Ceramic Chessboard Puzzle | Barbara Walch

Chessboard Puzzle
Barbara Walch in Collaboration with CP Woodman
Hand built ceramic chessboard

This listing if for the chess board only. Intended as a set with the Chess Birds hand built chess pieces.

Initially intrigued with the idea of creating a chess set, I wanted to create a contrast with the seriousness of the game by being a little tongue-in-cheek with the chess pieces.  So, the cardinal stands in for the bishop, the owl for the knight, the rook is the crow-like bird found on the other side of the Atlantic, and I tried for a little optical illusion in the chessboard.

Though I anticipated challenged, I soon found out there would be a great deal more problem solving involved than I’d thought. The board presented the most problems both in conception and execution.  There are a good many strictly defined parameters in chess, much involving straight line geometry, which is the opposite of my signature work. Thus, the chessboard was conceived through collaboration with CP Woodman, a talented but obscure artist and craftsman in many media.  Given time and firing restraints, I was relieved that I had a workable result at all.

The overall result is a contrast of natural organic forms and whimsy with the straight forward parallelograms of the chessboard.

Please enter code “pickitupplease” at checkout to pick this item up in-store.  Otherwise, please contact Maine Craft Portland for inquiries before purchase.

This piece is currently at Maine Craft Portland as part of The Craft Maker’s Gambit Exhibition.