Hourglass Finished

Hourglass Process

Ingredients

8 x 1500 x 55 x 22 mm reclaimed mahogany floorboards
2 x 400 h x 170 d mm 1 gallon demijohn
1 x 700 l x 18 d mm brass rod 1 x 600 l M8 brass threaded rod
8 x M8 brass dome nut
8 x M8 brass nut
8 x M8 brass washer
5 x 2kg table salt bag
1 x 150 x 500 x 1 mm maple veneer
320 hours Labour Recipe

Recipe
Frame
Machine plane wood
Cut wood according to sketch drawing
Miter angles accordingly
Drill holes for pivoting arms
Check assembly and glue in stages
Machine sand all over
Oil all over 5 times with raw linseed oil

Base
Split wood to form 4mm veneer and glue to mdf base
Cut out template for pattern
Cut out pattern and check fitting
Apply maple veneer to edges of pieces Glue half of pattern down against wooden batten and leave to set
Remove batten and glue other half and leave to set

Machine sand with decreasing coarseness of paper until smooth
Add maple veneer frame with appropriate angles for gluing surface

Drill hole 1.5 mm deep to fit centre piece circular maple veneer
Cut 2 circular veneers to fit and glue in place
Sand back by hand for fine finish

Connecting block
Glue mahogany face to face to form solid block to be milled
Drill holes at sides for brass arms to fit with correct centre of rotation
Cut and sand to form circular form
Drill 4 holes for brass thread to pass through
Drill central hole for connecting piece between demijohns
Cut and sand central connecting pieces and glue together checking for tight fit in demijohns
Drill central hole in connecting piece for salt to pass through
Oil all elements 5 times with raw linseed oil

Brass
Cut brass rod to dimensions for 4 connecting pieces and arms
Drill brass rod to allow for brass threaded bar to slide through Cut brass threaded bar for connecting between brass rod
Cut brass thread for handle to fix to brass rod
Drill hole half way for handle to fix using tapping drill bit for easy removal of handle
Polish brass with Brasso

Handle
Glue mahogany face to face to form solid block to be turned Cut block from each end and insert maple veneer and glue back together

Setup block on lathe Turn to form tactile shape
Sand whilst on lathe Oil whilst on lathe
Remove from lathe keeping flat end to sit upright to be drilled for threaded bar fixing

Demijohns
Demijohns Clean demijohns using rice and vinegar Wash out and leave to dry thoroughly

Assembly
Fill one demijohn with salt
Assemble other demijohn on top using connecting block and brass components
Adjust level with tightness of dome nuts and nuts
Glue pivoting arm with handle into connecting block
Lift up assembly onto frame
Pass fixed arm through hole in frame and secure by inserting other side
Attach removable handle by screwing into arm

Hourglass Prototype

I used mdf as a mock replacement of mahogany to test my idea and 18mm diameter oak to replace the brass. This allowed me to experiment with the construction and make mistakes before working with the precious materials of mahogany and brass. In the process of testing the construction I was also able to think about the construction of the frame and its shape and concept changed through this.

I was able to reach a solution first time round that I am able to reproduce in my materials of choice.

Demijohns

I bought these two demijohns because I was attracted to the scale and proportion of them as objects. I could imagine my next step involving less manipulation to the objects themselves and more of a focus on the immediate physical context of them and what could be made of them with this approach. I did my research about the demijohns and found that they are used for fermentation of wine and beer. I felt it was interesting that the use of the demijohns as a container of liquid in this time based process should inform my re-appropriation of them. The key to this being a different transformation from the previous ones was that I would not change the physical properties of the demijohns, I wanted to use them in their existing state.

I thought about the idea of time and was inspired by their shape and this brought to my mind the idea of an hourglass. The fact that I had purchased two of them made this a plausible transformation and by inverting one on top of the other I could image them set within a beautifully made mahogany frame with brass detailing that makes reference to the construction and accuracy of naval measuring instruments and sundials. I sketched this preliminary design to show the concept.

Design Copyright © 2010 Youssef Daoud
Sketch Youssef Daoud

The name hourglass I took in combination with the size of the demijohns to inform the 1 hour time which I hope to achieve by variation of the hole size and aggregate used (salt or sand). Traditionally these hourglasses would measure a maximum of about 15 minutes but my choice of 1 hour meant that I needed to reconsider how this giant hourglass will be inverted and the users' interaction with it. I felt that instead of setting them in a frame where the whole frame needed to be turned on its head to restart the timing (considering its mass) it would be interesting to come up with a solution where the frame stands still and the hourglass pivots around its central point which is what I attempted to express above and what I decided to prototype.

Pallet meets Can (PMC)

These tables we a very useful in the context of my other pieces and their placement in my overall body of works. Some critisism of these pieces is that the raw materials were so extremely transformed that their original existence is forgotten. Arguably, this was the product of my intention to take basic mundane materials and transform them to the realm of the valuable and precious. In this case it envolved much more processing than I orginally intended. Here are the finished photographs

Design Copyright © 2010 Youssef Daoud
Photograph Youssef Daoud

Tin Can & Pallet re-united

The idea behind these table was outlined in 'Re-Use of materials' (11 March 2010)

Ingredients (2 tables)
2 x 1200 x 800 x 144 mm pine pallet
8 x 300 h x 200 d mm commercial baked beans tin can

1 x 0.25l black egshell paint
2 x found metal net drawers
2 x 2000 x 35 x 35 mm aluminium angle
4 x 1000 x 30 mm aluminium flat
40 x stainless steel rivet
1 x 4000 x 2 d black steel core wire rope
8 x M6 stainless steel eye nut
16 x 2.5 mm aluminium ferrule
16 x 2 mm stainless steel thimble
16 x 19 mm nickel split ring
24 x M6 20 mm black counter sunk socket screws
16 x M6 nuts
120 hours Labour

Recipe

Pallet
Cut wood according to sketch drawing
Miter angles accordingly
Check assembly and glue in stages
Machine sand all over
Paint black detail on inside edge

Tin Cans
Wash and dry cans
Remove top and bottom and retain, cut open sides and stretch out.
Tops and bottoms form one surface, sides form another surface.
Sides
Cut into 25 mm strips along the ripple of the can
Weave and spot weld at edges to hold
Tops
Cut circular discs into squares and spot weld together using offcuts beneath

Sandblast to remove coatings and residue
Pollish with abrasive wheel
Spray 3 thin coats of metal protector
Drill alluminium for fixing
Polish alluminium on polishing wheel
Fix surfaces between aluminium angle and aluminium flat using rivets

Hanging metal drawer
Make up wire loops using ferrules and thimbles
Use nickel split rings at all connections

Bring it all together
Fix surfaces within aluminium frame into wooden frame using counter sunk socket screws and nuts
Fix eyenuts to underside of wooden frame using counter sunk socket screws
Hang metal drawer using wire loops and nickel split rings

Finished!

Sebastian Herkner

'Sebastian Herkner has his own studio, where he designs lamps and furniture, among other things. His product designs combine current trends and familiar forms, challenge these forms, and reveal his own creative and playful approaches to materials, craft and technology. His work is shown at a variety of fairs and exhibitions.'

Piece Bell-Light
Date 2009
Source www.sebastianherkner.com

I like the honest combination of new and old. The use of the light fittings themselves shifted only slightly out of context is refreshing.