The Waterloo School of Architecture is home to the largest 3D printing ceramics lab in Canada. We have access to three extruders that we can programme to print unique shapes out of ceramic materials. Professor David Correa teaches an elective course called Material Syntax, where students learn how to operate these machines and promote their work beyond the classroom.

Over the fall term, for Material Syntax, students were tasked with designing and fabricating a 1m x 1m wall that integrates clay 3D printed architectural elements into brick masonry. Throughout the semester, we had guest reviewers from the Masonry Council of Ontario, Horizon 3D Printing and various experts in ceramic design visit the School of Architecture to provide feedback as we worked on completing our walls for the upcoming exhibition at the Canadian Clay and Glass Gallery. The exhibit will open on Jan. 16 and run until March 27.

Each group took the assignment in a radically different direction, from display walls to screens to exterior garden walls, all of them unique and innovative. My group (myself, Brienna Tran and Mikayla Brennan) looked to use the inherent texture of 3D printed clay to design a functional and aesthetic wayfinding solution for the visually impaired. Through our experiences and research, we identified that a lack of tactile identifiers makes wayfinding incredibly difficult for the visually impaired.