3D printed ceramic blocks for a natural ventilation system

Bat el Hirsh is a young artist who used ceramic 3D printing to design her new architectural work called Earthenwind. The project consists of 3D printed ceramic blocks assembled together to form a kind of giant screen, protecting from the sun and providing a cooler area in hot countries. It can also serve as a decorative structure. The blocks are all of the same size, but some are empty, while others are half full, creating an interesting visual differentiation.

Ceramic additive manufacturing has long interested the architecture and design sector because it allows to design more original clay structures, quickly and at lower cost. Projects that combine ceramic 3D printing and construction are numerous, often based on the principle of extruding a clay-based paste. One of the companies that comes to mind is 3D Potter, who developed a whole range of ceramic 3D printers that were used for the Mud Frontiers project: the 3D printed huts made with the local soil mud.

The facade from 3D printed ceramic blocks. (All image credits: Bat el Hirsh)

In this latest project, Bat el Hirsh used an FDM 3D printer, where a nozzle deposits layer by layer the clay that hardens during the printing process. The young designer explains that she was inspired by ancient pottery techniques that she wanted to mix with new technologies, but also by the mashrabiya of Islamic architecture. These are natural ventilation devices, usually made of wood, which provide protection from the sun and allow air to pass through. Instead of using wood, the artist turned to ceramics after discovering its properties in terms of cooling and ventilation.