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The project is part of the European Ceramics and its Dimensions project, which examines European ceramics from the perspectives of the past as well as of the future and explores new opportunities.

The Ceramics and its Dimensions: Shaping the Future project led by the Department of Design is one of ten project modules (sub-projects) that concentrate on exploring themes such as the opportunities provided by the 3D printing of clay and the relationship between ceramics, cuisine and local life. The sub-project consists of a student workshop, a touring exhibition around Europe and a publication related to the project theme.

Exhibition in Fiskars in November

The first exhibition will open in Fiskars in November, and the publication named after the sub-project will be released at the opening ceremony. The exhibition will be open from 10 November to 7 December, and several events related to the exhibition will be held in Fiskars, including a discussion session for local ceramists and artisans, the annual European Future Lights competition and a meeting with the European partner institutions participating in the project.

The Ceramics and its Dimensions: Shaping the Future sub-project began with a workshop in spring 2016. The workshop provided a creative space that students, teachers and members of other stakeholder groups could use for learning, organising discussions, sharing ideas and further developing them.

‘Modern technology makes it possible to use materials in novel ways, and experiments using 3D printing, in particular, were carried out at the workshop. The prototypes created during the workshop will form the basis of the Ceramics and its Dimensions: Shaping the Future exhibition’, says Riikka Latva-Somppi, the curator of the exhibition.

‘Major changes will most likely take place as a result of the ways in which technology is applied – not as a result of technology itself. It will be interesting to see whether 3D printing will change our aesthetical values. Will we gradually grow accustomed to the aesthetics of the new technology? How will customising for the masses affect consumer habits? What kinds of social activities will new technology provide?’, Latva-Somppi continues.

In addition to Fiskars, the exhibition will tour in six European cities. The tour will continue through Selb, Belfast, Stoke-on-Trent, Berlin and Ljubljana and finally reach Prague in late 2018.

The Shaping the Future sub-project is led by Professor Maarit Mäkelä from the Aalto University Department of Design. The module will be implemented in collaboration with Weißensee Kunsthochschule Berlin (Berlin, Germany), Ulster University (Belfast, Northern Ireland) and the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts (Copenhagen, Denmark). The European Ceramics and its Dimensions project is coordinated by the Porzellanikon porcelain museum in Selb, Germany, and the project has eighteen partner institutions in eleven different countries. The project is co-funded by the Creative Europe programme of the European Union.

The website of the Shaping the Future project:

The website of the Ceramics and its Dimensions project: