I chose to explore the nature freak archetype. I wanted to create a series of characters in my visuals that seem to be both out of place and obsessed with nature. I liked the idea of the nude figure in the environment of nature, as it is a pure form of the nature lover. And in accordance with some standards it also seems to be out of place or strange.
The first character I first thought of when I explored the idea of the nature freak is Princess Nausicaa from The film Valley of the Wind (1984). In the film, she is isolated from her community because she is the only one who can see the beauty of the poisonous plants surrounding her village and she is the only one to treat them with respect and make an effort to understand them. Throughout the film we see that her traits as an earth lover come to benefit everyone in the town, and eventually even saves humanity from its destruction. The film isn’t incredibly recent, and given the themes that it explores, her character as the heroine and a nature love is very progressive.
1.http://staticmass.net/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/naus_3.jpg
The second character I would like to analyze and draw inspiration from to create my visuals is Yuma from the comic series Saga by Fiona Staples. Yuma is a character who is well in touch with the environment and nature (or gives the illusion to be) and uses it to her advantage. She uses her connection as a way to manipulate people into getting what she wants. It is fair to say that her character is a reflection of many modern artists and “nature lovers”.
2.http://vignette3.wikia.nocookie.net/imagecomics/images/d/d1/Yuma_Saga_001.jpg/revision/latest?cb=20150328210833
This is a visual of a character I created. I wanted to create the typical scene of a character in it’s natural environment. I decided to make the figure nude as to show how sensitive the human form is when involved in a natural environment. When someone looks at the figure in this piece, I want them to question their personal relationship to nature as well as the subject’s.
In this visual, I wanted to create a similar effect. However in this piece I decided to have the figure directly interact with the environment. I decided to work on cardboard as well because I thought it implied a more natural theme than the stark white of regular paper. I wanted this character as well as the others I created to be innocent in some form, so I decided to have the figure to be situated in an exciting pose to draw attention to the environment it was in.
In this piece, the figure and its environment is meant to be more abstract. I also wanted it to be more cartoony. Instead of asking the viewer to place themselves as the character, I wanted to make the viewer see the work s a more removed abstract piece. So I chose to make the figure of the character strange as well as the proportions and colors.
This piece I also wanted to be more abstract. I also wanted to push the borders of the piece to make it seem more animated. I wanted this piece to be particularly playful and cheerful, so that the viewer got the impression of what the character itself is feeling with its involvement in it’s natural environment.
In my next piece I wanted the character to be more of a freak of nature. So I decided to mix human and animalistic traits to make a satirical human like bird. I also put it in a strange environment (a coffee shop) to make the audience questions what the boundaries are between nature and human civilization.
In my final piece I decided to twist the nature freak into someone sort of lovesick, to reflect an archetype of myself. I feel that I am a nature freak myself so I decided to make a collage featuring an archetype of myself, or who I want to be. I wanted to use collaged images of other people to make it more abstract, but I still feel that it is intimate in its setting and place.
