Artists Create 21st Century, 3D Printed ALS Portrait to Aid ALS Sufferers

The 3D scanning solutions developer Fuel3D raised $2,500 in support for ALS research via a partnership between Artists Lend Support founder and filmmaker Brian Fender and 3D artist Josh Harker who created a sculpture called 21^st Century ALS Portrait.

Brian Fender

The one-of-a-kind, 3D sculpture represents the impact supporters can have on the lives of people suffering from ALS, and it’s a montage of facial scans taken using Fuel3D’s handheld SCANIFY 3D scanner. The “portrait” scans, taken of Fender and a group of ALS advocates, was auctioned off at a gallery reception on April 7. The funds raised will go to support the ALS Therapy Development Institute, a nonprofit biotechnology organization working on finding an effective treatments for ALS.

“Fuel3D is proud to partner with Artists Lend Support in bringing their mission to raise funds for ALS research to life through this gallery,” says Stuart Mead, the CEO of Fuel3D. “We are honored that our technology has helped contribute to the powerful piece that Brian and Josh have created.”

The final sculpture was printed by VoxelJet, and it will be officially unveiled at the 3D Print Show New York which takes place April 16 – 19.

Harker is an American artist, well-known as a pioneer and visionary in 3D printed art and sculpture. He says a “perfect storm of software development, materials engineering, and 3D printing technology advancements” led him to create his “Tangle” series, and his experimentation in art through digital media and the internet has garnered him international recognition and acclaim.

Harker attended the Kansas City Art Institute and St. Ambrose University as well as later studying anatomy and forensic arts before becoming fascinated with digital sculpture and 3D printing technology.

“My art is about pushing the limits of form – an exploration into what can be made and how to accomplish it,” Harker says. “ I incorporate digital tools, software, and technology in my work, not only out of utter necessity in the forms I make, but also that I feel absolutely compelled to make art with it, to humanize the inhuman as we’ve done with stone, clay, metal, and wood. Digital data as medium, computer as chisel, and 3D printer as forge.”

Joshua Harker

Fender, the subject of one of the portraits and a multi-media artist who was diagnosed with ALS four years ago, worked with Harker on the project. Following his diagnosis, Fender launched Artist Lend Support, a non-profit fine art website where the work of people with ALS is showcased and sold in support of ALS research.

“While the realities of ALS have no doubt changed my life, they haven’t lessened my passion for creation,” Fender says. “ALS has lent me a new philanthropic vision for my art, which led me to start Artists Lend Support. I send a heartfelt thanks to all who have supported this endeavor, donated work and helped raise funds for much needed research. It truly makes a difference”

Fender also launched a pop-up gallery located at 1stdibs Gallery at The New York Design Center, 200 Lexington Avenue, 10th Floor, which will run from Monday, April 6 to Monday, May 4 between the hours of 9:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.

“I have continued my creative career from bed with a gorgeous view, which I am thankful for every day. I can barely walk, I haven’t talked in a year and a half, haven’t eaten or had a drink of anything in the same amount of time,” Fender says. “But by some miracle, even though my hands are skeletal with indentations between every bone, I have not lost the ability to type. Now I am grateful for the smallest of things, the beautiful birds that frequent our bird feeders outside my window, the beauty of the natural world that surrounds us, and the incredible amount of love I receive from family and friends.”

The ALS Therapy Development Institute and its scientists are actively laboring to discover and develop treatments for ALS, and it’s the world’s first – and largest – nonprofit biotech-focused agency on ALS research.

Led by ALS patients and their families, the institute is based in Cambridge, MA, and is one of the leaders in sharing data and information with academic and ALS research organizations, patients and their families.

What do you think of this amazing 3D printed sculpture, 21st Century ALS Portrait by Joshua Harker? Let us know in the 21st Century ALS Portrait forum thread on 3DPB.com.