kamal
My mood board is a result of a chain of thought processes that began from my hometown, Doha. I began thinking about the natural aspects of Qatar which took me from the desert, to what grows there i.e. cacti. Upon looking at pictures of cacti and other plants that grow in particular patterns, they brought me to honeycombs, shells and crystals.
For this assignment I want to explore the geometric patterns found in nature and turn it into a sculptural piece. I would also like to try out new materials such as plexiglass and wood. It would be interesting to see the contrast between a natural material and one that is synthetic for a project that is inspired by nature.
The aim of this assignment was to make something that was related to our culture. As I am of Indian heritage, I have always respected the Lotus flower as it is not only the national flower of India, but is also used in a lot of prayers and scared events in Hinduism.
While researching different geometric patterns found in nature I came across a picture of a lotus. It was beautiful and I realised that the petals always grow in a sequence. I was also inspired by the well known Lotus Temple located in my hometown, Delhi.
The sculpture is made from plexiglass and wood. ¼ inch plywood was used to notch together to form the grid that rests upon the plexiglass and acts as a base for the lotus petals. The petals were laser cut from a fluorescent acrylic sheet. The colour of the pelxiglass is fluorescent pink as it appears as a different colour depending on where it’s viewed from similar to the number of different colours of lotus flowers found in nature. The grid rests on a seven sided stand resembling the lotus pad. It is made from laser cut plexiglass as well.
The sculpture uses techniques of notching and interlocking to attach it all together.
It is a modern design that represents a traditional and age old symbol of Indian culture.
