The Tournament in Trafalgar Square

The Tournament in Trafalgar Square during London Design Festival 09
Images: London Design Festival

A centrepiece of this year’s London Design Festival will be located in the heart of London, in Trafalgar Square. The Tournament, an installation created by Spanish designer Jaime Hayon will consist of a gigantic chess set, with 2m high ceramic pieces on a specially created mosaic glass chessboard.

The installation, which will be set between the two fountains in Trafalgar Square, consists of 32 chess pieces,handcrafted by Hayon, working with Bosa, the Italian ceramics experts in Veneto, Italy. Many of the chess pieces will reference specific iconic buildings in London and their domes, towers and spires. Elements of the city of London and its history will be encoded on the pieces using Hayon’s very personal style. Each chess piece will be unique and hand-painted by Hayon himself.

The chess pieces will be supported by a wooden base on castors so that they can be moved around easily, and there will be a metal frame within the ceramic form to provide stability. The chess board will be made of mosaic glass tiles created by Italian tiling specialists, Bisazza. Rising above the giant tiled chessboard will be elevated platforms where players will sit in large, high-backed chairs directing their pieces around the board. The London Design Festival are actively encouraging the general public to apply to take part in the chess games and come down and play or simply watch and enjoy this community spectacle.

Source: http://www.dezona.com