May 12, 2015 | By Alec
We’ve already known for a while that 3D printing technology is perfect for creating gorgeous works of art in all shapes and sizes, but we rarely see it in as many shapes as the ‘Got M?’ project by designer duo Drzach & Suchy. The Zurich, Switzerland-based artists have essentially made a very impressive lighting trick involving hundreds of ‘shadow casting panels’ (or SCP) that, depending on where the light is coming from, depicts either Kermit the Frog or Miss Piggy.
The duo have developed this unusual style over the past decade, and is the natural result of their respective backgrounds. Drzach is an architect with a fascination for art, while cryptographer and a software engineer Suchy enjoys experimenting with holograms. They have been working with these SCPs since 2004, when Drzach developed the technique that revolves around storing multiple images into the panels in such a way that you only see one in specific lighting.
They have previously made headlines with this technique with ‘The Force’, a Lego brick installation currently on display at the Google Office in Zurich. Featuring 16,000 bricks, it shows either Yoda or Darth Vader.
But for their latest installation they have teamed up with 3D printing specialists from i.materialise and have extensively relied on 3D printing software to create the multi-colored ‘Got M?’ project. ‘Previously, we made a prototype of a colorful SCP, but we had to assemble it manually, pixel-by-pixel, as 3D printing with colored transparent materials was not feasible. Now that more materials are available for 3D printing, we wanted to give it a try,’ the duo says on the i.materialise website.
This time around, they have designed the hundreds of multi-color tiles and their precise positions using SketchUp Ruby API, which made the time-consuming design and prototyping much easier. All those tiles were subsequently 3D printed in transparent resin in different colors. Spread out over a number of separate tiles that can be clicked together, you can imagine that it was one hell of a designing process.
So why is it called ‘Got M?’? Well, that name will become clear enough as soon as you see in video above, in which they bring it the whole piece together. The milk is used to hide the support structure and enable the colors and light to reflect more effectively. While it might have to be washed regularly, it is nonetheless an awe-inspiring piece of art.
Posted in 3D Printing Applications
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Amazing project! Thanks for spreading the news :)
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