Graphics Reference
In-Depth Information
systems in an interactive software applet with customers, who can apply
the system to design their own unique products.
Josh Harker, an independent artist and designer, describes himself as a clas-
sically trained artist and sculptor who “uses bits, ones and zeros, to express
himself in a human way, to make something new.” I stumbled upon Josh's
artwork on crowdfunding site Kickstarter where he raised a record amount
of funds for a sculpture project called Crania Anatomica Filigre, a white,
plastic ornately iligreed 3D printed skull. When we spoke on the phone,
I learned that he grew up in the Mississippi River valley in Illinois. He
described his bohemian childhood as one that “included post '60s off-grid
communal living, Hell's Angels babysitters, complete artistic immersion, and
family tragedy.” Today he's a full-time artist and a leading digital sculptor.
Josh explained, “Most of what I do is digital.”
Josh learned how to use design software and 3D printers several years ago
when he owned and managed a boutique design irm. “I don't know how a
designer could stay in the marketplace these days without knowing how to
use the tools,” he said. After nearly a decade in industry, the call to return to
art and sculpture became too strong to resist. In 2008, Josh returned to art
full-time to explore his passion for digital sculpture and 3D printing.
Josh initially embraced 3D printing to fabricate the elaborate geometries
he creates on the computer. “I used to create geometries on the computer that
were too complex to make,” he said. “I did drawings for years but they were
too complex to hand sculpt. Clay, wood, stone—nothing would work.”.
Some of Josh's sculptures relect his classical training—nudes and charac-
ter studies. Many of his sculptures are digitally designed and 3D printed. His
“Knots & Tangles” series relects his fascination with the design potential
inherent in natural formations such as roots, vines, neural networks, or car-
diovascular systems.
“I'm lucky to be around at the time all of this is happening,” said Josh. “It's
a revolutionary time for the arts,” he added empathically. “Never before have
forms of this organic complexity been able to be developed and reproduced.
I look forward to seeing what's ahead.”
Inorganic, physical processes can generate shape as well. Eyal Gever of
Tel Aviv creates what he calls “Disaster Art.” Using simulation algorithms,
he reconstructs transient tragic moments that would normally disappear in
a blink of an eye. Using a 3D printer, he can bring these moments back into
reality, in all their force: for example, a car crash or an oil spill. The effect is
that of freezing time in physical reality.
