Flora is one of the most important aspects of the worlds of a story. The nature of a planet can be diverse and change drastically from world to world - giving artists freedom to design organic plants and foliage to create unique forms of life.
Through the creation of my own flora, I want to communicate the effects that civilsation has on plants and foliage, the variety of natural life present on planets, and its symbiotic relationship with fauna. I aim to make these plants immersive by adapting some of the techniques used in existing examples of real life flora into my own designs.
Examples of immersive flora can be found in James Cameron's Avatar. (1) The movie features the alien planet of Pandora, which is a lush paradise with many exotic forms of life. I believe this flora to be immersive because great care has been taken to connect the plants and foliage with the native inhabitants and creatures of the world, and the designs are unique while being grounded in reality.
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| Daytime on Pandora in Avatar (20th Century Fox, 2009) (2) |
The first series of mini-experiments looked at how the architecture of flora can alter the narrative. I began by arranging the separate floral examples from Pandora together in a complex and forest-like scene. This created an image where plant-life was thriving.
Next, I simplified the arrangement to show a less-developed part of one of the planet's forests. This is immediately clear to not be as effective as a more crowded and vibrant arrangement.
I believe these were effective experiments because I was able to see how the composition and architecture of the examples of plants and foliage changed the intensity of what was being communicated. A more complex arrangement results in a stronger sense of narrative.
The next mini-experiment was based around location, and what this flora would look like if it were underwater, instead of on the surface of the planet. This resulted in more of the leafed plants appearing as seaweed and the conical plants fitting in well with their new placement.
After that, I created natural floating platforms to support the growth of these plants and foliage - hovering above an ocean. This location provided an interesting dynamic for the long willow-like plants as they drooped over the side of the rock platforms.
I believe this was an effective experiment because it showed me how the same floral elements could look in a different location. It also presented that the narrative that these elements previously communicated is given another layer of complexity by the body of water being present in both images.
From these experiments, I have managed to identify the characteristics of Avatar's flora, which will assist me in designing my own vehicles that effectively communicate a narrative. These characteristics are diversity and form. With these aspects in mind, I created an experimental response that relates to one of the fictional worlds from my Final Major Project.
This response is in the form of a landscape illustration, showing a future Earth city from my FMP having separated itself from the nature of the forest. I have used characteristics of flora and adapted them to show a variety of natural life on the planet, the effects that civilisation has on nature, and the symbiotic relationship between flora and fauna. This resulted in a natural environment that is present in my story, contrasted with a man-made environment of the future city.
In conclusion, this experiment inspired me to explore immersion through flora using examples of fictional designs, as well as revealing the narrative that plants and foliage can communicate through their visual language.
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(1) Avatar. (2009). [Film] United States: James Cameron, 20th Century Fox.
(2) 20th Century Fox, (2009). Daytime on Pandora, Avatar. [image] Available at: http://i.imgur.com/5LQtViA.jpg [Accessed 15 Feb. 2017].
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