DESIGN INSPIRATION
THE DESU CIRCLE IS A CENTRAL CEREMONIAL LOCATION ON DELAWARE STATE UNIVERSITY'S CAMPUS WHERE STUDENTS GATHER IN THE HEAR OF THE CAMPUS. THE PAVED ARTWORK, WITH ITS SACRED GEOMETRY, REMINISCENT OF AFRICAN CULTURAL PATTERNS, IS A NATURAL SOURCE OF INSPIRATION FOR THIS DESIGN
Th As part of my senior Capstone project, ‘Written In Stone’, i aimed to create a lasting symbol of excellence, using the digital and manual tools afforded me by the University. Hence, my Art and Design experience at Delaware's only HBCU comes 'Full Circle.' I have always loved championship belts, so this project comes rather naturally to me.
as seen below, two other championship belts joined my series.
(above)
swatches ABOVE depicting the center plate of the belt as seen in previous photos.
(BELOW) THEN VS NOW
(top) First physical prototype: Baltic Birch, laser cut
(Bottom) Finished championship belt, used in live THeatre performance
ABOVE is a Painted sketch of the product and a 3D modeled and rendered concept of the product.
Shown above is the second working prototype of the belt, with all intended title plates attached. The next step, will be working with a finer quality leather, specifically Vegetable-tanned leather.
An extremely important part of the belt making process is leather tooling, which requires quality materials and a willingness to learn a broad range of skills and methods.
