Illuminating Clay is system for the real-time computational analysis of physical landscape models. Users manipulate a malleable landscape model while the topography of the model is captured in real time by a laser-scanning device. The surface geometry of the model serves as an input to a library of landscape-analysis functions. The results of this analysis are projected back into the workspace and registered with the surfaces of the model. The system allows users to interact simultaneously with both physical and computational representations of the landscape.