Outernet x Maggie West
Inspired by Nature & Light
Los Angeles based artist Maggie West celebrates nature’s chromatic range through blending each specimen she shoots with her signature colored lighting. Through her lens, she creates images that capture the natural features of plants while bathing them in a surreal light; thereby blurring the line between documentation and fantasy.
Her natural sense of curiosity extends beyond the natural world, and is mirrored in her interest in new artistic mediums. She has done a wide variety of large projects, including installations for Google, Netflix and Universal. Recently, West created one of the world’s largest color photography installations for Coachella.
During the pandemic, West began to experiment with time lapse photography and seek out innovative techniques.
In order to impart her signature colored lighting onto this new medium, West had to create custom setups in her studio that included both studio strobes and grow lights. Though time lapse photography is a well established medium, West’s work brought new life to time lapse photography by utilizing strobe lighting and RAW images, allowing her to create high resolution sequences with vivid coloration.
The result is footage that transports the viewer into a surreal, dreamlike landscape, while simultaneously providing a closer look at the natural details and growth cycles of each plant.
Plants from contrasting seasons and climates coexist within the realm of these surreal compositions. West’s juxtaposition of varying plant life further pushes her work away from reality, and into the artist’s own fantasy vision of the world. While the plants in the work are real, the final piece is a creation entirely her own.
Innovations in Time Lapse
While time lapse traditionally focuses on displaying nature in its truest form, West turns this process on its head by infusing her signature colored lighting into the footage, transforming what would otherwise be pure documentation into an exercise in imagination. The result is footage that transports the viewer into a surreal, dreamlike landscape, while simultaneously providing a closer look at the natural details and growth cycles of each plant.
West’s time lapse work honors some conventions of the practice while pushing some of its boundaries. The use of strobes and colored gels in time lapse photography is something that is rarely seen, and provides a fresh, unique take to this established medium.
Surreal Digital Landscapes
As West explored her passion for her time lapse photography, the artist became intrigued by the possibilities of combining her individual sequences into more complex landscapes. By masking out each video sequence, West could layer the time lapse footage on top of one another to create garden scenes.
Plants from contrasting seasons and climates coexist within the realm of these surreal compositions. West’s contradictions further push her work away from reality, and into the artist’s own fantasy vision of the world. While the plants in the work are real, the final piece is a creation entirely her own.
Maggie West x Outernet
In her most ambitious digital showcase yet, Maggie West is poised to captivate audiences this summer with an multi-room immersive installation at Outernet. The exhibit will take place across Outernet’s three major exhibition sites—Now Building, Now Arcade, and Now Trending— and will fully immerse viewers in the artist’s colorful, surreal visions of the natural world.
The exhibition begins in the Now Building, with Terra - an exhibition that takes visitors on a journey through one night on Earth in a variety of natural landscapes. Through intricate composites of time lapse footage, the audience will see travel through deserts, rainforests and meadows as they bloom and grow before their eyes.
In Now Trending, guests will travel through Elements, an exhibition that explores the intricate beauty and organic textures of snow, sand, earth and sea water. Through macro photography, this exhibition invites viewers to marvel at the unseen intricacies and sublime beauty of the world around us through bold, abstract compositions.
Lastly, in Now Arcade, guests will delve into Ultraviolet, a groundbreaking exhibition in which West pushes the boundaries of time lapse photography with mesmerizing ultraviolet techniques, offering a surreal glimpse into botanical vascular systems.
The Now Building / Terra
In her most ambitious animation project to date, Terra, West will take visitors on a journey through a series of ethereal landscapes. From the arid expanse of a desert to the lush depths of a tropical rainforest, Terra invites viewers to embark on a mesmerizing exploration of the natural diversity of our planet. Under the soft glow of moonlight, audiences will watch as leaves sway, flowers bloom and insects fly between each natural wonder.
Sound design will play a pivotal role in the exhibit, combining minimal ambient tones with nature sounds to enhance the ethereal environment created by the visuals. From the gentle rustle of leaves in the wind to the distant calls of nocturnal creatures, Terra’s soundscapes will envelop viewers, creating an otherworldly atmosphere that captivates the senses and fosters a deeper connection with the natural world.
Desert
Through her colorful footage of cacti, succulents and other desert plants, West will take visitors out of the jungle into the rocky, arid landscapes of the desert. Throughout the journey, viewers will explore the terrain alongside lizards and scorpions and other insects.
As we move through this bold, jagged environment, each plant will start to boom and grow; showing that even the most barren landscape is teaming with life. Even the tough, rigid surface of the cacti will start to feel warm and inviting as guests watch them blossom under West’s kaleidoscopic lights
Rainforest
Inspired by the tropical rainforests, the second scene in Terra takes visitors through a lush, abundant world of tropical plants, exotic flowers and amazonian butterflies. In this scene, visitors will see familiar house plants like monstera, begonia and pothos in their native jungle habitat.
Audiences will fly alongside butterflies, past blooming orchids and swirling clouds of plumeria while they are immersed in this a lush, tropical atmosphere.
Meadow
In the third scene in Terra, visitors are gently transported from the desert and the rainforest into the serene beauty of a sun-drenched meadow. Here, amidst a sea of swaying grasses and wildflowers, visitors are bathed in a warm color palette and abundant compositions.
The meadow scene unfolds in a symphony of colors and textures; with flowers like daisies, foxglove, and cosmos growing and blooming underneath a spectrum of colored lights.
Now Trending - Elements
In Elements, West takes guests on an extraordinary journey into the world of organic material. Through colorful macro photography, West delves deep into the textures and shifts of elemental forces, showcasing the intricate beauty found within ice, sand, earth, and beyond. Each time lapse sequence serves as a window into the mesmerizing dance of these materials, revealing abstract compositions within each elemental transition.
Unlike the meticulously designed landscapes of Now Building's Terra show, Elements embraces the spontaneous and unpredictable nature of the natural world. Through her vibrant lighting and minimal compositions, West showcases the beauty of the experimental patterns that emerge organically from the earth. From the glistening texture of melting snow to the swirling textures of shifting sand, each photograph offers a glimpse into the hidden complexities of the natural world.
Through West's lens, even the most mundane elements become sources of wonder and inspiration. With each video, viewers are invited to contemplate the beauty and diversity of the world around them, and look at familiar elements (like sand) in a whole new light. Elements is a celebration of the natural world in all its breathtaking splendor.
Now Arcade - Ultraviolet
The dark ambiance of Outernet's Now Arcade provides the perfect backdrop for West's Ultraviolet exhibit, allowing visitors to fully immerse themselves in the intricate details of each composition.
In this dimly lit environment, the vibrant colors and textures captured by West's ultraviolet photography come to life, offering viewers a unique and mesmerizing experience. Using ultraviolet light and fluorescent ink, she illuminates the intricate pathways through which plants absorb water, creating surreal and dreamlike compositions that blur the boundaries between reality and imagination.
Sound design plays a crucial role in enhancing the immersive nature of the Ultraviolet exhibit. Through carefully curated audio elements, visitors are enveloped in a multisensory journey that deepens their connection to the artwork.
Ultraviolet invites visitors to contemplate the hidden wonders of the natural world and the intricate processes that sustain life. Through West's creative vision and innovative techniques, viewers are transported to a realm where science meets art, leaving them with a newfound appreciation for the beauty and complexity of the world around them.
