John James Marshall thesis.pdf - OpenAIR @ RGU - Robert Gordon ...

epresentative of the ‘Entry-Adoption’ stage of technological integration because
they explore the suite of 3D modelling software tools available rather than the
development of a new visual grammar. This work is the result of a dialectical
engagement between the practitioner and the tools used. Innovation here is
largely the augmentation of existing practices by the application of computerbased
technologies. This is a learning process – a practitioner needs practicable
experience of using these technologies before conceptual realisations can be
made.
Figure 34: ‘Garden Tools’, 1999. Tony Cragg
An example of a work that illustrates the ‘Adaptation’ stage would be artist Tony
Cragg’s ‘Garden Tools’ (Figure 34) for the ‘At Home With Art’ (Artsway, 2000)
project with the DIY retailer Homebase, Tate Gallery and Arts Council England
that was curated and organised by Colin Painter. Cragg’s contribution to this
project was in supplying the original objects which were made by conventional
methods. These were scanned and surfaces generated in CAD from the captured
data. This project then went through the various prototyping, detail design,
production tooling and testing stages that would be expected (McDonald, 2001,
p.224-226) of a consumer product. The only difference was the result was a
hybrid ‘sculpture-product’ manufactured in a short run of 2,500 of each object.
The computer-based design and fabrication tools in this project are used exactly
as they were developed to be used. It makes no difference that Cragg did not do
the digital work himself (in consumer product development designers usually
produce sketches or surface data that is passed on to engineers to be completed
for production). What matters in the determination of the ‘Adaptation’ stage is
the use of the technologies is consistent with how they would be used within an
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