I’m not really a chess fan. While I did enjoy bingeing The Queen’s Gamit and I would occasionally keep up with news about grand masters (since a lot of my countrymen seem to be great at it), you won’t catch me playing a game on a lazy Saturday afternoon or even watching people play it on YouTube or Facebook. What I do appreciate are those chess sets that have been intricately carved and created. This one that we’ve spotted will appeal to the minimalist chess fan, at least those that can spare almost $3,000.
Designer: Tarek Elkassouf
The Chessboard is created by Beirut-born and Sydney-based artist Tarek Elkassouf and is unlike any other luxury chessboard you’ve seen. At first glance you actually will not realize it’s a chessboard or that those items are chess pieces. His goal was to give players “creative freedom” when they’re playing the game and may even find themselves within the unique pieces in the board. By not focusing on the pieces themselves, you’ll be able to focus on the moves you need to make and the game itself.
To give it a more minimalistic feel, the original design or shape of the chess pieces were taken away. Instead, you got a minimalist rectangle soldier in various heights, depending on what the pieces represent. The symbols of what the classical chess pieces are inscribed on the top of each piece. They are made from stainless steel, brass, oxidized brass, and gunmetal. Each set is placed in a high gloss wooden box with velvet lining. The board doesn’t look like the regular one as well, in keeping with the minimalist look of the entire set.
The designer will only be producing 100 sets and there are four board variations: Carrara Marble, Basalt, Travertino Classico, and Travertino Rosso. He says that all the materials for these chess sets come from the Earth and therefore hold within them the energy of the Earth. “The material itself communicates the form of the pieces,” Elkassouf shares. The Chessboard is definitely a thing of beauty and is something that chess enthusiasts will definitely want to collect.
The post Sleek luxury chess set gives a minimal twist to this traditional game first appeared on Yanko Design.
