The culture of 3D shapes online (part of the ‘digital commons’) embraces a vast variety of methods of distribution. Within the context of the boom in 3D printing, virtual models easily become physical. The relation between the digital and physical features enhances the current hype about this medium. In For the Common Good, a group of objects are selected from Thingiverse, the most popular website for sharing creative commons of 3D files. They exist in a grey zone, a disputed border which questions what objects can be shared and produced. However, many shapes share the same coordinates, which provide the foundation for further shapes to be built. By viewing the physically printed objects, people are invited to discuss what they understand the objects to be. A video features the artist as an anonymous performer with a selection of ambiguous objects. The work requires people to reconsider the cognitive relationship with objects.

Yuzhen Tang / 唐誉祯 [CN] is a media artist who works across cinema, contemporary art and the DIY culture of the network. Her recent work is concerned with the friction between digital fabrication and material reality.