Water Clock

Intention

Write about the big ideas behind your project? What are the goals? Why did you make it? What are your motivations?

Water is the essential part of our body while time is crucial to our daily lives. I have made a clock that emerges these two important factors in our lives. Water is abstractly represented by the curved shape of a water drop in a blue-tinted acrylic. My goal is to deliver the message of the importance of life through the mixture of water and time.

Sketch

[Include sketch with as much details as possible, like: approximate dimensions, materials, layers, textures, colors, and aesthetic influences.]

The total dimension is approximately 1x1 with the mixture of different materials as listed in above.

Research & Context

[How does your outcome relate to other work in the field? What makes it similar or different to other objects of the same genre? How have other objects failed to solve the problem you have identified?]

My idea was motivated by Salvador Dali’s clock. Since he is my favorite artist, when I thought about making a clock, melting yet the flexible shape of his clock gave me an inspiration. Although the shapes are very irregular, I wanted to make the clock simple yet aesthetically pleasing with colors. 

Aesthetic & Inspiration

[What influenced your design? Is there a specific style, art movement, or natural phenomena? Include at least one example. Can be a still image, video, or music.]

Process & Procedure

[Outline your approach to the project. What steps did you take to design, model, sketch, and prototype this projects? What ideas did you generate and how did you refine or reject them? How did you use cutting, etching, scoring? What challenges were encountered and how did you resolve them? Include photos of prototypes, redesigned sketches, design worksheets, and failed trails.]

1. Brainstormed what clock I wanted to make and started making many sketches
2. Measured the size of the clock kit and estimated how big I should make the clock
3. Made a model in Fusion360
4. Included cut, score, etch
5. I engraved roman numerals III and VI, etched the water shape on the wood, and scored a little water drop shape next to the etch
6. Got four different materials : 3 different colored acrylic, 1 wood
7. plan ahead which layer goes where
8. Laser cut
9. Put everything together

Two Renderings

[Two renderings on complete project styled with finished background, lighting, positioning, reflection]

Five semi-pro photos

[Five semi-professional photos with care given to context, lighting, staging, scene]

Reflection

[Reflect on the process of making this project. What did you learn? What would you do differently?]

Since it was my first time using Fusion360 and laser cutting, I had a doubt if I could make this clock. However, as I started learning them step by step, it was fun to play with software and the laser cutter. My final piece met my initial expectation of aesthetic and size. However, I miscalculated the size of the center hole and realized the importance of measurement. If I were to do this again, I would find a way to cover the black clock kit that appears behind the clear acrylic.