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Mythical Architecture

 

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The origin of the project came from my short visit to a traditional art exhibit in Hangzhou, China. The Chinese paintings inspired me to create a series of architectural renderings, depicting unconventional buildings in traditional Chinese landscape. The architecture delineated in this project proclaims that imagination has no boundary nor compromised by constructional restriction. The visionary illustration challenges viewers to go beyond their cognitive thinking and to explore.

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The design concept orbits around the theme of Chinese dragons, the important mythical creatures. Dragons represent power, strength and good fortune. The myth says that dragons can be transformed into various water creatures, such as fish and turtle. The Chinese Emperors also used the dragons to symbolize their divine power. From start to finish, architectural visualization has always been a crucial part of the design process. It has constantly changed as art materials and technology evolve. The traditional use of ink, watercolor and markers gradually gave way to realistic computer-generated images. Having come from the generation that marks the beginning of the computer application and being trained to render manually, I have always been looking for a happy medium between the two. To achieve the desired outcomes, I employed various methods of both traditional and digital imaging.

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The architectures were modeled and rendered in three-dimensional software. The landscape elements were manually created in ink and watercolor. Photoshop was the tool used to combine both elements together. The mythical architecture reflects my strong believe that art can inspire design, and vice versa.

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The Sleeping Dragon Hotel

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This image was my first attempt to merge manual and digital techniques. The snake-like dragon inspired the form of the architecture. The building intertwines with the majestic landscape, creating a contrast between man-made objects and natural environments. The hotel appears to be a dragon floating in the clouds.

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The Phoenix Observation Tower

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The Chinese phoenix inspires the design of this observation tower. The phoenix traditionally represents the Empress as opposed to the dragon (the Emperor). The display of this image with the Sleeping Dragon signifies the harmony of Yin and Yang. The conceptual observation tower is situated over the waterfall as Yin (female) is considered a cool element.

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The Turtle Floating Stage

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The dragon turtles are commonly used in feng shui practices. They have the body of a turtle and the head of a dragon. The dragon turtle is believed to attract wealth and bring protection. The turtle-like floating performing stage is designed to be a private place where Chinese opera is performed in the middle of nature.

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The Fish Retreat

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The old legend says that a koi was turned into a dragon by gods after successfully jumped to reach the top of the waterfall. His attempt took a hundred years. The story gave me an idea to create a fish-shaped retreat. The building is floating on the peaceful river where the mist conceals the building from the outside world.