metal_0046 :: caligari's lighthouse
Inspired by two of my favorite psychological horror films, 99 years apart – Robert Wiene's THE CABINET OF DR CALIGARI and Robert Eggers's THE LIGHTHOUSE – and built from a never-to-run-again combine exhaust pipe (that I got to cut off in the middle of a field), lots of sheet metal, and the door to an abandoned gun safe, CALIGARI'S LIGHTHOUSE is not only the largest-scale piece I've made but a functional floor lamp (if you have a room big enough for it). A fun exploration of nightmarish German expressionism – something I'll definitely keep playing with.
metal_0043
My wife gave me a pair of old garden shears and said she wanted me to make something with them so I stared at them off and on for a few weeks until this hit me yesterday. Added the base (I’m thinking it was the top of a bit of farm machinery exhaust), designed and printed the lampshades (used magnetic USB-C bulbs for the lights – a wonderful thing for making lamps with reclaimed metal), and took a wild creative swing with the red paint. Worked out well, I think.
3D succulent home
K asked me to gin up a home for a homeless pair of succulents and lo, these little things were born.
3D-printed iPad stand
Decided to save the window by building my own iPad stand instead of defenestrating my old, barely stable one. Designed it in Tinkercad, printed it in The Shed. The window thanks me and yes, I’m beyond thrilled that I finally got to use “defenestrate” in a sentence.
metal_0033
Two tiny versions of the pot from metal_0031 filled with scrap in two (tiny) ways.
parametric design
via Yanko Design:
Parametric design is a transformative approach to product development that integrates interconnected parameters to enhance a product’s performance and adaptability. This approach maximizes the relationships between parameters like color, size, and material by defining and adjusting them to improve design results. In contrast to conventional design systems, parametric design encourages creativity by making it possible to create adaptable and dynamic solutions that are suited to changing requirements.
new 3d printer / first tiny test pot
After metal_0030 killed my Creality Ender V3 and an attempt at installing a new extruder failed something miserable, I upgraded to a Creality K1 SE and I’m floored: 37 minutes from start to finish on this tiny test succulent pot. Going to try another large piece for a metal combo tomorrow so if I kill this printer, at least I won’t have had time to get too attached.
metal_0030
Hybrid of scrap metal (copper pipe and an old, unusable jewelers vice) with a plastic, 3D-printed bulb / shade I designed and printed (much to my extruder’s dismay; new one arriving tomorrow), and probably-not-code-ready electrical wiring. This one was by turns fascinating, heartbreaking, fury-inducing, and, ultimately, rewarding. On to the next thing, whatever that is.