What happens when you Xerox a Xerox? But in three dimensions? As in: Scan an object. Tell a 3-D printer to spit it out. Scan again. Print again. Repeat. Repeat. Repeat.

Of late, this question has consumed Lisa Radon, a Portland artist and the inaugural recipient of a residency at Form. The three-month program is a new collaboration between the 3-D foundry, which operates out of a 12,500-square-foot facility at the east end of the Ross Island Bridge, and ADX, the city’s venerable hub for all things DIY. Since March, Radon has been posted up at Form, thinking about machines, translation, and error.

“I imagine there will be degradation,” says Radon, known for her work with natural materials. “It’s a very punk-zine thing. It’s different than what people mostly come here for, which is precision.”

That collision of purpose is central, says Form’s Midori Hirose, who’s overseeing the residency. Not only can Radon use Form’s 3-D modeling programs, Hummer-size printers, and CNC mills (as well as ADX’s various tools, from band saws to plasma cutters), she has easy access to on-floor technicians. They, in turn, get to see what happens when a contemporary artist runs wild with their tools.

“When you’re in an industry, you work with materials in a very specific way,” Hirose says. “When you invite people from the outside, they introduce new ideas. That’s a really healthy thing to foster.”

Radon’s work will be presented June 1–30 at ADX’s ANX Gallery.