The Suppressed Tears Sculpture — Large-Format Outdoor Additive Manufacturing

3D printing today goes far beyond prototyping. The “Suppressed Tears” sculpture is a good example of how additive manufacturing has become a reliable production method for large-format, durable, outdoor final products — with engineering design behind the scenes.

The project was commissioned by Mediator Group Kft. for the LESZ Foundation’s campaign, and was produced entirely by additive manufacturing from PETG. The goal was a public artwork that would hold up for years outdoors, including in an environment occasionally exposed to flooding.

Technical Basics and Overall Dimensions

The sculpture’s overall dimensions are 502 × 907 × 820 mm. Printing it used roughly 30 kg of PETG filament — about 3.2 km of 1.75 mm filament. The parts were printed continuously over two weeks.

• 0.2 mm layer height for detailed surfaces
• 0.4 mm nozzle diameter
• 1.5 cm thick, fully solid walls for load-bearing strength
• Dozens of precisely fitted component pieces

A Smart Structure: A Hollow Body Filled with Plaster

The body is hollow inside, with the interior filled with plaster. This engineering decision is both economical and functional, offering several advantages over solid PETG.

• More economical than manufacturing from solid PETG
• Plaster, denser than water, improves stability through added mass
• Allows internal metal reinforcements to be embedded
• Increases mechanical resistance, especially outdoors

The sculpture was installed on the Buda embankment of the Danube, at the foot of the Liberty Bridge, an area occasionally subject to flooding. It was therefore critical that it couldn’t float away or be swept off — ensured by the combination of its mass, internal metal reinforcement, and physical anchoring.

When the final product has to stand outdoors for years, engineering design matters just as much as artistic execution.

Assembly and Weatherproof Surface Treatment

The pieces were joined using a paintable plastic sealant adhesive, then sanded. The entire surface was then treated with a two-component plastic primer. Coloring and matte lacquering were done by Szín-Med Kft., ensuring UV and weather resistance as well as an attractive finish.

What Does This Mean for a B2B Partner?

Producing large-scale, outdoor 3D-printed objects requires serious expertise and the right technology: material selection, load-rated structural design, and joining and surface-treatment know-how. If you need a custom, durable piece suitable for outdoor use — a sculpture, decorative element, or technical object — we handle the entire process under one roof, from idea to finished installation.