Functional 3D Printed Ceramics by Olivier van Herpt

3Development

3D printing has been all the rage for some time now, but its practical use has so far been limited by the size of the objects that can be printed and the materials that can be used. Could this technology be about to come of age? Olivier van Herpt certainly thinks so. His Functional 3D Printed Ceramics project was one of the highlights of the graduation show of the Design Academy Eindhoven , where he just graduated cum laude from. The young designer had spent 2 years developing a ceramic 3D printer which not only can print objects of a "human scale" (up to 80 cm tall with diameter of 42 cm) but can also create food-safe ceramic vessels in a remarkable variety of finishes, including "artisanal" details and some of the thinnest 3D printed ceramic layers ever seen. With exciting developments like this, the prospects for 3D printing is brighter than ever before.