Cultural Heritage Spotlight: TapMall

About

We are a small team of 6 members. We create 3D web configurators on the Sketchfab platform.

The TAPMOD Studio was invented and founded in 2018 by Oleg and Eugene. After a year of successful work at Snapchat Inc., they left the company and decided to create their own company on the island Koh Phangan in Thailand. So TAPMOD appeared. At that time, the industry just starting to develop; very few orders for creating 3D web configurators turned up, not even to mention the virtual spaces. Only a few platforms for them existed, and Sketchfab was one of them.

Oleg Shuldiakov: At that time, I was amazed by the progressive thinking of Sketchfab and the idea of a 3D store where I can spin, buy, or sell a real-time 3D model without renders and deception. And its cultural heritage focus, which unites 3D artists and designers from all over the world, amazes me to this day. Eventually, I got in touch with Alban Denoyel and offered to cooperate…

Eugene Korolev: I started using Sketchfab to show my clients their models without sending them the source files, but then I was attracted by the rapid development of the platform and its rendering system, as well as how it looks to me like a potential social network for 3D designers.

Today, TAPMOD is headquartered in Puebla, Mexico and we are successfully creating and developing 3D web configurators and virtual spaces in collaboration with the Sketchfab team.

Our team has implemented over 30 commercial projects and is supporting clients from more than 10 countries.

Working with 3D content, we rely on the visual quality of the image or product’s 3D real-time render, trying to deliver its most harmonious integration, simple interaction, and configurability using UI/UX in ready-made 3D stores for our clients.

The main priorities of TAPMOD Studio are accurate adjustment of the product’s 3D model, including textures and materials, and optimization of the 3D grid for the fastest loading of the website, 3D configurator, or virtual exhibition.

Eugene Korolev: We always try to make the 3D content look like a studio photo, and we are good at it.

We spend a lot of time and resources on a precise and individual approach to the development of interfaces for painless integration into existing websites for each client. This is a part of our exclusive service.

We carefully collect all the components of the 3D configurators in one field or website. Our clients appreciate such a high-quality and custom approach, are proud of their 3D web configurators, advertise their 3D websites, and sometimes even completely revise the advertising strategy and updates for many months in advance, focusing on the configurators that we have created for them. Clients are businesspeople and they clearly see the prospects for the development of web 3D. The statistics are:

“The early signs indicate that the new configurator is improving inquiries and sales conversion by at least 20% and possibly more.”

—Bobby Bala,CEO, Elite Home Theater Seating

“The 3D Configurator is definitely accelerating the sales process, no doubt about it. Our first conversations with people start at a pretty advanced place now.”

—Christopher Neidl, Director of Business Development at Brooklyn Solar Canopy

Sketchfab + Web 3D = LOVE! Setting up 3D on the Sketchfab platform is an art. Every artist, 3D artist, designer, or even content manager can intuitively understand the platform’s toolkit and, after loading the 3D model, can customize everything he or she wants or simply experiment. At the same time, Sketchfab combines complex and subtle settings of the materials, effects, post-processing or animation layers, allowing professionals to dig deeper, if they choose.

And yes, TAPMOD is a team of professionals who know how to use all of Sketchfab’s levels of customization.

Oleg Shuldiakov: Eugene and I have been creating various types of 3D graphics for over 15 years: object modeling, characters for games and animation, VFX, low poly, high poly, games for PC and smartphones, cartoons, 3D apps, Snapchat lenses, object rendering, hard surface modeling, and more.

I love this work. One of the most popular on my account, it won prizes in 3D contests.

Eugene Korolev: I created this model in India during my 8-year-trip through Southeast Asia. I came up with this idea during a Vipassana retreat. Surprisingly, it became one of my best sellers.

Oleg Shuldiakov: Sometimes I open Sketchfab on my PC or smartphone while I’m on the road just to get some inspiration. It’s like 3D Pinterest or Behance.

