Stratasys Ltd. a manufacturer of 3D printers and production systems for prototyping and manufacturing and Materialise, a Belgian-based pioneer in additive manufacturing software and solutions, recently unveiled a series of 3D printing collaborations on the catwalks of Paris Fashion Week as part of Iris van Herpen's Haute Couture show, ‘Voltage'.

Dutch fashion designer van Herpen's eleven-piece collection featured two 3D printed ensembles, including an elaborate skirt and cape created in collaboration with artist, architect, designer and professor Neri Oxman from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s (MIT) Media Lab, and 3D printed by Stratasys. An intricate dress was also designed in collaboration with Austrian architect Julia Koerner, currently lecturer at UCLA Los Angeles, and 3D printed by Materialise, marking the second piece created together with Koerner and the ninth with Materialise.

The 3D printed skirt and cape were produced using Stratasys' Objet Connex multi-material 3D printing technology, which allows a variety of material properties to be printed in a single build. This allowed both hard and soft materials to be incorporated within the design, crucial to the movement and texture of the piece.