For his exhibition at London’s Design Museum, as part of their Designer in Residence Program, Adam Nathaniel Furman took advantage of the stunning color 3D printing capabilities at his disposal, courtesy of 3D printing service bureau Lee 3D, and presented “Totem” as part of his Identity Parade. The exhibit ran from September to January 2014. While the display may have ended, the quality of print and color available, thanks to a combination of high-quality printing and ceramic production, can still be appreciated as well as the harrowing message embedded in Furman’s work.
Totem utilized Lee3D’s Zcorp technology and common ceramic practices to burnish a vibrant result. Lee 3D accepts files from common software sources such as Rhino and SketchUp as well as a host of other formats listed on their FAQ page. The plaster used for printing spouts from a 4 channel CMYK found on the ZPrinter 650,comparable to 3D Systems’Projet 660. With the ability to print 390,000 colors, Lee strives to remain humble by reminding customers that 3DP color quality is not as refined as 2D printing. Nevertheless, the results appear dazzling as long as customers stick to specified RGB values. The London-based company offers quick domestic delivery. The power of Lee 3D provided Furman with the print design. As an alternative to 3DP, Furman used traditional ceramic molds for different textures thereby creating a physical juxtaposition of media for the exhibit. The molds came courtesy of CP Ceramics, yet what the Identity Parade revealed can be somewhat disturbing and vertiginous.
As part of the concept of Identity, Furman looked at the meta-constructs of our lives and the immediate gratification associated with our zeitgeist while comparing those grasps for comfort to old-world narratives and cultural identities. All of these aspects came together in a process that involved the creation of an artist possessed by Furman for a 3 month period sequestered to a flat and left with only the most ubiquitous forms of immediate expression, Twitter; Snapchat; and 3DP (and delivery), that basically isolates as it connects via the internet.
The videos explain the proposal and execution of Furman’s design. We are dizzied by the confluence of traditional realms of architecture and grandeur as exemplified by Greco-Roman structures and modern bombardment of GIFs and VINES and bright lights. One resonating quote from the exhibition is “form free from content so that the mind may find meaning.” 3DP often offers such objects, frequently dazzling, yet there is always a narrative that brought the mind of the creator to that image, to the place and space necessary for its being. Furman’s art certainly does what art of discernable quality does: it makes us question ourselves through its existence, once registered and branded in our consciousness.
