Hi everyone, I received my Horse Marionette and Rocking Springbuck prints in SWF. The prints came out beautifully, thank you Shapeways especially Maartje and Joost for all the help with the large files and very speedy print! They are now on their way to the RAPID2011art exhibition. I did the sculpting in zbrush and the creation of the moveable parts in Rhino and T-Splines. The Horse Marionette has fully functional joints and movable wings. The Rocking Springbuck has rotating gears and they move as the buck rocks. All the parts of the sculpture have been placed in the same 3D printable file, so no assembly is required afterwards. A video of the Horse Marionette in action A video of the Rocking Springbuck in action Thank you to shapeways for your gear examples, nobody likes to reinvent the wheel Kind Regards Michaella
Those are so cool, especially the horse! I plan on going to the RAPID2011 show, so maybe I can play with it. The videos really help appreciate the designs...good job.
VirtualV: Thank you! Marcus: Feel free to play I wish I could be there myself, but South Africa is a bit far to travel just for the exhibition.
Very beautiful and functional, my fav is the marionette, reminds of Dark Crystal and Labrynth (eerie fantasy and mechanics). Thumbed up all the movies since I was logged in with my 'tube account, including the birdman in which I also really dig the functionality.
Glenn: Thank you, the video's could be better quality but the white SWF material is quite a challenge to record. RogersX: I loved those movies as a kid and it seems the influence shows Thank you so much for giving my video's a thumbs up! Michaella
Michaella, I went to RAPID on the first day, but was disappointed that your marionette wasn't there There was an empty pedestal and sign for it though. I took some pictures, link here if anyone wants to see them. (pics are from my old 3MP Kodak, so not too great)
I am also in Minneapolis this week for the event, presenting my Morning Star. I was looking forward to seeing the marionette piece and was disappointed to hear from the curator that it was one of two artists works that were held up in shipping. I was able to grab the images out of this post and from the Rapid Gallery Web Page, and made some display boards (printed on an inkjet in the registration office). Certainly not as good as the real 3D model, and it was only for the last day, but much better than an empty pedestal. For anyone interested in hearing more about the show, I did some blogging about it here: 40westdesigns.com/blog
Aaron: Thank you so much for the poster!!!! I was so dissapointed, the designs were sent with TNT and they assured me the package will arrive on time. Only to hear from the organisers that it was delayed at customs and it's being shipped back to South Africa. I really really appreciate the effort you put in for a fellow designer. I love your morning star piece and hope that you get lots of good feedback from the show! Michaella
I just want to clarify, Shapeways and their employees were absolutely wonderful. The printed the designs were done in record time and they arrived earlier than expected in South Africa. I then got the designs ready repacked them and sent via TNT to the USA. They were delayed for days at customs in New York, and didn't make it to the show. I still have no idea why. Shapeways was in no way to blame, in fact had it been sent with them it would probably have arrived early gumball: The Marionette a wooden controller and has to be strung up before it can be sold, so unless shapeways does custom marionette stringing it will have to be sent to me and then strung.
And please vote for the work on art takes london!! http://www.arttakeslondon.com/Michaellla Thank you !!!!!! Michaellla
USA customs have been running with delays since around past November. With increased bureaucracy by Dept of Homeland Security things just take weeks to arrive, and it hits all cargo companies or mail services, more or less evenly. It could be worse, Russia suffered a highcup past year and UPS still has self impossed restrictions that cut private shipping to zero. So next time make sure your box has all the right papers, and have plenty of time to wait in the queue, borders are getting hard.
I can't imagine why a small, lightweight sculpture would need such attention at customs. I'm within the US, but that kind of nonsense is exactly why I opted to fly my piece there myself. I had the good fortune to have the advice of my father who has a lot of experience transporting fine art and sculptures, and he assured me that I'd be fine taking what appeared to be medieval weaponry through LaGuardia (not carry-on, lol). He was right. I spoke with a guy at Rapid from a forensics lab, and when he transports skulls for examination, the baggage handlers don't even ask him about the human head in his bag. So, really sensible rules we have here. EOS had a DMLS system on-site. If only they had the nylon version we might have been able to pull off a miracle and produce it at the event!
@ stannum: I just wished the courier company gave a warning, instead they said it would arrive ahead of time. I know they have no control over US customs but they should be aware that delays are likely. @aeron203: Yes, it would have been really cool if it was printed on the spot! Seems like the way to avoid customs issues is to get it printed in the country where you need it. LOL, I definitely wouldn't want to book a flight from South Africa, with either your morning star or a human head. Don't think either of us will make it on the flight! Thank you again for the trouble you went to make the sign, I really really appreciate it