Beasley validates 3D printing, enabled by Autodesk design software, as a fully legitimate sculptural medium by using it in his work for the first time

SAN FRANCISCO — (BUSINESS WIRE) — October 30, 2013 — Autodesk, Inc. (NASDAQ: ADSK) collaborates with world renowned sculptor Bruce Beasley, to launch a new solo exhibition of Beasley works collectively titled Coriolis. Bruce Beasley’s signature bronze environmental-sized sculptures are well-known and collected globally by major museums, including the Pompidou in France, the Guggenheim and Museum of Modern Art in New York. In this show Beasley combines the artist’s creative vision and a five decade career at the top echelons of fine art with cutting edge Autodesk technology, to produce 3D printed, software-enabled sculptures that are expected to revolutionize the way in which digital technology interacts with aesthetics. The show will be featured at the Autodesk Gallery in San Francisco from October 29, 2013 until February 7, 2014.

Coriolis III (Photo: Business Wire)

For the last 30 years, Beasley has produced internationally recognized computer-assisted sculptures whose fine art repute has been well established in the international art world by virtue of aesthetic sophistication and a willingness to extend the boundaries of imaginative technology. Using 3D printing for the first time to actually “sculpt” his final artwork, Beasley legitimizes the medium as a genuine art form. Pioneering a revolution in the fine art sculptural process, Beasley’s latest Coriolis series uses Autodesk software—Alias, 3dsMax, and Inventor—to model works; then a state-of-the-art 3D printer responds to the subtlest digital calibrations envisioned by the artist, building up detailed ribbons of liquid plastic in ascending tiers that realize Beasley’s complex expressive ideas.

“I’ve always held the belief that fine art is the vision of the artist and not defined by the tool of production,” said Bruce Beasley. “These Coriolis works utilize Autodesk technology that best allows me to investigate and communicate what has fascinated me for over sixty years – the aesthetic and emotional potential of complex shapes in space. Computer modeling and 3D printing give me the ability to make sculptures I could not execute  in any other way. The creative impulse remains the same whatever tools an artist uses, but it is liberating and exciting to explore a new vocabulary of shapes—part mechanical, part organic—made possible through innovations in technology.”

In 2008, Autodesk previously sponsored the Digital Stone Exhibition, which showcased Beasley along with three other sculptors who use 3D software as part of their artistic process. Autodesk has chosen to partner with Beasley once again in this solo venue, premiering his newest sculptural venture and illustrating both the firm’s and the artist’s mutual commitment to exploring the rich interactive boundaries between creativity and technology.

"Bruce has always forged a new technological path to further his art and was one of the earliest artists to adopt our design software into his work,” said Carl Bass, Autodesk president and CEO. “His latest Coriolis exhibition further solidifies him as one of the leading masters of revolutionizing fine art sculptural media.”

Bruce Beasley and his Coriolis exhibition will also be featured during December’s Autodesk Design Night at the Autodesk Gallery in San Francisco. For more information on the Autodesk Gallery, please visit: http://usa.autodesk.com/gallery/.

About Bruce Beasley

Bruce Beasley has enjoyed critical and market acclaim as one of the pre-eminent abstract sculptors in the world for more than 50 years. Among the first to legitimize 3D modeling as a visionary way to draw, sketch, and imagine with design tools; for the last 30 years of his career, Beasley has produced computer-assisted sculptures, blurring the lines between creative frontiers. Since and technology the 1960s, Beasley’s works have been included in international museums like the Museum of Modern Art, the Guggenheim and France’s National Museum of Modern Art; placed in the most discriminating private collections; and installed in major civic spaces of urban capitals worldwide. In May 2008, Beasley’s circular works were prominently featured at the Beijing Olympics and in August 2013, five ringed environmental works were installed in outdoor locations on the UC Berkeley campus. For more information on Bruce Beasley, please visit: http://www.brucebeasley.com/home.htm

About Autodesk

Autodesk helps people imagine, design and create a better world. Everyone—from design professionals, engineers and architects to digital artists, students and hobbyists—uses Autodesk software to unlock their creativity and solve important challenges. For more information visit  autodesk.com or follow @autodesk.

Autodesk, Alias, 3ds Max and Inventor are registered trademark of Autodesk, Inc., and/or its subsidiaries and/or affiliates in the USA and/or other countries. All other brand names, product names or trademarks belong to their respective holders. Autodesk reserves the right to alter product and services offerings, and specifications and pricing at any time without notice, and is not responsible for typographical or graphical errors that may appear in this document.

© 2013 Autodesk, Inc. All rights reserved.

Photos/Multimedia Gallery Available: http://www.businesswire.com/multimedia/home/20131030006167/en/