Sand 49 ‘Sri Yantra’ ~ 2nd September 2017 ~ Brean, Somerset, UK.
It was a privilege to have been involved with this wonderful global art project. Seven artists, seven hours, to create the sacred 400ft Sri Yantra symbol on the beach below Brean Down. A huge effort by all involved – Thank you to everyone who came along on this special day. 🙏🏻
The Sri Yantra event was brought to you by:
Stuart Dike (project manager), Khi Deva (event organiser & ceremony), Julian Richardson (lead artist), Mirka Stadtruckerova ~ Kat Kinnie ~ Paul Burton ~ Chris Watson (assistant artists)
For anyone interested in geometry, this will give you an insight into the preliminary work that goes into my land art. Prior to creating each piece, the intended design originates as a hand drawn diagram – First in sketch form to ascertain its feasibility, then as a completed scale drawing (with accompanying measurements and areas of shading considered). Ironically, more time is spent designing each piece of land art than actually making it! In order to better understand the Sri Yantra’s geometry, I first decided to deconstruct the symbol back down to its component parts. This process is particularly useful when creating anything complicated, as it simplifies a design, making it easier to explain to others, and provides a logical and efficient construction order to follow on the day when time is of the essence.
Please click on the following green hyperlink text to view the design template in PDF format – which includes additional construction details! Sri Yantra Diagrams
Sand 48 ~ 12th August 2017 ~ Brean, Somerset, UK.
Working in a constant 20mph sea breeze, Sand 48 took my team and I five hours to create and measured approximately 400ft in diameter. Revisiting elements of the geometry contained within Sand 15, the art is underpinned by a triangulated grid of 58 centre-points, each of which were utilised in turn to create this organic looking piece.
Sand 47 ~ 8th July 2017 ~ 300ft ~ Brean, Somerset, UK
This piece of sand art was somewhat spontaneous. Scheduled at short notice, my team and I arrived at the beach later than usual. Uncertain as to whether we’d have time to create the intended artwork before the tide came in, we decided to improvise and make something up. After creating an initial 30m(r) ring and dividing it into six, the piece naturally evolved until it reached a point where I felt the art was complete.
Sand 46 (Man in the Maze) ~ 20th May 2017 ~ 290ft
~Brean, Somerset, UK
The labyrinthine symbol depicts our journey through life – from birth to death, with all its associated twists and turns.
Sand 45 ~ 10th September 2016 ~ 280ft ~ Brean, Somerset, UK
I was able to visit Brean on 10th September to create my latest piece of sand art with the kind assistance of Paul Burton and Khi Deva. The 280ft diameter artwork took around 6 hours to complete. Inspired by patchwork quilts, the design is effectively two differing square shaped patterns which have been overlaid at an offset angle to form one completed design.
Sand 44 ~ 14th August 2016 ~ 263ft ~ Brean, Somerset, UK
It was great to be able to visit the coast last weekend and get creative once again with my beach buddies! The ‘endless knot’ design that we incorporated into this piece symbolises a nature of reality where everything is interconnected. The cube is representational of union and permanence, yet paradoxically, the ever changing sand canvas acts as a metaphor for the impermanence of all that exists. Thank you to my co-creators: Paul Burton, Mirka Stadtruckerova, Khi Deva, and Kat Kinnie for helping to bring the art off of the drawing board for all to appreciate!
Sand 43 ~ 29th May 2016 ~ 275ft ~ Brean, Somerset, UK
Here are the photos of my latest piece of 3D sand art. It was good to get creative once again on the beach at Brean. Thanks to Paul Burton, Mirka Stadtruckerova, and Stuart Dike for helping me create the 275ft artwork, and to Matthew Williams and MrGyro.co.uk for documenting the event 🙂
© Julian Richardson ~ Artist