Change the Graphics Properties of a Material

Change the display properties of a material in views by modifying options on the Graphics tab in the Material Editor panel.

You can change settings that define the way the material displays in shaded views, as well as the way its outer surfaces and cut surfaces display in other views. To assign materials to elements, see Apply Materials to Elements.

Note: To change the appearance of a material in rendered images, change its render appearance. For realistic rendered appearances, select the Realistic visual style. See Change the Appearance of a Material.

To change the graphic properties of a material

1. Click Manage tab Settings panel (Materials).

2. In the Material Browser, select the material to change in the project materials list.
3. In the Material Editor panel, click the Graphics tab.
4. To change how the material looks in shaded views (such as 3D views and elevations), under Shading, do the following:
   • If you want to use the render appearance to represent the material in shaded views, select Use Render Appearance for Shading. Revit calculates an average color for the render appearance and uses it to represent the material in 2D and 3D views whose Visual Style setting is Shaded. You can present realistic views by selecting Realistic.
   • Click the color swatch. In the Color dialog, select a color.
   • For Transparency, enter a value between 0% (completely opaque) and 100% (completely transparent), or move the slider to the desired setting.
5. To change how the outer surface of the material displays in views, under Surface Pattern, do the following for Foreground and Background:
   • Pattern: Click the pattern. In the Fill Patterns dialog, select a pattern from the list.
   • Color: Click the color swatch. In the Color dialog, select the color to use to draw the pattern.
   • Alignment: If you chose a model fill pattern for the surface, click Texture Alignment to align the render appearance to the surface pattern.
6. To change how the cut surface of the material displays in views, under Cut Pattern, do the following for Foreground and Background:
   • Pattern: Click the pattern. In the Fill Patterns dialog, select a pattern from the list.
   • Color: Click the color swatch. In the Color dialog, select the color to use to draw the pattern.
7. To save the changes to the material, click Apply on the Material Browser dialog.
8. To exit the Material Browser, click OK.