\/a>, a platform for creating and operating metaverse applications. He saved files in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nvidia.com\/en-us\/omniverse\/usd\/\">Universal Scene Description (USD)<\/a> format using the Omniverse export plug-in to import them into the NVIDIA Omniverse Create app for final modeling. Here, Xu made adjustments to the translucent emerald material to make it as realistic as possible.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_61917\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-61917\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.nvidia.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/studio-itns-zhelong-xu-wk40-blender-ui-1280w.jpg\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-large wp-image-61917\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.nvidia.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/studio-itns-zhelong-xu-wk40-blender-ui-1280w-672x362.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"672\" height=\"362\"><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-61917\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">USD format enables import into Omniverse Create.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Omniverse Create was incredibly useful for scene modifications, Xu said, as it enabled him to test lighting with his scene rendering in real time. This provided him with the most accurate iteration of final renders, allowing for more meaningful real-time edits.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThanks to the power of the GeForce RTX 4090 GPU and RTX optimization in Omniverse, I got the desired effect very quickly and tested a variety of lighting effects,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_61923\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-61923\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.nvidia.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/studio-itns-zhelong-xu-wk40-ov-create-1280w.jpg\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-large wp-image-61923\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.nvidia.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/studio-itns-zhelong-xu-wk40-ov-create-1280w-672x362.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"672\" height=\"362\"><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-61923\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Final environmental edits in Omniverse Create.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Omniverse gives 3D artists their choice of renderer within the viewport, with support for Pixar HD Storm, Chaos V-Ray, Maxon\u2019s Redshift, OTOY Octane, Blender Cycles and more. Xu deployed the unbiased <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nvidia.com\/en-us\/design-visualization\/iray\/\">NVIDIA Iray renderer<\/a> to complete the project.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_61926\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-61926\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.nvidia.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/studio-itns-zhelong-xu-wk40-featured-setup-1280w-1.png\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"wp-image-61926 size-large\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.nvidia.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/studio-itns-zhelong-xu-wk40-featured-setup-1280w-1-672x259.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"672\" height=\"259\"><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-61926\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">3D artist Zhelong Xu.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>View more of Xu\u2019s work on <a href=\"https:\/\/www.artstation.com\/zhelong\">ArtStation<\/a>.<\/p>\n<h2><b>#NewYearNewArt Challenge\u00a0<\/b><\/h2>\n<p>With a new year will come new art, and we\u2019d love to see yours! Use the hashtag #NewYearNewArt and tag @NVIDIAStudio to show off recent creations for a chance to be featured on our channels.<\/p>\n<p>The challenge is off to a great start:<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"500\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">A new year means new art! ??\ufe0f<\/p>\n<p>Join our Jan-Feb <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/NewYearNewArt?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">#NewYearNewArt<\/a> challenge by sharing any new or relatively new art you&#8217;ve created for a chance to be featured on our channels!<\/p>\n<p>Be sure to tag <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/NewYearNewArt?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">#NewYearNewArt<\/a> and thanks to <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/AOi__Pan?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">@AOi__Pan<\/a> for sharing their new art. ? <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/lXiFLROhQh\">pic.twitter.com\/lXiFLROhQh<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 NVIDIA Studio (@NVIDIAStudio) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/NVIDIAStudio\/status\/1612887048142131223?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">January 10, 2023<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><span>Excellent artists like @rabbit.hole_renders have helped kick off the challenge with creativity that\u2019s taking people to new worlds.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"500\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Who&#8217;s playing this game? ?\ufe0f<\/p>\n<p>Awesome submission to the <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/NewYearNewArt?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">#NewYearNewArt<\/a> Challenge by rabbit.hole_renders (IG).<\/p>\n<p>Share any new or relatively new art you&#8217;ve created with the tag <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/NewYearNewArt?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">#NewYearNewArt<\/a> for a chance to be featured on our channels! ? <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/GyrdJPbcM5\">pic.twitter.com\/GyrdJPbcM5<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 NVIDIA Studio (@NVIDIAStudio) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/NVIDIAStudio\/status\/1614306497466343426?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">January 14, 2023<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><span>Plus, get a dose of potassium with @graffitpl\u2019s banana-based animation that comes with a side of mushrooms.<\/span><\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"500\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Were you looking for m\u0337o\u0337r\u0337e\u0337 spore banana animations? Look no further! ??<\/p>\n<p>This dose of potassium comes from the brililant @graffitpl (IG). <\/p>\n<p>Tag <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/NewYearNewArt?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">#NewYearNewArt<\/a> in your recently created art for a chance to be featured until the end of February! <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/78ETFDtVH4\">pic.twitter.com\/78ETFDtVH4<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 NVIDIA Studio (@NVIDIAStudio) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/NVIDIAStudio\/status\/1615031281443536899?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">January 16, 2023<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><span>Keep your eyes peeled for more amazing submissions on the NVIDIA Studio <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/nvidiastudio\/?hl=en\"><span>Instagram<\/span><\/a><span> stories.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><i><span>Access tutorials on the <\/span><\/i><a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/channel\/UCDeQdW6Lt6nhq3mLM4oLGWw\"><i><span>Studio YouTube channel<\/span><\/i><\/a><i><span> and get updates directly in your inbox by subscribing to the <\/span><\/i><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nvidia.com\/en-us\/studio\/?nvmid=subscribe-creators-mail-icon\"><i><span>Studio newsletter<\/span><\/i><\/a><i><span>.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>https:\/\/blogs.nvidia.com\/blog\/2023\/01\/18\/in-the-nvidia-studio-january-18\/<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":2843,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[3],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/salarydistribution.com\/machine-learning\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2842"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/salarydistribution.com\/machine-learning\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/salarydistribution.com\/machine-learning\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/salarydistribution.com\/machine-learning\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2842"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/salarydistribution.com\/machine-learning\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2842\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/salarydistribution.com\/machine-learning\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2843"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/salarydistribution.com\/machine-learning\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2842"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/salarydistribution.com\/machine-learning\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2842"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/salarydistribution.com\/machine-learning\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2842"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}