2,20 meters high sculpture 3D-printed in biocomposite.
As an artist it’s always interesting to try new materials and techniques. Large scale 3D-printing in biocompsosite opens up new possibilities for sculptors. It’s great that the material can be modified and processed in pretty much the same way and with the same tools as regular wood. Great method for public art commissions and art exhibitions.
The project started with making a small wax sculpture about 20 cm high. The sculpture was then 3D-scanned by The Wood Region. Digital processing was done using Meshmixer and Maya.
The sculpture was printed in six part by the big robot printer at The Wood Region. By printing it in 6 parts (the figure was printed in 4 parts and the stone that the figure stands on in 2 parts) we could avoid problems caused by overhangs around the figures elbows and chin.
To get a good result when gluing the parts together they need to be printed with a thickness of around 1 cm. The edges of the parts should be flat and smooth to enable good adhesion between the parts. To achieve this the edges of the sculpture parts were sanded using regular sandpaper until completely even and flat. The parts were glued together using a two-component adhesive.
The sculpture was then sanded to make the surface as smooth as possible. After this the surface was covered with spackle and once again sanded until the surface was completely smooth.
The painting process started with a primer (V-slip) and then hand painted with fine art acrylics. And finally a layer of semi matte varnish.
Printed at The Wood Region (now called Circlab), Sweden:
Printing materials from UPM Biocomposites, Finland:
https://www.upmformi.com/references/3d-printed-sculpture-from-biocomposite-material/
