Hi Kate and all,
I am very interested in this discussion on 3D printing and self-fabrication for museums.
I am part of a recently launched project called meSch- material encounters in digital cultural heritage, where the goal is (in 4 years time!) to offer to museum curators and other heritage professionals an easy-to-use platform for the creation of interactive artefacts in museums (potentially, a replica object with interactive capabilities that if touched/approached in a particular way will deliver different experiences for visitors).
Our project has a strong link to 3D printing and other fabrication technologies that are becoming more approachable to the general public.
There is a world-wide network of open spaces called "Fab Labs" (fabrication laboratories) that offer to anyone the possibility of accessing 3D printing facilities to create their objects at a very low cost. One of them, FabLab Amsterdam, is part of our meSch team.
As I said the project has just started, but you or whoever else is interested in this topic might like to follow our blog at http://mesch-project.eu/?page_id=22 and our twitter stream @meschproject. As our work proceeds, we will advertise possibilities for museums to participate. 3 museums are currently part of our team, acting as experimental testbeds for what we would like to do and providing us with the expertise and sensibility of how such technology could help visitors and curators, but we hope to open up our results to a wider community as we progress.
If members of the group are aware of any other work along these lines, especially in Europe (as our project is EU funded), I would be grateful to know about it!
Best wishes,
Lui
--
Dr. Luigina Ciolfi
Reader in Communication
Communication and Computing Research Centre - C3RI
Sheffield Hallam University
Room 9120 Cantor Building, 153 Arundel Street
Sheffield S1 2NU - UK
Tel +44 114 225 6826 - Fax +44 114 225 6702
http://www.luiginaciolfi.com/
http://uk.linkedin.com/luiginaciolfi
http://shu.academia.edu/LuiginaCiolfi
Skype: luigina.ciolfi Twitter: @luiciolfi
________________________________________
From: Museums Computer Group [[log in to unmask]] on behalf of greenland ship [[log in to unmask]]
Sent: 17 March 2013 12:49
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Futureology and print your own statue
Dear all,
Wonder if I can pick your brains.
I was just putting material together for the next National Museum Directors' Council newsletter (which you too can receive, by signing up in the left column here: http://www.nationalmuseums.org.uk/) when I came across a fascinating report from the American Alliance of Museums on the trends which they think are going to be the most groundbreaking over the next couple of decades.
The report is here: http://aam-us.org/docs/center-for-the-future-of-museums/trendswatch2013.pdf?utm_source=CFM&utm_medium=blog&utm_campaign=TrendsWatch
From page 13, there's fascinating stuff about 3D printing, which uses a variety of organic materials and a bond to create all sorts of spare parts, specialised medical support -- and potentially, copies of statues and other objects in a museum collection. It offers the possibility that someone who'd really liked your Rodin in Room 3 could then nip down the gift shop and print off their own scale copy on the way out.
Of course the knack is all in the programming, and apparently at least four (unnamed) US museums have already held 'scanathons' or 'hackathons', bringing together artists and techies to create blueprints based on museum objects.
My questions are:
-- is anyone aware of UK museums experimenting in this area? If so, I'd be really fascinated to know how far they've got
-- when I told my family about this, they all yawned and said the technology has potentially been around for years, but then half of them are designers. Have I missed a memo, or does this sound as groundbreaking to you as it does to me?
Many thanks,
Kate
(also at [log in to unmask])
@nmdcnews
****************************************************************
website: http://museumscomputergroup.org.uk/
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/ukmcg
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/museumscomputergroup
[un]subscribe: http://museumscomputergroup.org.uk/email-list/
****************************************************************
****************************************************************
website: http://museumscomputergroup.org.uk/
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/ukmcg
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/museumscomputergroup
[un]subscribe: http://museumscomputergroup.org.uk/email-list/
****************************************************************
|