Award-winning sculptor Nick Ervinck has produced a collection of 3D printed sculptures that are beyond anything we’ve seen before.

Combining a mixture of colours, materials and transparencies, the sculptures not only push the limits of the technology, but go beyond what is possible with traditional sculpting techniques.

“My work has always been a hybrid between the virtual and physical world and a 3D printer is one of the few tools, if not the only one, that can efficiently mediate between the two,” explained Ervinck.

“With the level of accuracy achievable with this technology, it is now possible to compose complex structures and designs that were unthinkable before in contemporary sculpture, pushing the limits of what is realistic to create.”

The sculptures are inspired by the elements light, wind, water and movement, but for some reason not fire.

The sculpture above, dubbed Bretomer, is inspired by wind, with billows of ‘smoke’ trapped inside the shape. Below, the distinctly Tron-like Gnilicer is inspired by light.

The sculptures are all printed on an Objet500 Connex3 3D printer from Stratasys, a high-end commercial printer offering multi-colour and material printing.

“There is currently no other technology in the world capable of achieving the unique, transparent 3D printed art pieces I’ve created with Stratasys,” said Ervinck.

Inspired by movement, Noitena, above, and Noituls, below, look more like they are made from blown glass than generated on a 3D printer, creating some interesting possibilities for products that could be made with the technology.

“The level of realism achievable using the Objet500 Connex3 is unsurpassed, as it is the only 3D Production System that enables me to combine colours, transparency and multiple materials at the same time to create organic, geometrical, fluid and large scale sculptures,” added Ervinck.

The technology also does an excellent job of capturing splashing water through Myrstaw, below.

Such a shape would be incredibly hard to achieve with traditional sculpting methods, particularly with the inclusion of the lines across the sculpture.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, Ervinck now considers the technology as just another artistic tool.

“I now see 3D printing as a tool to use in creating my work just as a painter considers his brush a tool; it is that integrated into my design process,” he explained.

The sculptures are part of Stratasys’ new art collection, ‘The Sixth Element’, which will be displayed in Frankfurt, Germany, at the end of this month.

Images courtesy of Nick Ervinck / Stratasys.