TapMall and cultural heritage

The idea of creating an all-in-one virtual space, TapMall, a metaverse without borders and laws of physics, did not appear spontaneously. We have spent a lot of time refining this concept and relying on our experience of working with clients and their requests, and finally ascertained that TapMall must be born. Moreover, our team feels strongly that it should be offered to a wide range of consumers. TapMall is already being realized:

Oleg Shuldiakov: I can’t even remember how many times I tried to implement a virtual world, space, game or application, but TapMall is definitely something large, interesting and significant! I’m proud that we decided to do it.

TapMall is divided into areas:

1. TapMall: an all-in-one virtual shopping mall. Created like a modern shopping center, TapMall can include floors with shops, marketplaces, interactive objects and other virtual rooms. All the products presented in store windows can be configured and viewed from all sides in their natural environment.

2. TapEvents: upcoming, opened or closed, global or local events and premieres. Scientific symposia, business conferences, banquets and even parties can be implemented on our virtual platform. They can be short-term or long-term, public or private, with paid access keys.

3. TapHeritage: museum exhibitions and World Heritage Sites in the virtual 3D format.

We want to unite world cultural heritage sites into a single virtual exhibition in which everyone can visit museums, see exhibits (ranging from small archaeological discoveries to large architectural structures), study masterpieces of fine art, sculpture, etc. Visitors can walk around the exhibitions and switch between them using our created infrastructure—all without territorial boundaries, time, or language restrictions.

In this article, we want to describe in detail the concept of Cultural Heritage in the TapMall virtual space, as one of the priority areas of this project.

Oleg Shuldiakov: When trying to understand what TapMall is, just imagine yourself going on a journey to a shopping and entertainment mall that has no physical boundaries, opening hours or geolocation…

When creating virtual spaces for our clients, we have noticed a strange pattern: they are asking us to reconstruct a rectangular store with floor, ceiling and walls even in virtual 3D space. Why? Because most of us are used to traditional thinking. We have seen examples in which a whole bunch of things are put into one showcase. Or, 3D scanned museum objects are inserted into rectangular rooms and put behind digital glass. Perhaps so that viewers will not touch them? :)

Our mission is to change this mindset and offer a borderless visual presentation using the same resources and technologies.

Pergamon Altar exhibition

While working on the Pergamon Altar exhibition, we found out that the brick-and-mortar exhibition is closed until at least 2023. TapMall transcends time limits.

Oleg Shuldiakov: I reconstructed the Pergamon Altar and its surroundings in their original state as the basis for an exciting educational adventure.

TAPMOD creates adventures. We composed the final virtual Pergamon Altar exhibition by uniting dozens of pictures, videos, and 3D models made by museums and Sketchfab’s community of 3D scanners (always attributing authorship, of course):

** The project is in the prototype stage, but we are constantly working on updates and improvements. Thank you for understanding!

Ishtar Gate exhibition

While working on the Ishtar Gate exhibition, we learned that physical Ishtar Gate exhibits are distributed among approximately 15 museums around the world. TapMall can go beyond the distance limit. Exhibits can be viewed from all sides and up close without fear of damage, which is impossible to do in-person. In addition, it’s never crowded, visitors enjoy the empty halls at any time of day or night, leaving and returning on their schedules, with no more borders.

Sketchfab is a concentration of scattered 3D content that holds thousands of 3D cultural heritage exhibits that can be combined into fascinating exhibitions, events, or short stories in a format of 3D presentation. It can also become an additional source of investment attraction for organizations and individual users. Also, the Web 3D space is not subject to gravity and is not attached to a particular geolocation.

International Space Station

TAPMOD has also implemented a 3D International Space Station. Space has always been a mystery and one of the most interesting topics in 3D modeling. Although only a prototype is currently ready, any ISS module in 3D virtual space can be detached, configured and replaced.

TapMall allows users to save a URL link or code that can be integrated into any website; it can be a site header, a separate page or an iframe window in an article. This function can be monetized, too.

