Turning ancient craft techniques into 3D technology

To show the future of ceramics, WASP returns to Argillà, turning ancient craft techniques into 3D technology. Argillà hosts the International Ceramics Festival in Faenza, Italy – where every two years potteries, artists and ceramic experts from wherever in the world come to meet each other.

During Argillà 2016, WASP will present DeltaWASP 3MT a new 3m-high printer, able to produce 1m-high sculptures due to a new extruder and a clay mixture specially formulated for 3D printing with low risk of collapse.

The digital revolution in ceramics
Massimo Moretti, WASP’s CEO, says: “The pottery wheel’s arrival has been a substantial innovation in the history of ceramics and opened up new possibilities of expressiveness and performance. Today, 3D printing is the new revolution.” 3D printing is a technology able to transform the crafting rules, to diversify shapes, turning nimbly from a geometrical structure to the freedom of sculptural approach. The software has a wide range of possibilities and managing critical aspects of the manual labour can be achieved easily with open source. Due to 3D technology the thickness of the objects will never be a problem again and the artist will be completely involved controlling the infill in the post-production phase.

The new extruder
The new extrusion system on the big printer is able to sustain 15kg of clay. It is the clay extruder that is the big news of the event. Massimo Moretti, says: “After the launch of the first professional clay extruder for consumer printers that we showed during the last Argillà Edition, we’ve produced a new model able to extrude in full scale objects in a short time. So we have designed a printer able to move 15kg of material.” WASP has produced a printer designed to hold the weight of 20kg when it’s full. The 3MT works with an Automatic Recharge System and a 7mm-diameter nozzle for big clay objects never printed before. A new clay mixture specially formulated for 3D printing with low risk of collapse has also been developed.

Art and 3D printing
Massimo Moretti says: “We are interested in ceramic experimentation to open a window in sculpture and contemporary ceramic. We are very proud of our results. Obviously, it’s the first step of the research process and we will improve the research during the next months.” WASP proves once again to be interested in Arts after many years of collaboration with international artists. At the event, there will be a stand for the artist Francesco Pacelli. It will be possible to see some art works and a work in progress printed with a DeltaWASP 4070. A printer that has achieved a resounding success in Cultural Heritage, such as the recent experience at the Pompeii Archeological Site.

Olfattiva’s perfumes
WASP believes in the promotion of the DIY, in eco-friendly projects and environmentally-aware companies, and so will host the stand of Olfattiva, which works with Botanical Perfumery and Aromatherapy. The two teams have recently worked to create a limited edition of 3D printed porcelain bottles that will contain handmade perfumes with essential oils, produced by Olfattiva. Olfattiva revalues ancient techniques of distillation and perfume composition, WASP uses traditional materials such as porcelain to create an innovative and custom made product.

The peach pit
In collaboration with the Massa Lombarda Municipality, an important project for the development of the local culture has been started. During the event, a small model of the ceramic sculpture made for a new traffic circle in Massa Lombarda will be printed with a DeltaWASP 2040. L’Enma – “the soul” – a huge peach pit, 3D printed in porcelain to represent a symbol of the local heritage. WASP will be in piazza del Popolo – Faenza, from the 2nd to the 4th September 2016.

More information: WASP