Process and development •
Visual inspiration was taken from a range of anime films and vintage maps
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Sketches were done digitally to match the medium of the final outcome
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Experimentation with composition was done during the process of creating the final image
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Different formats were considered (e.g. individual “floating cities” versus one big city, and paper orientation)
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Individual answers were taken from the questionnaire to see how it could be visually translated
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Experiments with colour schemes and palettes were also done to see if it affects the atmosphere and depiction of the image
UTOPIA
D Y S T O P I A (incomplete)
Proposed outcomes
The scale of the final images are proposed to be the size of a billboard or mural; allowing the details of the image to be more visible to the audience. Placing the image in a public space would allowing the audience to immerse themselves into the “stateless� city.
Summative statement The practical stems from the overarching topic of the dissertation, escapism, whilst drawing inspiration and references of the architecture and composition from vintage maps, and several anime films including Summer Wars, Akira, and Tekkonkinkreet. The films are all set in either fictional utopian or dystopian worlds, which encompasses the element of “statelessness”. Having found a common factor between the films and arguments made in the dissertation, it was decided that the practical would be illustrations of “stateless” utopian and dystopian worlds. Based on the definitions of utopia and dystopia, a questionnaire was developed to gather primary research to help create the utopian and dystopian worlds. Participants provided descriptions of how technology has enhanced and worsened their lives, what they perceived to be the most and least ideal place to live, and their biggest fears. Combining all the answers from the questionnaire allowed the depiction of a collective of fears and ideals, echoing Nagai’s description of how as if people of Japan “were all living in one vast house” (1969, p.397). The visual interpretation of the word “stateless” was based on the arguments about mukokuseki (statelessness) and the animators’ lack of furusato (an ideologically charged word describing hometown). Answers were taken from the questionnaire but were all combined together, creating a fusion of cities. The audience may be able to recognize a significant building, such as the Chrysler building from New York, but would not be able to find the rest of New York City on the map, essentially creating a stateless, fantasy world.