A Work In Progress Project

IN SPECULO MARIS

In the Mirror of the Sea

Overview

This project is a critique of architecture as image, through the lens of cinema. Viewing both architecture and image making as an art of carefully framed illusions, the project explores the creation of utopian visions, how dreams are sold, and interrogates the hidden structures and narratives that cause them to collapse.

It asks the question, “What happens when we believe an image over the reality?”

A Film Within a Film…

The project is framed as a film within a film, following the journey of a visionary director in his attempt to create his version of Atlantis; a fictional utopian city, made entirely for the screen.

His vision for the city shows a dazzling collage of beautiful architecture on the surface, but also deliberately shows the dark, hidden underworld beneath the city – a reflection of society’s inclination towards hubris, negativity and corruption. The intention is that to truly show off a utopia, one must also show the hidden structures that prop it up – including the green screen soundstages and pre-production model making.