george koller on sun 17 dec 00
Martin,
In the process we have been working to evolve we add metal sulfates directly
to base glazes. Materials wise this is the decorating technique that Kurt Wild
is using in his work. Kurt has been a great help to this project. I understand
very little about decals, but have to think that direct application will save
steps
and considerable material. Our process seems to have a minimal "one of a kind"
cost - just software image processing time and my computer needs more to do
anyway.
The Ink jet printers seem to be amazingly simple but they are using very
advanced technology that assumes, I will guess, very specific viscosities,
narrow saturation rates, and specific color mixing qualities. The process
we are evolving is much more analogous to the use of the brush, but we use
a very fine mist emitted from a nozzle under minimal pressure - somewhat
less than 2 PSI is used to focus/direct the mist.
Current work involves getting the pump motor rpm to move in direct coordination
with the effective nozzle speed. The successful use of all the software,
electronics and assorted whirligigs is that we should get a very fine
degree of "saturation control" well beyond what is possible applying these
liquids with a brush. It will be possible to design certain pre-stroke and
post-stroke "routines" for even greater control.
We have resolved to work toward very fine control, probably well beyond what
is necessary for something "commercial". The software is capable of projecting
highly detailed images over an almost arbitrary number of slabs/tiles.
The use of "vector" techniques allows us to scale smoothly to almost arbitrary
size. The software I have designed simulates the saturation process very
carefully, this is not a trivial adaptation of ink jet printing on paper.
As a future step I visualize adding shading control for selected color bodies. A
diluted wash of manganese sulfate, for example, might be used to fade the copper
green to a light greenish brown. This will be done by defining a location and size
of the source of light, the light intensity, and source/destination color lists.
A fascinating, for me, aspect of all this is that in addition to the "constructed"
art
images as used now by Kurt Wild, we can also work from Posterized and otherwise
modified mechanically captured "real" images. One of my favorite test images is
that of a stone building. If this is not enough to think about - then what of a
digital
picture of a historic mosaic?
((That should be possible down to some of the finest details? I like to think
about what
the actual chain of events are that would lead to that faux mosaic being produced:
1. Perhaps 2000 years ago an event occurs
2. An artist of that era renders this real image into a mosaic
3. 2000 years later a digital camera captures the mosaic
4. Some software hocus pocus and hours later a bunch of servo-motors,
solenoids,
pumps, pneumatic motors are dancing to the tune of music last played 2000
years
ago. ))
Happy Holidays!
George Koller
Sturgeon Bay, WI - Door County, USA
Martin Howard wrote:
> > also toxic) from a computer printer?>
>
> I have been looking into this for some time now.
> There are ways of injecting the colour printer cartridges with very fine
> glaze.
>
> However, the modern method of ink injection is likely to mean that glaze
> will just ruin the machine, UNLESS the printer is one of the early types
> with many fewer dots per square inch.
>
> A friendly and helpful computer firm in my town is looking out for me for
> such a machine as they have a system of renovating old machines for sending
> to needy parts of the world.
>
> One could do the decals in just one colour. Some older printers had a
> ribbon, rather like the old typewriters, which just needs to be soaked in
> the glaze. But that will only give you one colour, which you can get with
> normal transfer methods in any case.
>
> One approach I would like to make is to each of the major printer makers,
> such as Hewlitt Packard and Epson, saying that there are a number of potters
> around the world who are looking for such a machine. Can they produce one?
> Or can they resurrect an earlier model? They would certainly ask if there
> really was a market or just state that there wasn't any market.
>
> Are others also having this concern?
>
> Martin Howard
> Webb's Cottage Pottery
> Woolpits Road, Great Saling
> BRAINTREE, Essex CM7 5DZ
> England
> martin@webbscottage.co.uk
>
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