The aesthetic I have chosen for my upcycle project is spacecore. I picked this aesthetic because it shares some of the qualities of my previous post’s aesthetic: retro-futurism. Both of them take advantage of the night sky, technology, bright colors, and ethereal images. The reason I did not go with retro-futurism is because I thought it may be a little difficult to find materials that have the “retro” quality I would need, and I’m not a good enough artist to draw in the scenes myself.
I’m planning on mostly using cardboard, spray paint, and acrylic paint to make a sort of collage/mosaic that depicts a colorful interpretation of outer space. I have yet to decide, but I hope I can incorporate some aluminum into the design too. I could use soda cans to represent space ships or aluminum foil to represent an astronaut. I plan on using spray paint and other materials to make the color of the planets in the sky as well as the highlights and shadows, then by putting cups over them, I can paint the surrounding area black to make the planets look nice and rounded. I will also make stars by flicking white paint off a paint brush, letting it scatter randomly over the black background.
In the foreground, I’m planning on cutting up pieces of cardboard, painting them, and arranging them to make a UFO with aliens inside, abducting a cow (or something like that). I will have to get started on actually making the art piece before I know for certain what I want the result to look like. Also, I want to layer the cardboard pieces to make the finished product look more three-dimensional, adding some depth and more intricacy. I could also use some cardboard pieces to make a landscape, like its a picture taken standing on another planet. Other than that, I don’t have any more specific plans, and I’m unsure if I will stick to the plans I’ve already set out. However, I will do my best to commit to the spacecore aesthetic throughout the project.
I think the aesthetic concept of spacecore leaves a lot up to me as far as creativity, imagination, and artistry. This aesthetic is something I can get excited about and look forward to working on. I’m feeling enthusiastic about this project. Space itself is one of the most intriguing and inspiring things this world has to offer in my opinion. It is such a massive, unpredictable, lawless place where truly anything is possible.
Image Links:
5 Comments. Leave new
I really like this aesthetic and the way that it combines styles of the past and visions of the future – the coloring of cool blues and purples (which are least common in nature) gives the impression of being in another foreign world while the traces and light stigmatism in many of these images give the impression that we aren’t really there but rather viewing the scene remotely through a camera or other device. I’m very excited to see what you create, as I think the curiosity and amazement associated with space will add significant value to your artifact and the experience of creating it!
Wow! Being a Sci-Fi books & stories enthusiast, seeing this concept for up-cycling project made me elated! Eager to see how this turns out. As you mentioned, Space can be unpredictable and lawless which gives you same room towards creating the artistic reflection of it where no laws applies and there’s no need for pattern. That’s what I love about space art – It gives one utmost room for challenging status quo in each piece of it & let your imagination run wild. So, do you intend to create a new world here? or mimic some known existing planets themes?
Thank you for commenting and showing support! To answer your question, I’m planning on using elements from art that I’ve seen on the internet and social media; things like techniques for painting planets and stars. That being said, I definitely want to make something more or less original and unique to my own artistic vision. I certainly won’t be trying to mimic any real planets in particular. Thank you again for the question and encouragement.
Hi Micheal,
This was a very detailed post with great imagery, I’m looking forward to seeing your project once it’s ready. This aesthetic definitely leaves a lot of room for creative freedom and based on your post, I believe you will absolutely be using that to your advantage. Have you considered using some kind of lighting in your art piece? If so how would you incorporate it?
Thank you for the kind words about my post. Do address the lighting question, it never even crossed my mind, but now that you bring it up, I’m very intrigued and curious about how I would go about that. My first thought is to cut little slits through the aluminum components and keep an LED behind it. Picture a soda can painted like a spaceship with little color changing lights peaking through the gaps, and maybe out the bottom to look like a thruster. My other thought it to poke colored plastic through the cardboard, then lighting it from behind, sort of like a Lite-Brite. Thank you for bringing this idea up to me, giving me even more room for creativity.