STW conversations: Dorian Wilshere
When did you first develop an interest in 3D design and why?
“When I began my journey at university, pursuing a foundation art and design degree, my initial focus was on painting. While I had experience working with oil, my primary medium was acrylic (you can view some of my previous paintings here: Painting and Drawing — Dorian Wilshere). During this degree, I had the opportunity to explore various artistic disciplines, and I discovered that my previous experience as a welder lent itself well to craftsmanship. This realization led me towards sculpture, and I subsequently pursued a degree in that field, which involved extensive work with bronze and iron casting.
It was during my second year of study that I was introduced to Zbrush. I immediately acquired the software and began immersing myself in it. From the very first lesson, I could sense the immense potential of this software. Something about it resonated with me, akin to working with digital clay. My passion for video games had already familiarized me with virtual environments, making me comfortable working within them. Since then, Zbrush has become an integral part of my sculpting process, with every sculpture I create incorporating at least some aspect designed using this powerful tool.”
How do you find inspiration for your work, and what concept underlies your creations?
“At its core, my work is all about bringing physicality to the digital. Theres an ethereal quality to the digital for me, with 3D digital design able to create things seemingly beyond that which can be made and designed by hand. Firstly I explored 3d printing but I wanted to work bigger. I found that 3D could get very expensive and even with a couple of friends owning or building they’re own 3D printers, the time they could take to print coupled with the possibilities of print fails didn’t work great for me. So I then got into subtractive manufacturing techniques with some software called SlicerforFusion360. This meant that I could make digital models by hand, and that aspect would become a feature of the concepts within my work
#handmakingthedigital
So through this I’ve made figures, characters, animals and abstract sculptures that are routed in the idea of making the digital physical in as many ways as possible.”
Do you follow a particular routine in your creative process?
“I am constanty having ideas about what to make. An idea is usually written down or sketched, I usually develop an idea with some drawing. Drawing for me is a fundemental aspect of making sculpture. I like to work from some initial reference so that the whole making process is rooted in my visualisation of an idea. Then I go to Zbrush and start creating, much like someone using clay or paper to create maquettes, except with Zbrush there is no material waste and variations on a design can be easily created. Finished designs can then have the flexability of being made at any size. Prototypes can be 3D printed to show a client before the larger work takes place. Including Zbrush in my creative process of making sculptures gives me a kind of versatility that can be difficult to achieve for someone working with traditional techniques alone.”
Could you elaborate on the actual creative process you follow?
“Drawing initiates the visualisation of an idea, but during designing with Zbrush there can be a lot of variations that can arc into different ideas. Once something has been 3D modelled I often play around with it using deformation tools and alphas to create glitched effects on the design that will look interesting when made in a physical medium. Objects are then made with either 3d printing or CNC cut from sheet materials which will then produce objects made by layering or interlocking slices. These objects look great as they are but I will often work over them with different materials, using the manufactured object as an armature. This whole idea of CNC cut armatures is a big thing in itself for me as I believe this technique could be very useful for other artists who would like to work on a detailed armature.”
Which of your artworks holds a special place in your heart?
“Looking back I would say that the ‘Madonna and Child’ sculpture for the Whitland abbey is my favourite. This sculpture resulted in lots of interesting things. It is made of over 200 layers of hand carved Welsh slate, using templates derived from a photogrammerty scan of a small statue owned by the nuns of the abbey. The slate was from the buildings original roof that had to be replaced. The sculpture introduced digital processes like photogrammerty and 3D modelling to a group of nuns that would otherwise have not seen what it could do. The sculpture itself is of a religious icon of the Cistercian order and it was set in the middle of some beautiful gardens where the ashes of nuns who had passed away were scattered. This piece was just wonderfully site specific and full of meaning. And it beautifully mixed digital and traditional techniques and materials.”
Among the artifacts we digitized, which one is your favorite?
“I love the scans of Michelangelo’s David as its such an icon sculpture. The favourite one I have made however is of Hebe, Goddess of youth. I made this lifesize in bathstone Jesmonite and learnt a lot through doing it. The story to the pose is really interesting and I’ve always been fascinated by both sculpting and painting folds in clothes. I’m also very interested in how the body is sculpted underneath the clothes and how the suggestion of the body can bring more life to a figure.”
How do you perceive the significance of digitizing cultural heritage as a contemporary artist?
“For me personally, it is about learning how to sculpt the human body by studying the work of masters. It took a while for me to get the confidence to approach the subject of the human body as for me the standard is that set by classical works of the masters. The 3D scans done by ScanTheWorld allow me to get closer to these works than I could otherwise, and thus are an amazing resource for me. And I am sure this applies to many artists and makers around the world. The resources that ScanTheWorld have created allow people to have an intimate connection to cultural objects and sculpture. I call the body of work that I have made using these scans ‘Digital Echoes’, as whilst I am not working with these objects directly, ScanTheWorld is providing me with a tangible trace of these objects for me to make and learn from.”
