3D Printing and the Designing Artist
Artists and designers have embraced 3D printing as a new medium for creating unique and original art. Devin Montes is becoming widely recognized in the 3D printing community for his functional designs that go beyond prototyping. His creativity and authenticity inspired him to found Make Anything, a platform dedicated to using emerging technologies to create innovative products.
Devin has always loved creating things, and decided to pursue Product Design at Art Center College in Pasadena, CA. The school offered access to industrial machines for class prototyping and mockups, but Devin recognized the opportunity and purchased a personal desktop 3D printer because he quickly “became engrossed with the challenge of using the technology to create functional, useable designs and end-products. The freedom to transform anything I imagine into a physical model is very liberating and satisfying.”
From Inspiration to Finished Product
When developing a new design, Devin draws inspiration from the world around him, using curiosity as his primary approach. He explains, “I find inspiration can come from anywhere, so I’m always absorbing information from my surroundings. Whenever I struggle with something, I wonder if there’s a way to make it easier. Whenever something is mundane, I wonder if there’s a way to make it more delightful. The best product designs solve problems, so I always ask myself ‘what if?’.”
As a designer, Devin is constantly pushing the boundaries of his FDM machines to achieve extraordinary results. To ensure his large and intricate models print successfully, he freely experiments with part orientation, support locations, and methods to optimize build plate adhesion and part removal. He uses Simplify3D Preview Mode extensively to check his settings and amplify his own visualization capabilities, saying, “Basically, you want to imagine your part printing and catch anything that might go wrong before you start printing. It’s something that becomes more intuitive the more you work with 3D printers.”
Devin also pushes the capabilities of his 3D printers to achieve his desired results. He states, “Simplify3D gives me the most control over how my 3D printer behaves, which is really important considering how much I like to experiment with my prints. Some of my favorite features include the single extrusion walls and infills that let me print more detailed parts, variable print settings, and the ability to print multiple parts sequentially. It’s also very responsive and can handle my largest, most complicated models, where other slicers might lag or crash. I try to test the limits of my printers, and Simplify3D gives me the control I need to push those limits.”
Art and 3D Printing on the Make Anything Platform
After discovering the freedom that 3D printing gave his creative process, Devin decided to share his creations and his passion for 3D modeling and printing with the world. An astounding 340,000 subscribers follow Devin’s explorations through the YouTube videos he posts on his Make Anything channel. These videos include tips, tricks, and inspiration for those interested in 3D design and printing. For Devin, this platform is “basically the perfect combination of all the things I love to do. It’s design, creativity, art, film, and education all mashed into one platform. I think sharing knowledge helps the world, and social media makes it possible to spread information so freely.”
Devin showcases his latest projects on his website, MakeAnything.design, and has plans to continue creating new things as he pushes the boundaries of what is possible with art and 3D printing. Devin is an inspiring advocate of 3D printing thanks to his unique designs, adventurous printing strategies, careful attention to detail, and passion for 3D printing.
We love to share the ways our community is using Simplify3D to explore the new possibilities made available with 3D printing. If you have an amazing project you want to share, tell us about it at stories@simplify3d.com. We look forward to hearing from you.
