Long, long ago, and kinda far away, I worked in a plastics factory. They had the most amazing machine -- a stereolithography "printer" that allowed people to rapidly build 3D models from CAD designs. It was pure magic: it had a vat of photo-sensitive liquid plastic, a travelling laser, and an elevator that slowly descended in the vat as an object appeared above it in the plastic goo. It was one of the most amazing things I've ever seen. It was the kind of thing that people mean when they say "The Future".
Well, it looks like they now have the same amazing process for metal! But rather using it for everyday industrial design, this woman uses it to create some fantastic, intricate sculptures. (Check out this sweet one!) Be sure to read her description of the technique; apparently the formed metal is very porous, so she dips it into molten bronze, and the bronze enfuses the sculpture through capillary action. Amazing. Sadly, it's too late to put this on my Christmas wishlist.
[via linkmonger]
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