The sea sponge is one of the world’s simplest multi-cellular living organisms, but its complex, interconnected and fragile geometry makes it impossible for jewellery using traditional methods.
Design studio Nervous Systems, launched Porifera, a new jewellery collection inspired by the forms of deep-sea glass sponges by using a new 3D printed ceramic material made from Formlabs Ceramic Resin.
Studio co-founders Jessica Rosenkrantz and Jesse Louis-Rosenberg believe in heavy-duty experimentation and each and every project draws inspiration from different sources like biology, maths, various other sciences and so on.
“Ceramic materials are really beautiful and have nice qualities. They’re inexpensive and strong, and they have this nice tactile feel; they can be glossy or more earthy,” said Rosenkrantz.
It took two years of long research of 3D printing material at Formlabs to develop this revolutionary Ceramic Resin.
Formlabs (www.formlabs.com) is the maker of the popular Form 2 desktop 3D printers that have taken off in the jewellery industry worldwide, ranging from individual bench-top jewellers, large international casting houses, fine jewellery designers, to luxury designers.
The press note from Formlabs stated: “Ceramic Resin is now available in North America and Europe. This experimental material for the Form 2 makes 3D-printed ceramics accessible outside of expensive industrial machines and high-tech research labs. Using Ceramic Resin, one can 3D-print parts with a stone-like finish and fire them to create a fully ceramic piece, fabricate ceramic parts for engineering research, or create distinctive art and design pieces.”
Of course, this comes with a caveat stating that Ceramic Resin is a Form X product, and the material is more difficult to work with than other Formlabs products and requires extra steps and additional experimentation for successful printing.
While ceramics is usually linked to traditional pottery, technical ceramics are used for advanced space-age applications due to their mechanical properties.
After two years of development, Formlabs is ready to ship Ceramic Resin to the next generation of innovators and curious minds eager to take advantage of this cutting-edge material.
Design house Nervous System
Avant-garde design studio Nervous System is known to create unique art, jewellery and housewares with the help of new technologies.
Today, Nervous System is launching their first-ever 3D printed ceramic product: “Porifera,” a jewellery line fabricated with Formlabs Ceramic Resin. The product line came together in just a few months after the studio beta-tested the latest formulation of the resin, but its genesis is rooted in years of experimentation with various ceramic materials.
