Ricardas Blazukas » Composition

Painting in Kuwait – Notational Alphabet

Ricardas — Mon, 22 Dec 2014 09:08:45 +0000

This post is dedicated to the second series of paintings that I am working on since my relocation to Kuwait.

This one is called ‘Notational Alphabet’. These geometrical compositions of squares, circles and triangles were developed in the process of creating an actual written alphabet. The alphabet can be found in my previous posts by clicking here and / or here.

The alphabet symbols were also explored through sculpture and these can be seen in the previous posts by clicking here ’Alphabet Models’ and ‘Miniature Alphabet Models’ here.

Painting in Kuwait – I Ching Chance Compositions

Ricardas — Mon, 22 Dec 2014 08:12:34 +0000

Since my relocation to Kuwait I’ve been eager to keep creative during my spare time. Initially considering getting a small kiln and a potter’s wheel I ended up getting paint and canvas. Eventually I’ll get back to ceramics, but for now I’m keeping busy reproducing some of my previous works as paintings.

Currently, I am working on a number of series, but in this post I’ll be sharing some shots of the I Ching Chance Compositions.

This paintings are reproductions of a digital study of geometric chance compositions made consulting the book of chance I Ching.

The paintings in this post are Compositions No. 4 and 5.

The full explanation of these chance compositions can be found on my earlier post by clicking here.

Ceramic Typography – here comes everybody

Ricardas — Fri, 19 Sep 2014 11:59:10 +0000

This ceramic typography sign was a design I did for Design Studio 15 End of Year Exhibition at Westminster University in July 2014.

The typography of the sign as well as its aesthetic quality was designed using chance techniques. The letters are assembled out of small hand-pressed interconnecting clay components. Raku method of firing ceramics was used as a generator of chance in producing the unexpected aesthetic of glazes. The result of the experiment is typography with fascinating variety of colours and textures.

Thanks to Tim Waines and Piotr Garstecki for their huge contribution on this piece.

‘pyramid tiles’ – sculpture collection for sale

Ricardas — Wed, 10 Sep 2014 17:40:21 +0000

This is a collection of handmade minimalistic sculptural tiles with pyramids shifting out of the vanishing point creating a deceptive impression. The concept of the tiles is based on geometrical composition of squares, inspiration being Baroque architecture.

The ‘pink pyramid tile’ has recently been selected by Saatchi Art currator Bridget Carron to feature in a ‘Radical Geometry’ collection.

The sculptures are made of high quality plaster, coated in primer and acrylic paint. The frames are bespoke made to hold the sculptures.
The collection is limited to 60 sculptures.

The size of the sculpture itself is 39cm x 39cm x 4.5cm, whilst the framed size is 50cm x 50cm x 5cm.

These sculptures are available for sale. You can get in touch via contact form below if interested.

Céramique Quartier Marrakech – Full Portfolio

Ricardas — Mon, 08 Sep 2014 18:29:43 +0000

This is my final MArch Architecture project portfolio.

Design Studio 15, Westminster University, 2014.

The Ceramics Quarter project design is inspired by Moroccan arts & crafts, architect’s own explorations of chance through ceramic firing experiments and then directed by answers given by the I Ching.

The new neighbourhood in the medina of Marrakech will provide living and working spaces for local ceramics craftsmen and potters. Ceramic architecture components fired on the site will create an outstanding typology inviting tourists to the north east part of the medina. The proposal also responds to the current urban fabric of Marrakech medina, where poor and rich are often next door neighbours.

Portfolio Catalogues

Ricardas — Fri, 24 Jan 2014 16:06:41 +0000

Here’s the design for my portfolio catalogues for the midyear review submission at Westminster University Architecture School in London.

Ceramic Forms and Colour

Ricardas — Fri, 24 Jan 2014 14:58:10 +0000

These ceramic models are the outcome of my colour compositions of chance exercise. Each colour was selected by I Ching, assigning values of colour to each of the 64 hexagrams.

The square model is hollow with a tiny ball inside making a beautiful sound when wobbled.

All models were fired twice – initially underglazed and bisque fired to cone 04, and then glazed and fired to cone 04 as earthenware.

Alphabet Miniature Models

Ricardas — Fri, 24 Jan 2014 14:37:58 +0000

My miniature alphabet models, a set of 12, single cast with 3 colours of plaster.

Moulds made of three main parts, which were shuffled by chance using I Ching.

Initial graphic drawing of these can be found here.

Post Installation Model

Ricardas — Fri, 24 Jan 2014 13:39:10 +0000

Since the full scale installation (previously posted) did not last very long due to its nature, I decided to make this small model representing the same qualities, such as escaping a conventional grid (random sizes of the blocks stacked together), chance factor of variety of paintings in its defragmented state and a sculptural way of representation of the alphabet.

Installation / Time Lapse Video

Ricardas — Sat, 30 Nov 2013 19:03:53 +0000

I have done a number of projects on various scales during the last month. This one here is the biggest one of them – an installation.

Or watch in better quality on VIMEO

This might seem like just a graffiti / painting on a set of plinths, but there is more behind it. The idea I am fascinated about the most is – the provocation of students. This installation was done at university, on all plinths of our MArch Architecture studio a week before our interim crits.

Taking all the plinths might seem rude at first, but architecture is about behaviour change and interaction between a space and its users, which is what this installation did. The painting on the plinths gave them a sense of untouchability (or at least I hoped it will). I was curious what will happen with a crit day approaching. Will students start to take the plinths one by one? They belong to them as much as they belong to me.

I wanted to see a progressive defragmentation of this painting, but what I’ve discovered instead, not even 24hours after the installation was made – plinths composed randomly, looking somewhat similar to Picasso’s paintings. Brilliant – a number of coursemates decided to re-organize them.

I loved the idea of chance in this installation – stacking the plinths randomly and then painting a symbol on them left me wondering how will each plinth look like. The random sizes of plinths stacked together was also a way of escaping a typical grid. It also has an effective three-dimensional quality, due to lengths of plinths they can be spaced in a random way, again creating something completely different and completely by chance.

The crits went great too, as my tutor Sean Griffiths, Co-Founter of FAT said: “Ricardas, you have had the best presense during the crits today”, meaning that all students were presenting their models on plinths with a piece of my painted symbol.

I was hoping that after the crits I will collect them and stack them in a random way, but there was no need for that, as like I mentioned previously, it happened sooner than I expected thanks to my coursemates.

The painted symbol is from my own created alphabet, which you can check out here and download as a font here.

I have also made a small model of this installation, which will appear on the blog soon.

Above you will find a time-lapse video of the installation making process, and at the bottom a photo gallery of the installation, as well as a photo gallery of plinths being used in the studio by other students to display their work.