Venus de Milo

thingiverse

On June 23rd, I published a presentation about my work using 3D printing and photogrammetry to capture ancient art for modern audiences. My adaptation of the presentation is titled "3D Printing, 3D Capture, and Opportunities for Design Custodians" and can be shared with anyone interested. This work was inspired by a compilation of photos I used in a presentation at LACMA on February 3rd, featuring prints of the Venus de Milo model. The original plaster casts were reproductions of ancient originals, and their popularity declined in the early 1900s when collections were broken up or destroyed. However, one of the few remaining large collections is at the Skulpturhalle Basel museum in Switzerland, which houses a high-quality cast of Venus de Milo commissioned by the University of Basel and cast by the Louvre's own atelier in 1850. In September 2013, I was granted permission by the museum to use Autodesk's Reality Capture division's funding to take 3D surveys of my choice of casts, including the Venus de Milo. This resulted in a high-quality 3D model of the iconic sculpture, which is now freely available for anyone to access. I plan to publish more results, such as Winged Victory of Samothrace and the Medusa Rondanini, on my website and Thingiverse account. If you know someone who would be interested in sponsoring similar work by me, please let them know. The 3D print of Venus de Milo shown in photos and videos was made with white PLA and finished with patinated copper using Alternate Reality Patinas. It is for sale, and I also offer 3D prints of the sculpture through my Shapeways shop. Additionally, I can cast Venus for you in bronze or stainless steel in any size. Information, tools, and specifications regarding the Venus de Milo include its Skulpturhalle Basel accession number, plaster molding and casting details from the Louvre atelier, processing with Autodesk's ReCap Photo cloud-based photogrammetry application, camera settings, lighting, scaling, cropping, sectioning, and print preparation using Blender on a Windows 7 PC. The model has only been lightly re-sculpted with Meshmixer for minor fixes. Printing details include the need for supports under the figure's right arm and face in the complete, single-part model, or no external supports for multi-part sections printed in PLA with RepG for file prep and a Replicator1. This project was made possible by Autodesk's Reality Capture division's financial support, Skulpturhalle Basel museum director Dr. Tomas Lochman's permission to conduct the experiment, and assistance from Bernard Frischer, FARO, Ralph Wiedemeier, Bre Pettis, Kio Stark, and other backers who supported my Kickstarter campaign.