Costume designer Ruth E Carte used 3D printing to create the costumes of Black Panther

Black Panther took home the 2019 Academy Award for Best Costume Design for outfits that included an intricate collar and crown created using 3D printing.

Costume designer Ruth E Carter accepted the award at the Oscars ceremony on 24 February 2019, when the superhero movie based on Marvel comic books received three prizes in total.

These designs were created in collaboration with Los Angeles-based Austrian architect Julia Körner, who has previously worked on 3D-printed haute couture for Iris Van Herpen and ChanelRuth E Carter had seen my 3D-printed work at the Paris haute-couture shows and contacted me," Körner told Dezeen. "Together with film director Ryan Coogler, they wanted to bring 3D printing into the costumes of the movie Black Panther."

The beige adornments featured detailed filigree patterns, made possible by a technique known as selective laser sintering (SLS).

This involves using lasers to heat a bed of powder, fusing the microscopic particles layer by layer, then removing the surrounding excess material to uncover the finished product. The designs were fabricated by Belgian company Materialise.

We looked at traditional African Zulu tribes and the hats married woman wear," said Körner. "We also looked into literature that showcased African design illustrations from traditional sources.

"Based on these 2D patterns, I then developed the complex 3D structures in the computer with architecture computer software," she added.

The architect also spoke to Dezeen about the advantages that technology adds to fashion design during an interview in 2014, when 3D printing was beginning to be used for apparel. It has since been utilised for everything from sports footwear to costumes for drag queens.