Ricardas Blazukas » I Ching

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.

Monumental Pissoir for Marrakech

Ricardas — Sat, 25 Oct 2014 09:05:16 +0000

Monumental Pissoir is a design proposal for public toilets for men in the Medina of Marrakech. The structure functioning as an inhabitable column or as a free standing object.

The proposal is a response to the Seven Towers of Seven Saints square in Marrakech. The square built in 2005 was since neglected – currently and predominantly used by locals as a public dump. Squatting, peeing and even glue-sniffing Morocans can be seen there at any time of day. The picture gallery below deomonstrates the square in its current state.

The ‘monumentality’ of the pissoir is inspired by Moroccan culture – colours, ceramics and vernacular living. The architecture of the pissoir is composed of handmade interlocking ceramic components. The pictured model / sculpture below is scale 1:5:

The ceramic components were hand made using a laser-cut mould and then fired in a self made raku kiln:

The interlocking components have a simple yet flexible geometry, which allows to create various interlocking patterns:

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.

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.

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.

My I Ching T Shirt

Ricardas — Thu, 28 Nov 2013 11:39:06 +0000

I made myself an I Ching t-shirt for an interim crit that I had yesterday.

This year I’ve been working on a lot of stuff involving chance together with guys at DS15. I Ching is our core material that we base our studies on. Since the beginning of the year I loved the idea of assigning colour to hexagrams of I Ching. The hexagrams have a very strong graphic aesthetic and look brilliant on a tee. Making this for my crit was a great way to level up the presentation.

BUY?

I had some requests from people wanting to buy one like this, so I might get to it and make more soon. If you would love to invest in one, then give me a shout through a contact form below (inc. tee size) and I’ll keep you updated!

I Ching – Chance Compositions

Ricardas — Mon, 14 Oct 2013 15:11:25 +0000

Here’s a set of chance compositions made consulting the I Ching.

Using the I Ching as an oracle I devised a series of questions that allowed me to make a series of chance compositions.

I assigned values to 64 hexagrams (shown in four graphs) and asked four questions:

1. How many shapes to use in the composition No. X?

2. What is the shape No. X?

3. What is the colour of the shape No. X?

4. What is the scale of the shape No. X?

I have drawn a square and have fitted the shapes into it proportionally to the small square in the graph 2, then assigned colour according to the graph 3, and have scaled up shapes according to the value from graph 4.

If the hexagram turned out to have some changing lines – I would then use a value of the transformed hexagram, with exception to the colour graph – where I would use an initial hexagram for the fill of shapes, an a transformed hexagram value for a colour of outlines.

The shapes were layered on top of each other.

In order to complete a final composition – a number of compositions were recorded during the process.