Alain Fournier
Encyclopedia
Alain Fournier was a computer graphics
researcher.
, France. He was married twice, first to Beverly Bickle (married 1968, divorced 1984) and later to Adrienne Drobnies, with whom he had one daughter, Ariel.
Fournier's early training was in chemistry
, culminating in a B.Sc. from INSA
, France
in 1965. After emigrating from France to Montreal
, Canada
in the 1970s, he co-wrote a textbook on chemistry, and taught the subject in Quebec
. His career in computer graphics spanned only about 20 years. In 1980 he received a Ph.D. in computer science from the University of Texas at Dallas
under the supervision of Zvi Meir Kedem, and with Donald Fussell and Loren Carpenter
reported the results of his Ph.D. work on stochastic modelling in a seminal paper in 1980. He then went on to an outstanding academic career, first at the University of Toronto
and subsequently at the University of British Columbia
. He has contributed to ACM Transactions on Graphics
as an author, as co-guest editor of a special issue in 1987, and, from 1990 to 1992, as an associate editor.
Fournier made contributions to computer graphics dealing with modelling of natural phenomena. He advocated a methodology that required validation against real visual phenomena. He once called his approach impressionistic graphics and it both revolutionized the field and drove it forward. An example is his beautiful paper (with Bill Reeves
) on the depiction of ocean waves
. His subsequent work dealt with illumination models, light transport, rendering
, and sampling and filtering.
Fournier died of lymphoma
in the early hours of August 14, 2000 in Vancouver
.
The Siggraph
2001 Proceedings were dedicated to Fournier.
The first Alain Fournier Award for the best Canadian doctoral dissertation in computer graphics was awarded to Michael P. Neff on June 8, 2006, at the Graphics Interface 2006 conference in Quebec City
.
Bibliography for Alain Fournier
Computer graphics
Computer graphics are graphics created using computers and, more generally, the representation and manipulation of image data by a computer with help from specialized software and hardware....
researcher.
Biography
Alain Fournier was born on November 5, 1943 in LyonLyon
Lyon , is a city in east-central France in the Rhône-Alpes region, situated between Paris and Marseille. Lyon is located at from Paris, from Marseille, from Geneva, from Turin, and from Barcelona. The residents of the city are called Lyonnais....
, France. He was married twice, first to Beverly Bickle (married 1968, divorced 1984) and later to Adrienne Drobnies, with whom he had one daughter, Ariel.
Fournier's early training was in chemistry
Chemistry
Chemistry is the science of matter, especially its chemical reactions, but also its composition, structure and properties. Chemistry is concerned with atoms and their interactions with other atoms, and particularly with the properties of chemical bonds....
, culminating in a B.Sc. from INSA
INSA
The Institut National des Sciences Appliquées is a grande école - a French engineering university....
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
in 1965. After emigrating from France to Montreal
Montreal
Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
in the 1970s, he co-wrote a textbook on chemistry, and taught the subject in Quebec
Quebec
Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
. His career in computer graphics spanned only about 20 years. In 1980 he received a Ph.D. in computer science from the University of Texas at Dallas
University of Texas at Dallas
The University of Texas at Dallas, also referred to as UT Dallas or UTD, is a public research university in the University of Texas System. The main campus is in the heart of the Richardson, Texas, Telecom Corridor, north of downtown Dallas...
under the supervision of Zvi Meir Kedem, and with Donald Fussell and Loren Carpenter
Loren Carpenter
Loren C. Carpenter is a computer graphics researcher and developer. He is co-founder and chief scientist of Pixar Animation Studios. He is the co-inventor of the Reyes rendering algorithm and is one of the authors of the PhotoRealistic RenderMan software which implements Reyes and which renders...
reported the results of his Ph.D. work on stochastic modelling in a seminal paper in 1980. He then went on to an outstanding academic career, first at the University of Toronto
University of Toronto
The University of Toronto is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, situated on the grounds that surround Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 as King's College, the first institution of higher learning in Upper Canada...
and subsequently at the University of British Columbia
University of British Columbia
The University of British Columbia is a public research university. UBC’s two main campuses are situated in Vancouver and in Kelowna in the Okanagan Valley...
. He has contributed to ACM Transactions on Graphics
ACM Transactions on Graphics
ACM Transactions on Graphics is a peer-reviewed scientific journal that aims to disseminate the latest findings of note in the field of computer graphics. It has been published since 1982 by the Association for Computing Machinery...
as an author, as co-guest editor of a special issue in 1987, and, from 1990 to 1992, as an associate editor.
Fournier made contributions to computer graphics dealing with modelling of natural phenomena. He advocated a methodology that required validation against real visual phenomena. He once called his approach impressionistic graphics and it both revolutionized the field and drove it forward. An example is his beautiful paper (with Bill Reeves
William Reeves
William "Bill" Reeves is a pioneer in the field of computer graphics. He was the technical director who worked with John Lasseter on the animation breakthrough shorts: Luxo Jr and The Adventures of André and Wally B.....
) on the depiction of ocean waves
Ocean surface wave
In fluid dynamics, wind waves or, more precisely, wind-generated waves are surface waves that occur on the free surface of oceans, seas, lakes, rivers, and canals or even on small puddles and ponds. They usually result from the wind blowing over a vast enough stretch of fluid surface. Waves in the...
. His subsequent work dealt with illumination models, light transport, rendering
Rendering (computer graphics)
Rendering is the process of generating an image from a model , by means of computer programs. A scene file contains objects in a strictly defined language or data structure; it would contain geometry, viewpoint, texture, lighting, and shading information as a description of the virtual scene...
, and sampling and filtering.
Fournier died of lymphoma
Lymphoma
Lymphoma is a cancer in the lymphatic cells of the immune system. Typically, lymphomas present as a solid tumor of lymphoid cells. Treatment might involve chemotherapy and in some cases radiotherapy and/or bone marrow transplantation, and can be curable depending on the histology, type, and stage...
in the early hours of August 14, 2000 in Vancouver
Vancouver
Vancouver is a coastal seaport city on the mainland of British Columbia, Canada. It is the hub of Greater Vancouver, which, with over 2.3 million residents, is the third most populous metropolitan area in the country,...
.
The Siggraph
SIGGRAPH
SIGGRAPH is the name of the annual conference on computer graphics convened by the ACM SIGGRAPH organization. The first SIGGRAPH conference was in 1974. The conference is attended by tens of thousands of computer professionals...
2001 Proceedings were dedicated to Fournier.
The first Alain Fournier Award for the best Canadian doctoral dissertation in computer graphics was awarded to Michael P. Neff on June 8, 2006, at the Graphics Interface 2006 conference in Quebec City
Quebec City
Quebec , also Québec, Quebec City or Québec City is the capital of the Canadian province of Quebec and is located within the Capitale-Nationale region. It is the second most populous city in Quebec after Montreal, which is about to the southwest...
.
Publications
Fournier published 32 scholarly papers about computer graphics.Bibliography for Alain Fournier
Photo
- http://www.cs.ubc.ca/nest/imager/imager-web/Dedications/Alain/AlainExpress.gif