In 2010 paparazzi snapped a pic of actor Keanu Reeves sitting on a bench and looking a bit dejected. The image quickly exploded into an internet meme, generating thousands of images, captions and sites dedicated to the concept.
The meme continues. Shapeways creator neuralfirings developed a 3D model of the Keanu pose and offered it for sale in full color at the reasonable price of USD$45.
Then Alexis Madrigal, senior technology editor at The Atlantic, ordered one.
The result is the resurrection of the meme, this time in 3D printed form. Madrigal imaged the Keanu in various meme scenarios, producing dozens of new variations, some of which are shown here. Be sure to check out his post to see all of them, including the multi-memed “Binders of Women”.
We think this could be a key application for 3D printing. With the right model, amazing, amusing, profound or, in this case, sad, images can easily be posed and captured. If sufficiently viral we could see popular 3D prints reproduced widely simply for the purpose of making cool images.
If only Keanu wasn’t so sad.
Via The Atlantic and Shapeways
Was this little guy drawn or captured with a 3D scanner?