Clay Bodies: Crafting the Future with 3D Printing

Publication Date

11-2-2017

Document Type

Article

Publication Title

Architectural Design

Volume

87

Issue

6

DOI

10.1002/ad.2243

First Page

92

Last Page

97

Abstract

People have been using clay to make objects and shelters since time immemorial; but could it also be a key material of the future? San Francisco-based xyqmake-tank’ Emerging Objects has been experimenting with the use of clay in 3D printing, with sophisticated codes producing woven and textured forms and mixing different clays together. The studio's cofounders Ronald Rael and Virginia San Fratello here present these projects, as well as offering a potted history of clay's use and nature. Given its re-resistance and thermal qualities, the benefits of eventually applying such techniques on an architectural scale are clear.

Keywords

Emerging Objects (Ronald Rael and Virginia San Fratello), GCODE.Clay, Venus of Dolní Věstonice, Palaeolithic era, Brno, Czech Republic, Seed Stitch Wall, G-code, Donald Trump, United States, Mexico, Bad Ombrés, Black Mountain, Cassius Basaltic clay, Polar Ice porcelain, Matauri Bay, New Zealand, California, Smithsonian magazine, ‘Sophisticated Buildings Will Be Made Of Mud’

Department

Design

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