Octavian Liviu Gherghe

The Oc Bloc

The Oc-Bloc is a cutting board created with the intent of being a product I will personally use, and that I desire to have in my home. We were prompted to also present a "story" within our cutting boards. I designed it keeping in mind the aesthetics that I enjoy, as well as taking inspiration from my background & culture for the story behind my project.

“When it comes to cooking, I like to think that I know my way around a kitchen, but I am still quite green. Most of my experience comes from growing up around my mother and grandmother(s) cooking in the kitchen, usually traditional Romanian meals. With this in mind, I wanted to connect my cutting board to my cultural background. The board will be octagon shaped, taken from my name Octavian, which means “the eighth one” in Latin. It used to be a popular Romanian name but is now considered a bit dated. Alongside that, I wanted to include a motif pattern that is part of many Eastern European cultures, typically as sewing patterns on traditional clothing or textiles.I did a bit of research on what the common symbols mean and chose those which I felt related to what cooking means to me. Starting from a sketch with a final pattern graphic, I lasercut it into the board and then did some sanding and finishing. The pattern was cut as a relief into the board, and then filled with a red-ish tree resin to keep the surface of the board flush. Ram Horns: Strength, confidence, and energyPine tree: Plant symbols are related to health, vitality and growth. Trees can represent steadfastedness and durability.Circle: Circular shapes often represent regeneration, life cycles, and long periods of time.Reference photo for the symbols was taken from: https://martineclaessens.com/blog/2016/3/15/romanias-secret-language”