I was initially drawn towards Fantasy for my main theme as I have always had an interest in fantasy games and movies like The Legend of Zelda and Lord of The Rings, which gave me inspiration for what I wanted my overall environment to look like. The original inspiration for this environment came from a Dungeons and Dragons campaign I created and ran, which I had no physically reference for, so I saw this as a good opportunity to bring my idea to life.
For my sub theme, I chose Beauty as it means I can fully showcase the theme of Fantasy in an appealing way. I wanted to show this through nature as I enjoy landscape photography in naturalistic areas such as forests. This will help me with designing the environment as I can lay out the landscape in a way that looks interesting to the viewer and I can put a good amount of focus into the flowers, trees and shrubbery. Fantasy and Beauty work together very well as themes as it means I can explore the full potential of both as they are usually paired together in other media.
After some thought, I decided I wanted to create a central building/monument surrounded by a garden and a forest in a small valley, but before I started the creating process, I decided to sketch out some design ideas first.
My initial idea was to have some form of a monument in the centre of my landscape with paths leading away from each side lined by candles or maybe even lanterns. As well as this, I wanted to include gardens in each of the corners, as well as a large tree to go along with these. I did quite like this idea, but I decided to explore other options before making a decision.
My second idea was to have a temple/shrine towards the back of my landscape with paths leading away from it to form a triangle. By creating a space for the garden in this shape, it would mean the viewer would get a complete view of the garden when they are looking out from the temple, and as they’re approaching it from the other side, the lines of the garden would lead their view to the entrance. Compared to my first idea, I much preferred this one but I still decided to plan one more environment to see if I could change my mind.
My third and final idea was to have a large glowing tree at the centre of my landscape, with winding paths leading away from every side. These paths would be lined by small streams and lanterns, as well as having some room for gardens. Once again I did quite like this idea, but I had made my mind up by the time I had finished designing this layout.
For my final layout plan, I decided that I wanted to create my second idea, as it was closest to what I had imagined when creating the same setting in my Dungeons and Dragons campaign. As well as this, I quite liked how the main building was set towards the back of the landscape too, as it meant I could lead the viewer towards the main areas easier and would allow me to film some good shots for my video once I’ve finished creating the environment.
For this landscape, I wanted it to appear as a fantasy spring time landscape by making sure to add a good amount of foliage and generally making sure to include bright greens. After looking for some inspiration on Pinterest, I found many examples of overgrown temples, where the scenery is overwhelmed by green with a hint of the grey shades of stone peaking through. Looking at these images inspired me to make a landscape where pure, undisturbed nature surrounds a man made, yet elegant, structure. I also plan to include various white and yellow flowers, with maybe even some red. This is because these are primary colours and they will help to illustrate the simplicity of the nature surrounding this temple.
Creating a story for my landscape
A traveler is exploring the mountains only to stumble across a large valley, pretty, dainty flowers of yellow and white are scattered amongst the grass. Behind the trees she finds a large clearing, a long, sandstone pathway leading in three directions, one of them towards what appears to be a great temple of sorts, hidden away behind the shrubbery.
The traveler, following the pathway straight ahead, is greeted with a set of stairs that lead into the temple. Surrounded by cold grey marble pillars, supported by a foundation of the same material, the traveler explores the abandoned structure. Three wooden tables sit under the windows of the temple, atop them are assorted decorations, belongings of another. The four corners are occupied by smaller pillars, holding up pots of plants, inviting the colour of green into the insides of the structure. Despite the coldness of the marble, the temple is quite cozy and is host to a large, stunning, purple gem, locked in place by a golden stand. A rare and most beautiful artefact, an explorer’s dream find.
References
(fig.1) Ostrowski, C. (2020) Temple of Plenty [Digital art] Available online: https://www.artstation.com/artwork/9en9aO [Accessed 30/5/23]
(fig.2) Smilingnoface (2010) forest spirit [Digital art] Available online: https://www.deviantart.com/smilingnoface/art/forest-spirit-156871956 [Accessed 30/5/23]