In a recent Design Week magazine (30 April) Jonathan Ive of Apple asserts that RP is distancing designers from the physical process of design and creating 'a lot of lousy design'.
And in the following edition of the magazine numerous commentators are asked for their reaction. Most just echo Ive's sentiments
I agree with Matthew Lewis (Metropolitan Works) that knowledge of materials and processes is fundamental to successful design (and to any creative process), but it is wrong of Jonathan Ive to blame the tools. RP and now RM (additive layer manufacturing (ALM) or whatever you want to call it) open up enormous creative possibilities, and should be seen as a way of connecting the designer with the consumer in the same way as in pre-Industrial Revolution craft based societies.
As ALM frees the designer from tooling and mould making, there is the potential and the reality of every product being tailored for a specific requirement in the same way that a potter would have served the needs of the farmer or cook. In theory this should fully engage the designer with the complete creative process and the need to understand the capabilities of materials are capable of.
As applied artists/designers/creatives we have new tools in our toolbox. ALM/RP doesn't replace the other tools, it complements them and should be used appropriately.
Jonathan Ive should really be addressing the Colleges and Universities who are closing their 3D workshops and sitting students in front of computers as the cheaper option. It is central to the success of design innovation that knowledge of materials and processes is a fundamental part in the education of the next generation of creatives.
Wednesday 10 June 2009
Saturday 9 May 2009
The iPotter
We have the technology...
I have evolved from making ceramics with almost pre-Industrial Revolution materials and technology to manufacturing them using technology from the next Industrial Revolution. In doing so my practice has virtually leapt 250 years.
...and the materials
The majority of my friends from the Studio Pottery world are baffled. My work no longer shares one of the prime motivations of handmade ceramics- the expression of material qualities and processes.
The process I now use prevents me from capturing a moment in time in the same way as I could with liquid coloured slips, but my approach to the design and digital manufacture of pieces like The Wedgwoodn't Tureen doesn't divorce me from the need to engage with material qualities.
So if I loose something that was an important ingredient, what do I gain? Freedom.
I am liberated from some of the restrictions of material properties; I don't have to think about the centrifugal forces that impose their effects on the form of a thrown pot; gravity has no influence.
Most importantly I am freed from the 'baggage' associated with Studio Pottery, whose genesis was the Arts and Craft Movement and its rejection of the dehumanising effects of industrial production and the division of labour.
In fact, the process I employ now has the potential to turn the circle back to the pre-Industrial Revolution days of direct contact between the maker and the customer. 3D printing or Additive Manufacturing (AM) or whatever you wish to call it, is not restricted by the need for moulds or tooling. A design can be customised for customer before it is manufactured.
A blacksmith gains the skills required to choose the right metal for the job through direct experience (tacit knowledge). Materials need to be appropriate to the task asked of them and as AM is primarily a material based technology, with new materials and variations coming onto the market on a regular basis, then those engaged with them surely require the same skills as the blacksmith.
As part of my RCA project I used The Wedgwoodn't Tureen to test the capabilities of the software, hardware and materials of AM and particularly the materials and processes developed by Axiatec. Now that I have acquired a basic understanding, I can go on to exploit the freedom that they give me. Through the design and production of new work I continue my testing and expand my tacit knowledge in the process.
Having divorced myself from the Studio Pottery movement, the approach to my work is bound to be framed by 25 years of making pots, but my new work has been able to take on a more conceptual direction, engaging with ideas that I hope the viewer will find thought-provoking.
(to be continued.....)
I have evolved from making ceramics with almost pre-Industrial Revolution materials and technology to manufacturing them using technology from the next Industrial Revolution. In doing so my practice has virtually leapt 250 years.
...and the materials
The majority of my friends from the Studio Pottery world are baffled. My work no longer shares one of the prime motivations of handmade ceramics- the expression of material qualities and processes.
The process I now use prevents me from capturing a moment in time in the same way as I could with liquid coloured slips, but my approach to the design and digital manufacture of pieces like The Wedgwoodn't Tureen doesn't divorce me from the need to engage with material qualities.
So if I loose something that was an important ingredient, what do I gain? Freedom.
I am liberated from some of the restrictions of material properties; I don't have to think about the centrifugal forces that impose their effects on the form of a thrown pot; gravity has no influence.
Most importantly I am freed from the 'baggage' associated with Studio Pottery, whose genesis was the Arts and Craft Movement and its rejection of the dehumanising effects of industrial production and the division of labour.
In fact, the process I employ now has the potential to turn the circle back to the pre-Industrial Revolution days of direct contact between the maker and the customer. 3D printing or Additive Manufacturing (AM) or whatever you wish to call it, is not restricted by the need for moulds or tooling. A design can be customised for customer before it is manufactured.
A blacksmith gains the skills required to choose the right metal for the job through direct experience (tacit knowledge). Materials need to be appropriate to the task asked of them and as AM is primarily a material based technology, with new materials and variations coming onto the market on a regular basis, then those engaged with them surely require the same skills as the blacksmith.
As part of my RCA project I used The Wedgwoodn't Tureen to test the capabilities of the software, hardware and materials of AM and particularly the materials and processes developed by Axiatec. Now that I have acquired a basic understanding, I can go on to exploit the freedom that they give me. Through the design and production of new work I continue my testing and expand my tacit knowledge in the process.
Having divorced myself from the Studio Pottery movement, the approach to my work is bound to be framed by 25 years of making pots, but my new work has been able to take on a more conceptual direction, engaging with ideas that I hope the viewer will find thought-provoking.
(to be continued.....)
Tuesday 7 April 2009
05.05.09 - What's new?
Well, it's been some time since I recorded my news and thoughts. In some ways a lot has happened since I finished at the RCA, and in some ways not enough.
My work has been shown by Adrian Sassoon at various Art and Design Fairs in the UK, USA and Belgium. They were shown recently at SOFA in New York and will be at COLLECT in London in 2 weeks time. I'll have some new work on show.
It's also just about to go on display in 'Object Factory' at the Museum of Arts and Design in New York
I have divided my time between designing new work, trying to complete an AHRC Knowledge Catalyst application to undertake another 12 months applied research at the RCA and collaborating with Axiatec and the University of Washington on material tests.
Here is an image of my test cube designed, printed on the ZCorp 450 in France. It has been treated to make it heat resistant, then I have dipped it in vitreous slip, fired it to 1000C, then glazed and fired it to 1085C with one of our lovely lead glazes.
This test piece is based on my 'Event Horizon' torus piece. Again, it was printed on a ZCorp machine, but in clay, not in the usual 131 powder. It was then biscuit fired to 1000C and treated in the same way as the test cube above.
This morning I sent 2 of the torus test pieces to the Esther Klein Gallery at the Science Center in Philadelphia, USA for an exhibition called 'The FAB Show'. The exhibition will explore Creative and DIY methods of accessing and utilising 3D printing technology. We are working with Evan Malone of Fab@Home on the exhibition, along with folks from MakerBot, RepRap, and Candyfab.
Meanwhile, if anyone out there is interested in my work and research please don't hesitate to get in touch. I am looking for a position, either temporary, permanent, part-time or full time where I can contribute my experience, enthusiasm and knowledge.
My work has been shown by Adrian Sassoon at various Art and Design Fairs in the UK, USA and Belgium. They were shown recently at SOFA in New York and will be at COLLECT in London in 2 weeks time. I'll have some new work on show.
It's also just about to go on display in 'Object Factory' at the Museum of Arts and Design in New York
I have divided my time between designing new work, trying to complete an AHRC Knowledge Catalyst application to undertake another 12 months applied research at the RCA and collaborating with Axiatec and the University of Washington on material tests.
Here is an image of my test cube designed, printed on the ZCorp 450 in France. It has been treated to make it heat resistant, then I have dipped it in vitreous slip, fired it to 1000C, then glazed and fired it to 1085C with one of our lovely lead glazes.
This test piece is based on my 'Event Horizon' torus piece. Again, it was printed on a ZCorp machine, but in clay, not in the usual 131 powder. It was then biscuit fired to 1000C and treated in the same way as the test cube above.
This morning I sent 2 of the torus test pieces to the Esther Klein Gallery at the Science Center in Philadelphia, USA for an exhibition called 'The FAB Show'. The exhibition will explore Creative and DIY methods of accessing and utilising 3D printing technology. We are working with Evan Malone of Fab@Home on the exhibition, along with folks from MakerBot, RepRap, and Candyfab.
Meanwhile, if anyone out there is interested in my work and research please don't hesitate to get in touch. I am looking for a position, either temporary, permanent, part-time or full time where I can contribute my experience, enthusiasm and knowledge.
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