Tools and techniques

At the moment, the most progressive and innovative file formats are GLTF and USDZ—they will become the most used formats for Web 3D, and the AR and VR industries, just as JPEG and MP4 once became the main formats in the photo and video industries.

TAPMOD Studio uses almost all known 3D software when needed: Autodesk Maya, Autodesk 3ds Max, Blender, etc.

When it comes to eCommerce, the team uses native 3D or CAD models in its projects, doing its best to display the product’s appearance as it looks in professional studio photos and renderings. For cultural heritage projects, where the goal is to display the authenticity of a historical object, e.g., an ancient statue, 3D scanning is used.

Challenges

Oleg Shuldiakov: TAPMOD faces the problem of the surplus of information on the Internet. All of this information has to be united into structured industries, which also do not exist yet. We are trying to follow a concrete plan, developing our business only for particular industries. I am also sure that potential partners will bring their ideas too, and we’ll be happy to hear them.

In general, the industry of Web 3D is nascent and immature, and there is an overabundance of standards and formats. But, just as the world is now trying to move to a single plug-in and charging system, TapMall would like to create a single user-friendly interface for all virtual spaces.

Why Sketchfab?

Sketchfab is the main platform for TAPMOD’s projects and the team builds their entire workflow around it. The studio hosts models on Sketchfab, managing them through the Sketchfab API. Sketchfab has one of the best web real-time rendering systems, a dynamically developing support system, as well as a list of technical advantages: high polygon support, good model optimization and fast loading, high-quality post-processing, and ease of use. Sketchfab also has an extensive import and export system from and into other 3D engines and programs (e.g., RealityCapture, Unreal Engine, and more than 180 others, as far as we know).

Eugene Korolev: Creating guitar designs is my passion; I used to be a luthier. This is my own carbon fiber guitar concept inspired by our collaboration with the Emerald Guitars company.

The Sketchfab annotation system is one of the most valuable features in our opinion. The ability to embed any content from the web, including photos, videos, and text is the way to let every model come to life, speak to and interact with the user, telling its unique story.

Getting started in 3D

Eugene Korolev: The advice I would give myself if I were just starting out is to start working with modern 3D software such as Blender right away unless you are trying to be hired by a large studio with a streamlined pipeline. For those working alone and those who want to be at the cutting edge of technology, old software like Maya or Max is outdated, although I use Maya, mostly. Additionally, developing an artistic vision is the main objective—the rest will come.

Looking ahead

We will try to collect all the cultural heritage content on Sketchfab and incorporate it into incredible virtual spaces and exhibitions, then transfer those experiences into VR mode and eventually create a whole universe.

Oleg Shuldiakov: I want to thank the entire Sketchfab Team who I have worked with: Alban Denoyel, Jamison Tilsner, Jeanne Lenglet, Erica Young, and many more! And special thanks to Thomas Flynn as Cultural Heritage Lead and Abby Crawford for editing this article. Thank you for your work.

TAPMOD’s favorite models on Sketchfab

Oleg Shuldiakov – CEO & Co-founder

I can roughly imagine the process of scanning solid objects like stones, sculptures, buildings or vehicles, and even tried to do some scans myself. But I cannot imagine scanning small living forms such as leaves, hair, grass, and especially bird feathers! I am delighted with the quality of these 3D scans:

Eugene Korolev – Co-founder & 3D lead

Very neat model in an “improved realism” style with a thrifty grid and no scanning artifacts, which creates the feeling that I’m looking at it in the museum. Was made by a perfectionist like me. I like other works of this author because I’m fond of Eastern culture.

Ruslan Zhizherin – Lead Developer

I am impressed by most of the 3D content on Sketchfab, but this high-quality 3D scan is indistinguishable from the magic! Surprised by the level of proficiency:

Alexandra Bocharova – Account Manager

I love vintage things, especially cameras. Here is the prototype of the new Canon VR camera, a two-in-one of such excellent quality:

Alexandra Skripkina – Product Manager

I have always been attracted to magical worlds and stories. I write fairy tales myself. Here is a fantasy universe I’d love to walk around one day: