SYDNEY—This ceramic pendant lamp takes the coil technique to an entirely new level. Australian designer Tom Fereday and artist Susan Chen’s PELO lamp shade design takes two and a half hours to 3D print using a single coil of extruded clay. Dezeen writes Fereday lead the duo in the design and modeling phase, while Chen oversaw development ensuring Fereday’s form could be created with a 3D printer.
Fereday describes the process in his product statement:
Exploring the use of 3D printed ceramics we attempted to make a piece that would celebrate the unique details and variations of the process. Made from a single extrusion of clay the light reveals its coiled construction produced from raw fired porcelain and earthenware.
The lamp features tiny furrows indicating the layers of extruded clay stacked upon each other while forming its shape. The innate characteristic of the process is illuminated when the lamp is turned on.
“As a light, the detailed surface is highlighted and celebrated as an honest expression of the process, which would be very difficult to replicate through a traditional ceramic-making process.” —Fereday
The design duo created several prototypes, according to the Dezeen, in order to understand how to stave off slumping or shrinking during printing, while also testing the outcome of different materials such as earthenware and porcelain.
“We attempted to use our experience to create a product that was driven by the process of 3D printing, and not simply made to create a shape that might otherwise be too complex to make.” —Fereday
Be sure to check out this video of the making of the Pelo lamp shade, from Fereday:
Read other Cfile.org musings of 3D printed ceramic material.
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