Fang Ding: based on bronze from the tomb of Lady Fu Hao

thingiverse

This is a model of a fang ding based on a bronze recovered from the tomb of Lady Fu Hao (~1200 BC). A fang ding is a type of ritual bronze food vessel used throughout the Shang and Zhou periods (Chinese Bronze Age). There is an outrageously giant version as well as some reasonable resizes (go for the resized ones). Artstor source for image Project: Art History Description (PCC Disability Services) Objectives This model is part of an ongoing project by the Disability Services dept. at Portland Community College to expand the accessibility of the art department to non-sighted students and anyone who could benefit from a more tactile interaction with these historic pieces of human culture (everyone?). I am compiling a collection of written formal descriptions, and adding files for 3D printing and raised ink prints to my descriptions whenever I can. My descriptions contain some vital history, but the subjectivity of art makes a physical model invaluable to getting form across in some cases. In addition to the specific examples from the Chinese Art History class, I am compiling a collection of common forms and motifs found throughout Chinese and global art. Audiences My first audience will be students enrolled in Chinese Art History at PCC, but hopefully this project will eventually include the other Art History courses and any other classes where a formal understanding of the subject matter is key. The plan is to have open accessibility to this data for anyone who wishes to use it, once a substantial repository is compiled. I will also be posting original designs (like this one) here on Thingiverse. Preparation All that is necessary to participate in the project as a whole is an interest in art. A 3D printer of some sort is obviously needed to print the models (locally available to students through the PCC Makerspace and Disability Services) Steps My process involves studying and describing works presented in video lectures for the course. I gather links, screenshots, time codes, and other information involving the lecture specifically and spreadsheet it. I research and write descriptions of the formal elements (line, color, shape, composition, texture, contrast, echo, etc.), then if possible make a model of the piece. Some flatter works can have the contrast and black/white values adjusted for printing with raised ink, or to be easily imported into Cura or a lithopane editor. This model was created with Autodesk Fusion 360. Results The primary result I am working for is broader accessibility to the world’s artwork. There is a vast amount of human culture that is unavailable to people without sight; 3D printing is such a useful tool for turning artwork that is cloistered away in museums of confined to a page in a book into something that can be felt and more closely explored by anyone.