Lee’s project submission, INTARSIA, was an effort to learn the Renaissance technique of stone inlay intarsia and to create a work of art in her own aesthetic voice. By the use of 3D Rhino model making, the student 3D-printed the inlay in the trinket box to achieve precise measurement and layout for stone cutting. 

Conrad approached her research in two phases: first, she reverse-engineered traditional Japanese alloys — shibuichi and shakudo — recreating them in a modern studio lab setting. Second, she attempted to “honor the past and grow the future” by creating contemporary artistic contexts for these ancient alloys. The research combined metallurgy, chemistry, and a bit of botany, as Conrad applied the acid from daikon radishes to prepare the surfaces of the alloys to accept patina color at the molecular level.