Morphogenesis is a collaboration between myself and the researchers at the Integrated Manufacturing Technologies Institute in London, ON, supported jointly by the Artist-in-Residence for Research programme of the Canada Council for the Arts and the National Research Council. This project has artistic and scientific components and aims to integrate the skills of the craft artist and the technologies of manufacturing to explore the possibility of developing a production system in which uniqueness is preserved while maintaining a relatively high level of output.

Traditional craft and mass manufacturing are two extremes of production systems that cater to meet the needs in our daily life. Early craftsmen spent many hours on repetitive and laborious handwork. The industrial revolution has improved their productivity and the quality of their wares by means of machinery and engineering. Mass production has greatly reduced costs and improved quality but also increased standardization. This trend towards uniformity has sparked a greater desire from consumers for one-of-a-kind objects and with it a resurgence of fine crafts.

The process of jewellery making mirrors many of the same goals and needs of manufacturing. In particular, commission jewellery can be viewed as one-of-a-kind manufacturing. Morphogenesis attempts to address this demand of the consumers for unique, customized objects. The goals and objectives of the project are:

• to develop intelligent software tools to rapidly generate and evaluate early design options;
• apply virtual prototyping technology for design visualization in order to identify rapid prototyping systems and materials for fabrication;
• use RP systems for direct fabrication of these unique pieces; and
• to use 3D modelling and visualization technologies with an interactive collaborative design system for custom work, and to allow the client to preview and experience the work prior to physical fabrication.