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AV-2023-266 · CNC · Manufacturing

Bitcoin-Nahua Calendar carved in cedar

Drawing notes

SEC. 01 / TECHNICAL NOTES

Problem, build and result — with the detail that doesn't fit on the card.

CNC roughing pass of the Bitcoin-Nahua Calendar in solid cedar

CNC detail pass over the calendar relief

CNC spindle carving the central Bitcoin symbol

Hand finishing: cedar tint over the carving

Finished piece with tint and matte varnish

The calendar on display at the Adopting Bitcoin 2023 auction

Problem: The 21bitcoiners collective arrived with the Bitcoin-Nahua Calendar — the story of Bitcoin and El Salvador told in 21 blocks, inspired by Nahua culture — as a 3D model, and a date that wouldn't move: the Adopting Bitcoin 2023 conference in San Salvador. Three pieces from the same carving were needed, in solid cedar, finished and ready for auction.
Build: We sourced the cedar and split the 3D model into depth layers to generate the CNC toolpaths: roughing and detail per layer, the same 45 cm carving executed three times. Each piece was hand-finished with cedar tint and matte varnish.
Result: Three pieces delivered on time. They were among the most talked-about items at the expo: two were auctioned and sold fast, and one — as we later heard — was gifted to a high-ranking official in the context of the Bitcoin Law.

The art already existed and had authors: the story, conceived by Nelson Inno; the visual design, by Salvadoran artist Charlie Poka, drawing on the Nahua and Maya cultures. The Bitcoin-Nahua Calendar tells the story of Bitcoin and its adoption in El Salvador in 21 chronological blocks. Our problem was a different one: turning that 3D model into physical objects of solid cedar — 45 centimeters across, 5 deep — and having them ready for the start of Adopting Bitcoin 2023.

The cedar was sourced first, because the right piece of wood is half the result. From the model came the machining strategy: we split it into depth layers and generated the CNC toolpaths for each one — roughing passes to clear material and detail passes for the fine relief of the blocks and the central symbol.

Producing one carving is an achievement; producing three is a process. The same program and the same fixturing on every run, and then the work the machine doesn't do: hand finishing, cedar tint to deepen the tone and matte varnish to protect the relief. Between design, machining and handwork, each piece accumulated over 70 hours of the project's total effort.

The pieces were delivered on time and were among the most talked-about items at the expo: the calendar ended up projected on the main stage, two pieces were auctioned and sold fast, and one — as we were told afterwards — was gifted to a high-ranking Salvadoran official in the context of the Bitcoin Law. From the artists' file to an object people wanted to own: that's the job.

CAD/CAM · CNC · CEDAR · HAND FINISHING

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SEC. 02 / OTHER DRAWINGS

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AV-2024-133CNC · Design

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AV-2026-0233D Printing · Reverse engineering

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Lector home: digital library with books recommended by grade

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AV-2022-227Machinery · Automation

Complete Yummy Ice machine during its internal server boot

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AV-2021-029Software · Research

A species catalog page in Padiush, with taxonomy and geographic distribution

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LARAVEL · REACT · RESEARCH · DATA

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AV-2024-275Metal structure · Fabrication

MOPT bike station installed in Plaza Gerardo Barrios

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AV-2024-301Software · Platform

Home of the Fiscal Policy Observatory built by Avalon

Fiscal Policy Observatory for FUDECEN

Problem: FUDECEN — the Foundation for the Development of Central America — and a consortium of civil-society organizations worked on public finances and fiscal justice, and needed a place where that work could live: an online observatory to house their studies, turn fiscal data into charts and maps anyone could read, and grow with the project year over year.
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