3D Printing

Maartje Dijkstra's 3D Printed Ensemble Pumps to the Beat of a Different Drum

3D printing, with its ability to construct elaborate shapes, has opened up brave new possibilities in fashion, seen in the works of Iris van Herpen and Francis Bitonti.  3D printed fashion has taken a turn for the bizarre with the latest piece from dutch fashion designer Maartje Dijkstra, whose latest prototype, Hard Core Vein 2.0, uses 3D printing to pump it full of high fashion.

Maartje Dijkstra 3D printed hard core vein 2.0 chestpiece

Created with funds from Creative Industries Fund NL, Hard Core Vein 2.0 is an intricate top made from a series of 3D printed tubes blended, yielding something that resembles sci-fi warrior princess fertility armor.  As you’ll see in the video below, the tubes, printed in transparent filament, are actually filled with ink that pump with beats of music, “like blood through a vein on a heartbeat”, as Dijkstra describes it.  To maintain the piece’s individuality, the designer combines 3D printing technology with manual details, the black silk wires in the piece.

Though other designers have created organic shapes and shapes “inspired by nature”, the individualization that Dijkstra adds to her mechanical piece gives them an organic feeling that reflects the warmth of human care, coming from a specific individual.  You may get a similar vibe from her other work, too, which you can see by visiting her website.