Prof. Ronald Rael and Virginia San Fratello Pioneer 3-D Printing for Buildings
Virginia San Fratello (left) and Ron Rael (right) standing in front of one of their 3-D printing prototypes, “Cabin of Curiosities” . Talia Herman for The New York Times
Ronald Rael has been an affiliated faculty member of Art Practice since 2012. He is a professor of architecture and art practice at UC Berkeley. He works closely with Ehren Tool, Stephanie Syjuco, Virginia San Fratello and Greg Niemeyer.
Mr. Rael and Ms. San Fratello, are leading 3-D printing pioneers. They have developed novel techniques to create sustainable buildings from upcycled materials and low-cost waste. They use multiple printing methods like “binder jetting” and they have even invented their own. Students have used the software they designed to print vessels. The two of them designed a free-standing adobe structure, ceramic units for seeding coral larvae and much more!
The 3-D-printed vessels, built layer by layer in the process, and 3-D cabin models on the shelves inside the cabin. The walls are composed of layers of bioplastic. Talia Herman for The New York Times