At least this approach is new for me. Other artists have been using 3D printing to create maquettes for sculptures that will be produced in bronze and other more traditional materials for a little while. But then, they didn’t have an 8-foot-tall 3D printer.
When I started using 3D printing 10 years ago, though, traditional fabricators hadn’t yet figured out how to use this new technology instead of wax or clay to create maquettes, or small models, of what would become larger artworks.
Now using 3D printing to employ the lost wax process – which has been used by artists for 6,500 years – is almost standard. This approach will allow me to create some of my more challenging sculptures in large and even monumental sizes.
Yesterday I ordered my first 3 sculptures by sending my STL files, which were developed by 3D Systems (which coincidentally made my first 3D printer). I output the files from CAD (I’ve written a number of posts about using CAD, so just search the blogs for them), which I use to design both my 3D-printed sculptures and to design some of my metal artworks.
Two of these new sculptures will be created in bronze and based on the design I used to create Oculum (above, right), a single-sided, three-dimensional form based on the umbilic torus. Oculum is a variation on the umbilic torus. The finish is a verdigris patina over – believe it or not – fluorescent pink filament, which gives the sculpture an amazing under glow.
I’ve created several sculptures using the umbilic torus, including the 9-foot-diameter sculpture Wherever You Go, There You Are, which was purchased for the entrance of the Whitaker Museum of Science and the Arts in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.
Yes, I can and do and will continue to fabricate sculpture in metal and filament, but this approach will enable me to produce my original designs in new materials and sizes.
It will be many weeks before I see the actual sculptures, and I can’t wait. You know, of course, I will share them with you, especially on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok and Threads and of course, my Website at https://www.kevincaron.com I look forward to your thoughts.