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Fine Arts · MS elective · 3 credit hours · 16 sessions

Ceramics and Digital Fabrication

This course merges the oldest craft with the newest technology. Students will explore the intersection of clay and code, using 3D printing and CNC milling to create ceramic forms. The curriculum covers the workflow of designing models in CAD (Rhino/Fusion 360), preparing files for Clay 3D Printers (Delta/Cartesian), and creating plaster molds from CNC-milled masters for slip casting, creating geometries impossible to achieve by hand.

§ 01 By the end you can
  1. Master the workflow from CAD (Digital Model) to G-Code (Printer Language)
  2. Operate Clay 3D Printers: Managing viscosity, air pressure, and speed
  3. Design for Digital Fabrication: Overhangs, wall thickness, and shrinking
  4. Create plaster molds from 3D printed or CNC milled masters
  5. Critique the aesthetic of the "Digital Glitch" vs. the "Handmade Mark"
§ 02 Sixteen sessions

The whole semester.

  1. 01Introduction to Digital Clay: Tools & Possibilities
  2. 02CAD for Ceramics: Rhino/Fusion 360 Basics
  3. 03Slicing Software: Preparing the G-Code
  4. 04Clay Consistency: Preparing the Mud
  5. 05Clay Printing I: The Cylinder & Vase
  6. 06Design Limitations: Overhangs & Gravity
  7. 07The Glitch as Aesthetic: Manipulating Code
  8. 08 · MidtermMidterm Examination
  9. 09Clay Printing II: Textures & Loop Height
  10. 10Troubleshooting: Collapse & Air Bubbles
  11. 11Hybrid Methods: Hand Altering Printed Forms
  12. 12CNC Milling: Creating Masters for Molds
  13. 13Slip Casting into Digitally Fabricated Molds
  14. 14Glazing Complex Digital Geometries
  15. 15Post-Processing: Firing & Finishing
  16. 16Final Project: The Digital Ceramic Series

Midterm around session 8. Final project briefed at session 8 or 9 and developed in stages until the juries.

§ 03 Final project

Final Project: The Digital Ceramic Series

How it’s judged

Recommended reading
  1. New Directions in Ceramics: From Spectacle to Trace by Jo Dahn
  2. Digital Handmade: Craftsmanship and the New Industrial Revolution by Lucy Johnston
  3. Code as Creative Medium by Golan Levin
  4. 3D Printing for Artists, Designers and Makers by Stephen Hoskins
  5. Grasshopper: Visual Scripting for Rhinoceros 3D (Technical Ref)
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