Checkmate.
The goal of this project was to design and make the 6 pieces of a traditional chess set. The pieces include King, Queen, Bishop, Knight, and Pawn. The project also required one piece cast in a chosen material that had to be repeated through each form. This piece was not to be glued, but instead, fit snugly into each piece.
An ancient game turned modern.
Through my research of the game of chess, I learned that chess pieces were originally very ornate and representative of their titles. Additionally, I was very inspired by the bauhaus movement of design, and its characteristic primary pallette and simple geometric forms.
Sketching and iteration.
My goals for this project were to abstract the traditional pieces in the game of chess, while preserving their hierarchy and ease of recognition. Additionally, I wanted to vary the location of my common piece throughout the set in a visually interesting way. I also wanted to maintain simple, sleek forms in my design.
Casted.
Once finalized, I crafted my piece out of wood. I then made a mold out of a bead from an old bracelet as my common cast piece. The pieces that were produced from this operation were then used in my final cast set, which was made using the wooden models.
Final Set Rendered
