We never realized it, but extrusion-based 3D printing is quite similar to traditional methods of making ceramic pots. In the ancient method, a roll of clay is set in a circle, then another is affixed on top, gradually building up the object into a full pot. Sound familiar? Artist and potter Jonathan Keep realized this and attempted to move his potting activities to a more modern technique: 3D printing. He says:
I have long wanted to get the virtual forms I was creating out of the computer and into the physical world as real ceramic objects to be felt and held in the hand. Touch is such an important sensation. This is an exciting new way to work.
Using an inexpensive RapMan 3D printer, modified to extrude clay instead of thermoplastic, he was able to produce some amazing results.
Via Keep Art
