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- Title of Abstract:
The Romanticism of Digital Making, for Craft Research and Practice, and the Upshot for Teaching Future Voices (Ref #221)
- Date:
- 26-10-2006 22:24:10
- Status:
-
Accepted
- Rating:
- 9
-
Details:
- During the last decade, a surge of new technologies have filtered into the broad range of craft disciplines. Several designers have found an academic framework useful to exploring new techniques that will take their creativity forward. This paper arises from the author?s awareness of recent research, crafts practice and wider industry, which stems from undertaking a practical investigation into the creative applications of lasers.
Examples of work by applied artists and researchers who have used CAD/CAM technologies, will highlight some motivations for working in this way, and mark contributions to the embedding of digital making within crafts practice. Many of these technologies are not bound to a particular crafts discipline, eg: laser. Additionally, several prototyping techniques do not typically produce the end object but lend themselves to being part of a chain of processes, which in turn enables the object to transcend materials and disciplines. We also live in a society of design conscious consumers, and the flexibility of CAD and computing technology, such as animation, has reinforced the trend for customisation and exclusivity to be built into products.
For the technology driven maker, the boundaries between the crafts disciplines are blurring, now more than ever. As a designer, CAD is almost a pre-requisite. The question is, which CAM process or indeed processes, do you attach the computer to? A small CNC milling machine, the size of a shoe box, capable of milling wax and soft metals, costs as little as £1,500. In reality however, no equipment is needed beyond the computer. Several companies have seen the transitions coming; the expense and decision of investing in equipment can be avoided when a whole host of technologies are available as bureau services, from wax printing to large scale stereolithography. The idea of outsourcing in craft is not new; we do it for a range of processes, because it is more cost effective, production orientated, uses equipment we don?t have, or is just plain dirty! But just having a computer and not a studio? While digital making in some instances has enabled crafts to become more competitive, with the decreased association with physical making, might practitioners begin to associate themselves more with product design?
When CAD brought the opportunity for Computer Aided Manufacture, many practitioners argued about the future loss of traditional skills. Thankfully, this thought now seems redundant, as such equipment is viewed as another tool for creativity, and we are collectively on a journey from which there is no going back. With various technologies firmly seated at the currently perceived ?cutting edge of craft?, it is commonly believed that students should be provided with knowledge and experience of these new techniques, and be comfortable with accessing them when they graduate. It is difficult, however, for courses and departments to decide which technology, if any, to invest in; a debate ensues as to the virtue of each with regard to the course direction. With the high investment required for this kind of equipment, purchased machines are likely to be shared between courses, whereas some universities have been fortunate enough to have set up their own ?Technology Centre?. With the high level of practical learning that needs to take place on craft courses, alongside the nurturing of professional and IT skills, it is easy to wonder where all the time is meant to come from. In fact, do we require as rigorous an understanding of traditional techniques if that is not reflective of today?s craft?
Reviewer Comments: