Exhibition – Lab Craft

Exhibition – Lab Craft

A current touring exhibit in England called Lab Craft: Digital Adventures in Contemporary Craft shows some examples of what can happen when UK crafters utilize digital technology. I would love to see an exhibition of this kind happen in the US.

In the gallery guide the curator Max Fraser says that he looked for work that was in the realm of the traditional craft fields and had a tangible outcome. I appreciate the fact that he did not consider work that exists only as a computer drawing or animation.

He states, "In my search, it has become clear that the best work is produced when a craft practitioner marries their existing skills, aesthetic sensibilities and knowledge of materials with the possibilities of the digital tools available to them today. It is those who have challenged their own thinking as much as the capabilities of the machinery who have been included in Lab Craft."


These saw horses were made by Nina Tolstrup who 3D scanned branches, manipulated them in CAD, then 3D printed them, and finally cast them in steel.

Oak table by Gareth Neal done with a CNC machine.

Wood grain textile by Tord Boontje.