502 Copyright © 2019, IGI Global. Copying or distributing in print or electronic forms without written permission of IGI Global is prohibited. Chapter 24 DOI: 10.4018/978-1-5225-8054-6.ch024 ABSTRACT Aim of the chapter is to present a critical discourse on the use of visual computing for the study of historic architecture. From the analysis of the experiences in other scientifc felds and of current researches in the architectural one, the paper highlights how visual computing has become an important approach in built heritage study and how it could favor new lines, in particular according to the non-linear spatial narratives of the 3D models. They are useful to analyze and describe the buildings and provide an ag- gregative core for the heterogeneous bulk of information related to historic buildings (drawings, texts, images, data, metadata, etc.). In this way visual architectural modeling and database modeling correlate together, and the whole system gives rise to complex informative models – manipulable, navigable and interactive –, helpful for the understanding, knowledge, preservation, communication and enhancement of architectural heritage. INTRODUCTION The constant growth of digital technologies for surveying, modeling, and visualization of architectural heritage – in particular thanks to low cost applications – made them an inescapable part of the everyday practice of professionals and academics. In the early experiences, the digital representation had the simple purpose of visualizing the results of a research; now we have reached the awareness that digital simulation can be a completing aspect of the research process. Historical buildings present peculiar characteristics compared to other kind of cultural heritage: It is a complex system of spaces, volumes, materials, surfaces, constructive aspects, actual and past functions, etc. The whole is the result of a continuous historical process of modification and transformation: In fact architecture can be interpreted as a “hand-made”, where its characteristics are witnesses of constructive cultures and of events occurred during the life of the building. On Visual Computing for Architectural Heritage Stefano Brusaporci L’Aquila University, Italy