Smithsonian uses 3D printing to create Obama bust, life mask

Smithsonian uses 3D printing to create Obama bust, life mask
(Image credit: Twitter/YahooTech)

Forget marble or plaster — the latest presidential bust will be 3D printed.

The Smithsonian Institute scanned President Obama and printed a 3D bust and life mask, both of which will become part of the National Portrait Gallery collection. Both were shown during an event at the White House on Wednesday. "We think we've really added a new genre to portraiture," Gunter Waibel, director of the Smithsonian's digitization program, told The Associated Press. "It will be fascinating to see how that will be picked up and how down the line other administrations will also use that particular tool."

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Catherine Garcia, The Week US

Catherine Garcia is night editor for TheWeek.com. Her writing and reporting has appeared in Entertainment Weekly and EW.com, The New York Times, The Book of Jezebel, and other publications. A Southern California native, Catherine is a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.