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Schedule
Special Opening Reception:
Friday, February 6, 2015
6:00pm – 8:00pm
Museum of Craft and Design
Saturday, February 7, 9:00 am–5:00 pm
8:30am Check In & Coffee
9:00am Welcome, Introduction, & Program Overview
9:30am – Noon Morning Session: What are we making?
Making and Scaling: Machines and Models for Machines, Prototypes, Pottery, and Buildings.
Moderated by Del Harrow
Featuring: Jason Kelly Johnson; Ron Rael; Andy Brayman; Jenny Sabin; Laura Devendorf
While digital information can feel infinitely scalable (Moore’s law etc.), ceramic materials and physical machines present very real challenges and limitations in scaling (both in physical size and quantity of production). Moving from a scale model, or proof of concept to “full scale” – of object, architecture, or production system – involves a fundamental confrontation with the physical properties (scale) of ceramic materials – often at the molecular level.
The long history of introducing automated tools into ceramic production at a variety of scales (studio ceramics, cottage industry, large scale industry) continues to raise both theoretical questions and practical challenges: Is there a balance between automation and skill appropriate to the scale of production? What are the practical and aesthetic limitations of applying digital tools to clay?
What are the next steps in developing this current proliferation of experimental machines and software, models, and “proof of concept” projects – typically fragile, cobbled together, and dependent for success on inventor/operators with specialized and specific skill sets – into robust and scalable production systems?
Noon – 1:00pm Lunch
1:00pm – 2:00pm Keynote // Dries Verbruggen
2:00pm – 2:30pm Interlude // Michael Swaine
2:30pm – 5:00pm
Afternoon Session: Where did we come from and where are we going?
Historical and Critical Perspectives on Digital Fabrication and Ceramics
Moderated by Joshua Stein
Featuring: Bobbye Tigerman; Jenni Sorkin; Dries Verbruggen; Stephanie Syjuco
This session is about zooming out, contextualizing, and re-framing the morning conversation. How do these contemporary projects fit into a long range historical perspective of humans and clay? What are some of the critical, and theoretical questions raised within the work? What are the questions we should be asking?
