So if you know me then you know I love the idea of 3D printing, I have no idea what I’d go about printing, but I want it... lots of it. There’s a lot of really practical uses for 3D printing, cheap prototyping, easy replacement of parts, quick fixes, and creative hobby projects. However I don’t want to talk about any of the industrial or hobbyist uses, I want to talk about 3D printing as the product, and as a method of distribution.
This weekend I came across the artwork of a guy called Tomoo Yamaji, whose work consists of statuettes of characters from Buddhist mythology, with a modern twist. These characters are 3D printed, and then hand-painted to create one off statuettes that he sells on his website. If you want to see more of his work, you can head over to his Youtube page and show him some love. (don’t forget to subscribe to ours while you’re over there wink wink)
The great thing about Yamaji’s work is that you don’t have to be a sculptor or a metal worker or a painter to be able to create something unique and cool. You just have to have access to 3D modelling software and a 3D printer, and not only are they both becoming more accessible in price, but also easier to learn and use, meaning that it becomes less about your artistic prowess and more about the core idea of the piece. There are plenty of creative people out there, and plenty more creative ideas. In fact I’d say there are more people with ideas than those with the talents or methods to see their ideas come to fruition, and any outlet which allows those ideas to be fully expressed to the rest of the world is already awesome in my books. But it just doesn't stop there.
Now everyone has, at some point in their life attempted some sort of modelling kit... usually with varying degrees of success. You buy the model in pieces, put it together, paint it, and Boom; a scale model of an Airbus A330! But what if you didn’t have to go to the modelling store and talk to some sweaty creep at the till? What if everything you needed was right at home all along? Picture this, you go online, find the model you want, and you buy it, but instead of buying the kit, you buy the blueprints for the model. Print them out, and from that point on it’s like you bought it from a store. The creator doesn’t have to worry about manufacturing and distribution so can set a lower price point whilst making a decent profit for their work, and consumers can benefit from both the lower price point of the product, and the continually falling price point of 3D printers. I’m using a model kit as an example but this could really be applied to anything, models, toys, trinkets and art; and because of it’s accessibility, people can provide their own take on things, collaborate and improve on each others work, making the end product more refined..
Picture this, say an artist uploads the blueprints for something he’s working on, and asks people to take it, personalise it, put their own take on it, and bring them all together for a massive diorama for the final piece. You are now part of that concept, you are now part of an organic, growing and ever changing piece of artwork and you also own a small stake in that work.3D printing not only makes art more easy to create, but it makes it easier to share and display and for everyone to play a part in it’s creation and appreciation. I love nifty things, and I love creative ideas that think outside the box, so every day I see someone do something new with 3D printing, on a format that hasn’t even matured, I get excited.
So what do you think, do you think 3D printing is the future or is it’s potential overstated, and what would you print if you had a 3D printer? You can leave us a comment on the blog, or get in touch via Facebook or Twitter.
Jamie out xoxoxo
No comments:
Post a Comment