GVU History

The art and science of computer graphics have been subjects of great interest at Georgia Tech ever since the advent of computing as a leading academic discipline. In 1988, the same year the College of Computing was founded, two Tech professors, Larry Hodges and Bill Ribarsky, initiated the Georgia Tech Computer Graphics Interest Group, or TechGraph. The group sponsored seminars on projects relating to the members' shared interests in graphics and visualization.

Buoyed by the popularity of the seminars, Hodges and Ribarsky combined an SGI workstation with two high-end SGI's to create the Scientific Visualization Lab. It soon joined with the Biomedical Visualization Lab and the Animation and Video Labs to form the Georgia Tech Imaging Consortium.

The Consortium created a unified environment for sharing ideas and resources, and encouraged research collaboration. It laid the groundwork for elevating the disciplines of graphics and visualization by serving as a campus-wide resource, fostering creativity and supporting related academic programs.

In early 1991, the Consortium's name was changed to the Graphics, Visualization & Usability Center, or GVU Center. The next year, backed by the College of Computing, a 3,000-square-foot GVU/Scientific Visualization Lab was completed in the College of Computing's building.

Upon completion of the Technology Square development project in 2006, the GVU Center found new quarters in the Technology Square Research Building. Several GVU-affiliated labs also moved to the expansive new facility.

Today, students and faculty involved with the GVU Center are drawn from a number of schools, colleges and departments across the Georgia Tech campus. Corporate support and involvement continues to flourish through our Industrial Partnership Program. Interdisciplinary interactions are abundant, and the Center encourages interaction through seed grants that support students working on projects with faculty from two or more schools or departments.

GVU Directors

James Foley 1991-1996
Jarek Rossignac 1996-2001
Aaron Bobick 2001-2004
Elizabeth Mynatt 2005-present