Congrats on putting together your first OGR - on time, and really helpful too in terms of written statement and influence maps. I have a few things to note really - one is just to throw some additional names at you in terms of enriching your 'crystalline architecture' ideas: check out the work of Daniel Libeskind in support of thinking about your various structures etc. Check out his drawings too. Obviously I can see the connection with the prismatic approach, but I can't help but get a sense of implied organicism from Calvino's words - there's a strong connection to nature and natural forms - particularly aquatic forms, so I'm just going to suggest that maybe, in light of this, you look at the glassware of Rene Lalique as a potential bridge between all that glass and more softened organic interiors etc - not his dragonflies etc - but look at his vases, vessels, bowls and perfume bottles (and think of these forms as being massive and architectural, as opposed to tableware, and you'll see what I mean. The other artist Moriana's underwater-y factor suggests is Dale Chihuly - whose glasswork is just staggering to behold! For example:
Another thing I want you to think about is the specificity of what you're going to design/draw and why - by which I mean, which buildings/spaces/sites are you going to focus, and how might those decisions tell us more about this city. I don't know about you, but the emphasis on those 'dancing girls' gives Moriana a 'Vegas' feel - as if it's a place you go for entertainment and sensual pleasure (there's a hint too of dangerous feminine about this place too - the femme fatale - dancing girls and a reference to 'Medusa'..) Perhaps this explains the other aspect of this city that you actually don't appear to consider in your mission statement - Moriana's more squalid face - the reality behind the rather more glamorous facade - those rotting, dirty spaces where Calvino suggests a person might be driven to hang themselves!? Is the city of Moriana not unlike the 'Club of the Sons' in Metropolis - a pleasure palace - but a city that hides its poverty and moral decrepitude behind all those sensuous layers of glass?
The reason why I think it's really important to further conceptualise the 'character' of this city (in addition to formulating its visual concept) is because in so doing you'll be able to move away from thinking about this city and its buildings in generic terms. For example, if we were to think of Moriana as a sort of 'city of pleasure' then what would its cathedral be like - a 'cathedral' in a pleasure city might be a vast casino or strip joint, for example (a building that encapsulates the belief system of the people who live there). In terms of transport systems - there's watery feeling here - water slides anyone? (maybe not, but you get my drift). Thinking like this will quickly give you an 'obvious' interior to consider (an interior that tells us something important or significant about Moriana).
So - my main prompts would be these: Moriana - what kind of city is it? Why is it a city with a dirty secret - and how might Moriana offer you as a concept artist and opportunity to explore its contrasts?
Thank you for the feedback phil! :D Your advice has given me a lot to think about and also a lot of inspiration! I'll definitely have to look more into the 'hidden face' part of moriana and see how i can bring that into light, possibly make it work how vegas does - at night it's dazzling with flashy lights and full of sensual pleasure as you say but by day it could be the hidden face it describes possibly? There's definitely a lot i can play round with here.
Thank you again, looking at the artists work you have reccomended has helped a lot too!
Hey Meg - just sharing these additional Moriana thoughts... you might be interested in the watery 'Sirens' idea - and also looking at Art Nouveau as an aesthetic that aligns with certain ideas about decadence and the female form... When I think about Moriana, I can help but see this chilling painting by Klimt...
OGR 04/10/2017
ReplyDeleteHey Meg,
Congrats on putting together your first OGR - on time, and really helpful too in terms of written statement and influence maps. I have a few things to note really - one is just to throw some additional names at you in terms of enriching your 'crystalline architecture' ideas: check out the work of Daniel Libeskind in support of thinking about your various structures etc. Check out his drawings too. Obviously I can see the connection with the prismatic approach, but I can't help but get a sense of implied organicism from Calvino's words - there's a strong connection to nature and natural forms - particularly aquatic forms, so I'm just going to suggest that maybe, in light of this, you look at the glassware of Rene Lalique as a potential bridge between all that glass and more softened organic interiors etc - not his dragonflies etc - but look at his vases, vessels, bowls and perfume bottles (and think of these forms as being massive and architectural, as opposed to tableware, and you'll see what I mean. The other artist Moriana's underwater-y factor suggests is Dale Chihuly - whose glasswork is just staggering to behold! For example:
https://theinteriordirectory.files.wordpress.com/2015/06/article-1060285-02c396fa00000578-848_468x316.jpg?w=468&h=316&crop=1
Another thing I want you to think about is the specificity of what you're going to design/draw and why - by which I mean, which buildings/spaces/sites are you going to focus, and how might those decisions tell us more about this city. I don't know about you, but the emphasis on those 'dancing girls' gives Moriana a 'Vegas' feel - as if it's a place you go for entertainment and sensual pleasure (there's a hint too of dangerous feminine about this place too - the femme fatale - dancing girls and a reference to 'Medusa'..) Perhaps this explains the other aspect of this city that you actually don't appear to consider in your mission statement - Moriana's more squalid face - the reality behind the rather more glamorous facade - those rotting, dirty spaces where Calvino suggests a person might be driven to hang themselves!? Is the city of Moriana not unlike the 'Club of the Sons' in Metropolis - a pleasure palace - but a city that hides its poverty and moral decrepitude behind all those sensuous layers of glass?
The reason why I think it's really important to further conceptualise the 'character' of this city (in addition to formulating its visual concept) is because in so doing you'll be able to move away from thinking about this city and its buildings in generic terms. For example, if we were to think of Moriana as a sort of 'city of pleasure' then what would its cathedral be like - a 'cathedral' in a pleasure city might be a vast casino or strip joint, for example (a building that encapsulates the belief system of the people who live there). In terms of transport systems - there's watery feeling here - water slides anyone? (maybe not, but you get my drift). Thinking like this will quickly give you an 'obvious' interior to consider (an interior that tells us something important or significant about Moriana).
So - my main prompts would be these: Moriana - what kind of city is it? Why is it a city with a dirty secret - and how might Moriana offer you as a concept artist and opportunity to explore its contrasts?
Thank you for the feedback phil! :D Your advice has given me a lot to think about and also a lot of inspiration! I'll definitely have to look more into the 'hidden face' part of moriana and see how i can bring that into light, possibly make it work how vegas does - at night it's dazzling with flashy lights and full of sensual pleasure as you say but by day it could be the hidden face it describes possibly? There's definitely a lot i can play round with here.
DeleteThank you again, looking at the artists work you have reccomended has helped a lot too!
also, water slides are a go for me :D
Hey Meg - just sharing these additional Moriana thoughts... you might be interested in the watery 'Sirens' idea - and also looking at Art Nouveau as an aesthetic that aligns with certain ideas about decadence and the female form... When I think about Moriana, I can help but see this chilling painting by Klimt...
ReplyDeletehttps://static.independent.co.uk/s3fs-public/styles/article_small/public/thumbnails/image/2007/11/23/16/klimt.jpeg
oh - apologies - forget to share the link to George's OGR...
ReplyDeletehttp://george-latham.blogspot.co.uk/2017/10/invisible-cities-online-greenlight.html