Art & Sculpture

Be ready for the world first 3d printing auction

Marshall Burns has one of the biggest collections of 3D printed artifacts that goes back more than 25 years, which is virtually prehistoric in this context. Now the whole lot is set to go under the hammer and it could be the biggest auction in 3D printing history.

When does 3D printing technology cross over and become an antique? When does a scientific discovery become art? These are intriguing questions and this auction could hold some of the answers.


Who is Marshall Burns?

Burns wrote Automated Fabrication in 1993, which was the go-to reference book for 3D printing for some time. It’s still relevant today and you can download it for free here. He wrote extensively for Rapid Prototyping Report and became a key figure in the industry. He was voted one of the 25 most influential people in 3D printing, which led to speaking engagements around the world.

How did he get into it? He decided to become an expert on the subject when 3D printing was in its embryonic stage, it was really as simple as that. There were no established authorities back then, only pioneers, and Burns decided to join them after finishing a PhD in Physics at the University of Texas.

Part of the process was simply asking people and companies for prints and samples of their work.

“I wasn’t growing a collection, I was growing a business,” he said. “I was on a mission to become the world’s foremost expert on this technology. It was the most natural thing in the world to have a lot of examples of what it was that I was aiming to be an expert about.

“I used the samples to explain the concept of digital fabrication in public presentations and in consulting meetings. I even printed two briefcases that I made to carry with me on business trips for these presentations and meetings.”


The highlights of the collection

Over time that turned into an immense collection that he has now trimmed down to the best examples of 3D printing. They include a gear tree that was made in 1991. Any printer could product it today, but back then it was a big deal and that makes this a significant piece.

A fractured skull is another oddity in the collection that could go for big money at auction, because this is a groundbreaking medical tool that helped surgeons fabricate a plate before they had made the first cut. Medical models are commonplace nowadays, but in 1994 it was a total gamechanger.

Other highlights of the collection include a prosthetic ear from 1991, which was molded from rubber. Again it is a far cry from today’s perfect prints, but without this one then today’s might just not exist.

Rapid prototyping was how the whole 3D printing movement started and there is a disposable razor from Gillette in the collection that could well pique the interest of technology and shaving aficionados alike. This was the first time snap-fitting parts were made on a 3D printer, which is seen on Gillette razor in refined form even to this day. Before 3D printing allowed the company to experiment with materials, they were prone to breakage. So this is a scientific breakthrough, a seminal moment in shaving and a neat example of rapid prototyping all in one hit.

Then there is the ball in the cage, made by the short-lived Quadrax Mark 100 3D printer in 1991. This was the first example of multiple, interlocked parts being printed without assembly. At the time, this sparked debate around the world.

The collection also contains digital sculptures based on mathematical equations, other forms of rapid prototyping examples and things like tensile bars that were produced to literally test the breaking strength of a variety of materials.


There’s a library too

On top of that, Burns has one of the most complete libraries of 3D printing literature that is set to go to auction. It includes client reports, articles on the groundbreaking UPS commercial and even a proposal to toymaker Mattel. It’s a disparate collection, but together it really does tell the complete story of 3D printing and the impact it had upon the world.

It’s time for Burns to part with the collection as he has moved on to work in social justice. The collections were simply sat in boxes and it was time to let them go to a loving home. Could that be a museum, a company or a private collector? That’s something we have to find out.

We also have no idea what the collection will go for. 3D printing is now mainstream technology and these prototypes go back to the beginning, but there is simply no real reference for the value and so they are worth what someone is prepared to pay.

Classic videogames have become collectors’ items and people fight over old pairs of Nike trainers. So it is just down to the audience on the day and making sure that the right people know about the auction as it happens.

When it comes, the whole industry will watch this auction with interest, because it could show them how far 3D printing has come and how much of a cult following it has around the world.

We’ll keep you informed of the details