It would appear you can’t put on a fashion show these days without a little 3D printed flare, whether its 3D printed wings for Victoria’s Secret or a Chanel suit for Kendall Jenner.
Continuing the trend at New York Fashion Week, fashion house threeASFOUR and New York-based designer Travis Finch have debuted one of their most elaborate 3D printed dresses to date, the ‘Oscillation’ dress.
The dress was created as part of an on-going collaboration with Stratasys and comprises 30 individual multi-colour, multi-material 3D printed parts.
The blue garment is the centrepiece of the designer’s ‘Quantum Vibrations’ collection, inspired by source energies and primal, universal vibrations from a series of graphic 2D patterns designed by Fitch.
“Stratasys 3D printing enabled us to visualise 3D patterns as they truly are - complex, interwoven circles of energy, transforming in shape, colour and flexibility as they radiate around the body,” explains Adi Gil, threeASFOUR. “The stellar parallax of the patterns, the way in which they transform as the viewing angle changes, is only possible through 3D printing.”
The components were printed as flat pieces, which were later unwrapped and assembled on the body. Each piece exploits the various material properties afforded by Stratasys’ Connex multi-colour and multi-material technology with varying thicknesses and colour gradients.
“The bio-inspired coloration, corresponding to fluctuations in shape and size, is only achievable with Stratasys PolyJet 3D printing technology,” Gil added. “As the nodal patterns thicken, scale, and undulate, the colour gradations respond accordingly to accentuate the geometry. Using a vivid colour range, we were able to construct a multi-dimensional textural surface; a screenshot of a dynamic, oscillating waveform.”
This project is the designer’s third collaboration with Stratasys and follows the debut of the 3D printed ‘Pangolin’ and ‘Harmonograph’ dresses in the designers’ Fall/Winter collection at New York Fashion Week earlier this year.
Naomi Kaempfer, Creative Director at Stratasys, added: “With ‘Oscillation’, we are inviting our audience to explore abstract universal ideas and thought changing concepts, and bringing these to life in three dimensions and vivid colour. With forward-thinking projects such as this, threeASFOUR has set an example in design innovation, and has continued to transform the way people think about fashion.”
