Dimension: 65" * 75"
Brief Introduction:
A drawing I made for the drawing studio assignment: process drawing. Taking this ongoing process of discovering unlimited digits of π (pi), I created this piece with hand stamping the digits.
The letters are the ancient Chinese words representing each number from 0-9. The reasons for the choice of using ancient Chinese characters are:
1. In the history of π discovery, our Chinese ancestor, Zu Chongzhi, paid a great contribution. Therefore, one purpose is to commemorate his contribution.
2. This ancient Chinese character system is still used nowadays when it comes to filling paychecks or official monetary files. Originally, it was designed to prevent corrupt governors from easily changing the numbers with adding one stroke or two. Therefore, the other purpose is to suggest that π is such a precise mathematical order that could not be changed easily.
The ones shown below are my original sketches from sketchbooks. Also, in order to hand write the Chinese characters, I practiced my calligraphy skill that I achieved years ago.
How did I make the stamps?
In a very simple way, you can make you own stamps too. I wrote the characters on paper and transfer them onto the rubber blocks. As a result, I know the relationship between positive and negative space, so I know where I need to carve out. I carefully chiseled out the extra rubber. Consequently, I got my own set of number stamps.
Last but not least, the choice of hand carving the stamps is related to the ancient Chinese printing technique. Stamping to form the inaccurate circle also suggests that π is a manmade discovery.
<Notes>
Amount of calculated digits: 22.4 trillion digits - November 2016 (Peter Trueb)
Scale compared to my height.
