This project was an absolute learning experience for me. I started with a cool idea and ended up with something not quite what I intended. So for those of you who haven’t read my previous post, this was my initial idea:
Initially, I planned on having a terrarium in a tesseract enclosure made of wooden dowels, which in my opinion would represent travel back in time to when the earth was much greener. This concept was born from my love for lush greenery and the tesseract time-travel element was adopted from a well-known sci-fi movie.
I started by finding the materials for creating this piece. The polycarbonate tube was found in a machine shop scrap box, and the wooden dowels were sourced from a project depot. I cut the polycarbonate tubes into two and joined them into a quatrefoil shape to bring a gothic aesthetic. Further, I started creating the tesseract by breaking the wooden dowels into the required length and sticking them together.
Once I started sticking the diagonal sticks, I realized that it is too difficult to create the tesseract geometry. So I decided to create a more simpler pyramid geometry, and have the polycarbonate structure in the center.
As you might’ve already noticed, I am yet to plant anything in it. I am looking for a suitable plant so if anyone knows of any suitable indoor plants please let me know in the comments. I’ll be updating the post once I plant something in this.
References:
https://www.proflowers.com/blog/how-to-make-a-terrarium/
https://interstellarfilm.fandom.com/wiki/Tesseract
https://www.diypaint.com/inspiration/geometric-air-plant-holder
4 Comments. Leave new
Hi Anil, I really like the combination of the quatrefoil and the geometric design! I haven’t read too much of your other posts, were you attempting to go for a gothic-futurism style with the shape choices or did you have another aesthetic in mind? Do you plan on trying to re-visit your original tesseract idea at all? I also really like seeing your adaptability when your original plan didn’t seem fruitful! Have you tested the water-tightness of the polycarbonate pieces? In terms of plant suggestions, I am personally partial to air plants or succulents. You could also try to make a mini-terrarium (you would most likely have to close the top), which could further tie into your mentioned aesthetic without loosing the impact of the clear polycarbonate. I was also curious what movie you are referencing? Overall I really like the form and functionality combination that you achieved in this project and I can’t wait to see what plants you fill it with!
Hey Palmer, thanks for the comment. Initially I was planning to go for a minimalist-nature core aesthetic, which I believe can still be found in my work. The decided to do the quatrefoil shape just because I wanted that part to stand out, rather than have a generic tubular shape. I’d defenitely attempt to do the tesseract when I get time. The polycarbonate pieces isn’t completely water-tight which is why Ihad to drop my initial idea of a terrarium. The time-travel element I mentioned is from the movie Interstellar.
I really love your concept, thanks for sharing it with us! Creating a planter with a dialogue on the passage of time is really compelling, and even if it didn’t come out exactly how you thought it would I think you executed the concept. Have you tested the durability of the planter yet? I think that might be worth doing before committing to filling it with soil and water.
Aidan, thank you for the comment. I tried putting some weights in the polycarbonate part and it held up pretty well. I’m hoping it’ll be the same with soil.