Artwork by Michael Eden

Photograph by Michael Eden

Original Medium Rapid manufactured with non-fired ceramic coating

The Wedgwoodn't Tureen is a symbol of a new creative revolution, the first artwork to be created using a combination of rapid manufacture and highly innovative non-fired ceramic materials. It is a symbol that demonstrates how technology can be used to create a new visual language that rural areas such as Cumbria can fully take advantage of.

I decided to take an iconic object from the first Industrial Revolution and produce it in a way that would be impossible to make using conventional industrial ceramic techniques.
The design is loosely based on early Wedgwood tureens, chosen because Josiah Wedgwood was at the forefront of the first Industrial Revolution.
Many manufacturers including Wedgwood produced ceramics that imitated other materials. I chose to imitate a material with links to rapid prototyping. Artificial bone was chosen for it's interesting texture and because it is produced using Rapid Manufacture for experimental implants.

The tureen has been designed on Rhino 3D and FreeForm software. The files were then sent to a ZCorp 510 rapid prototyping machine that ‘printed’ the piece. It was then infiltrated to give the plaster material more strength, then coated in a non-fired ceramic material that I formulated to closely resemble Wedgwood black Jasper. All the materials are non-toxic and food safe and as no energy was used after the application of the ceramic coating the technology provides a 'green' alternative to conventional ceramic processes.

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