#3DPrinting

#3DPrinting

Although 3D Printing may have sounded as something coming out of Star Trek a few years back, it isn’t so unusual anymore.

3D Printers have been gaining more ground as the years go by, offering us possibilities in design, we could possibly never have dreamed of.

Architects and designers have been using them for years now; and where those two go, fashion will inevitably follow.

Soon fashion designers caught up with the new technique of printing and have been entranced by the possibilities that have opened, in creating their own new textiles and forms.

Ejing Zhang, Tote Bag (2014)

In Athens this winter at the ONASSIS CULTURAL CENTRE we saw an exhibition that looked from the future, yet we were certainly in the present.

From Sculpture to Medicine, from Architecture to Fashion, this relatively small exhibition of videos, interactive documentaries and exhibits answered many of our questions of how exactly a 3D Printer works, the materials used, the designs that need to be created…

 Gabriela Ligenza, Hat Collection (2014)

Presently the easiest raw material to use as the "ink" in 3D Printers is plastic. However the future promises a full range of fabric types including cotton, wool and silk which will be used as the basis for 3D printed garments. 

Already "Smart fabric" is becoming a new trend and could result in fabrics changing their colour or texture according to the surroundings. Fabric will no longer be static but an interactive and active inspiration for fashion.  

Pia Hinze Design, Dress (2013)

Exhibition at the OCC, 15 December 2014 – 31 January 2015

Silvia Weidenbach, Jewellery (2012)

-A.N.