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3D printed plankton dress arrives at The Box from Buckingham Palace
Monday, 14 October, 2024 — Arts University Plymouth BA (Hons) Costume Production students and staff collaborated with Plymouth Marine Laboratory to create the 3D printed dress to raise awareness of the vulnerability and importance of marine plankton.
<p dir="ltr">A 3D printed dress inspired by marine plankton and created as part of a collaboration between Arts University Plymouth and Plymouth Marine Laboratory (PML), is set to be displayed at The Box this October, after impressing attendees at the Royal Society Summer Science Exhibition in London and even making an appearance outside of Buckingham Palace.</p>
<p dir="ltr">Created by <a href="https://www.aup.ac.uk/courses/undergraduate/ba-hons-costume-production">BA (Hons) Costume Production</a> students from Arts University Plymouth, in collaboration with PML, the one-of-a-kind dress is now exhibiting in The Box, Plymouth’s award-winning museum, art gallery and archive, as part of the ‘Planet Ocean’ exhibition which highlights the groundbreaking marine and climate research taking place in Britain’s ‘Ocean City’. </p>
<p dir="ltr">Marie Dunaway, Course Leader for BA (Hons) Costume Production at Arts University Plymouth, said: “The innovation and hard work of the costume students, working under pressure to meet such a tight deadline, was inspiring. The brief from Plymouth Marine Laboratory focused on realism and the costume was made to measure, with the intention of creating something wearable that had a real impact. The level of detail that students were able to achieve, using the resources available on campus within Arts University Plymouth, is incredible. The finished costume has already captured the attention of politicians and scientists around the world and we’re proud that our work has been able to start so many conversations about the role of plankton in the climate crisis.”<br /></p>
Elin Meek, Research and Impact Services Officer from Plymouth Marine Laboratory wearing the 3D-printed plankton dress at Royal Society's Summer Science Exhibition
<p dir="ltr">The design for the dress was inspired by Coccolithophores, a microscopic, single-celled type of marine plankton which play a vital role in the carbon cycle. BA (Hons) Costume Production students Ewan Fairley, Lucy Taylor, Anya Whichello, Dulcie Whichello and Millie Griffiths created the costume under the guidance of BA (Hons) Costume Production Course Leader Marie Dunaway, based on costume designs by Jacqueline Ball.</p>
<p dir="ltr">PML’s Head of Marketing & Communications Dan Jones said: “At PML, we’re increasingly looking at new and exciting ways to communicate and inspire. The dress is a fantastic example of art science collaboration and has helped us draw attention to the effects of ocean warming and ocean acidification on vital marine life. We’re very grateful to the students and staff at Arts University Plymouth for creating something so visually stunning.”<br /></p>
We spent days working on this project, with our hands all over it, and now you can see it behind glass at an exhibition and museum. Our costume has already gone around the world...
Lucy Taylor, BA (Hons) Costume Production Student
<p dir="ltr">Arts University Plymouth student Lucy Taylor said: “This has been a surreal experience. We spent days working on this project, with our hands all over it, and now you can see it behind glass at an exhibition and museum. Our costume has already gone around the world and my cousins in America have seen it, without me mentioning it to them.”</p>
<p dir="ltr">Another student, Milly Griffiths said: “Having something eye-catching like this is a great way of getting people’s attention. You can have 30 posters, but this is so different and engaging. When I saw the photo of our work in front of Buckingham Palace, I was shocked!”</p>
<p dir="ltr">In a technically challenging feat, the students and staff used plant-based polymers to 3D print 100 individual shapes in Arts University Plymouth’s recently expanded Fab Lab. After this, the costume team spent six days assembling the pieces by hand in order to make the bespoke dress in time to display initially at the Royal Society Summer Science Exhibition.<br /></p>
<p dir="ltr">Affectionately dubbed ‘The Plankton Lady’ by repeat visitors in London, the 3D printed dress was commissioned by PML as part of the new multi-institute Atlantic Climate & Environment Strategic Science (<a href="https://pml.ac.uk/news/ocean-warming-in-focus-at-royal-society-summer-sci/">AtlantiS</a>) programme, which aims to understand and address the impact of human activities on the Earth’s largest climate regulator, the ocean, over the next decade. </p>
<p dir="ltr">Speaking about its impact at the event, Elin Meek, Research and Impact Services Officer at PML who wore the dress during the Royal Society event, said: “The dress opened the door for conversations at every level; from children admiring the beautiful pattern, wanting to wear the hat, and hearing the word plankton for the first time, to Lords and Ladies, politicians, and esteemed Royal Society Fellows striking up conversations about the role of plankton in the climate crisis.” <br /></p>
The dress opened the door for conversations at every level; from children admiring the beautiful pattern, wanting to wear the hat, and hearing the word plankton for the first time, to Lords and Ladies, politicians, and esteemed Royal Society Fellows.
Elin Meek, Plymouth Marine Laboratory
<p dir="ltr">Ben Mundy, Manager of Fab Lab Plymouth at Arts University Plymouth, said: “We used a plant-based plastic called polylactic acid (PLA), which is made from vegetables such as potatoes, corn and tapioca. There were a lot of pieces to print, it had to be wearable and we only had ten days' notice, so it was a quick turnaround project. Fortunately, as part of our work to expand Fab Lab Plymouth this summer, we had a new 3D printer arriving that was perfect for printing the large pieces that the costume needed.”</p>
<p dir="ltr">The dress is inspired by a type of single-celled microscopic plankton (phytoplankton) called Coccolithophores. This plankton is particularly important as it contributes to breathable oxygen, acts as the base of the marine food web and is the main component of the chalk that forms the White Cliffs of Dover.</p>
<p dir="ltr">Sarah Marden, Curator of Planet Ocean at The Box, said: “We are thrilled to display the 3D printed dress as part of our Planet Ocean exhibition this Autumn. It’s a unique example of art meets science that will inspire curiosity about plankton and its connection to ocean research in Plymouth.”</p>
<p dir="ltr">After being worn outside of Buckingham Palace to show off the wearable nature of the dress by the PML, it has now found a new home in the South West as part of The Box’s ‘<a href="https://www.theboxplymouth.com/events/exhibitions/planet-ocean">Planet Ocean</a>’ exhibition and is available for viewing until April 27 2025.<br /></p>