TERRA
In August 2024, Outernet London, the most visited cultural attraction in the United Kingdom, presents Maggie West’s three part exhibition throughout The Now Building, Now Trending, and Now Arcade. Terra, West’s debut short film and the first part of her three part series, is exhibited in Outernet’s The Now Building.
Terra takes you on a journey through a single night across our planet’s many diverse climate and promises an immersive journey through three distinct natural landscapes. From rocky desert terrain, to lush depths of a tropical rainforest, to a flowering meadow, these surreal digital landscapes celebrate Earth’s extraordinary biodiversity. Each scene unfolds under the soft glow of moonlight, offering a hauntingly beautiful portrayal of the nocturnal world.
West created the unique video environments shown in The Now Building by using time lapse photography to capture real, individual plants as they bloomed underneath multi-colored lighting. She then combined this footage with astrophotography of the stars and moon to create mesmerizing, moving digital collages.
The exhibit features custom sound design by Los Angeles based composer Matt Nordstrom, who created a unique, dreamlike soundscape peppered with field recordings of birds and insect sounds to mirror West’s visual explorations of temporal shifts, and plays a pivotal role in enhancing the immersive nature of the exhibit.
SCENE 1 : DESERT
West meticulously crafted the unique video environments displayed in The Now Building by employing time-lapse photography to capture the delicate blooming of real, individual plants, including cacti, under vibrant, multi-colored lighting. The cacti, known for their rare and brief flowering periods, add a sense of fleeting beauty and resilience to the scenes.
To further enrich these environments, the artist incorporated astrophotography of the moon and mesmerizing star trails, creating captivating digital collages that seamlessly blend the earthly with the celestial. This combination of botanical and cosmic imagery invites viewers to experience a dreamlike journey through shifting temporal landscapes.
SCENE 2 : TROPICAL
Inspired by the tropical rainforests, the opening scene in Terra takes visitors through a lush, abundant world of tropical plants, exotic flowers. Visitors will see familiar house plants like monstera, begonia and pothos in their native jungle habitat.
Throughout the exhibit, audiences stand under blooming orchids and swaying calathea leaves. immersing the viewers in a lush, tropical atmosphere.
SCENE 3 : MEADOW
In Terra’s final scene, viewers are transported from the rainforest to a moonlit meadow. Outernet guests stand underneath a field of blooming daisies, dandelions and other flowers commonly found in parks and fields.
The gentle sway of the blossoms, illuminated by soft lunar light, creates an enchanting atmosphere that feels both tranquil and surreal. This moment allows viewers to pause and immerse themselves in the quiet beauty of nature, as the delicate interplay of light and motion transforms the meadow into a dreamlike haven.
ENGAGING THE PUBLIC
Maggie West’s exhibition at Outernet London offers viewers an unforgettable and immersive experience that fuses art and technology in a way that captivates and delights. Audiences are not just passive observers; they are fully engaged in the vivid journey through diverse natural landscapes, often reaching out to interact with the mesmerizing digital environments around them. From the blooming cacti in a rocky desert to the lush depths of a tropical rainforest, and finally to the tranquil beauty of a moonlit meadow, each scene evokes a deep connection with Earth's extraordinary biodiversity. The exhibit invites visitors to pause, reflect, and lose themselves in the dreamlike interplay of light, nature, and cosmic wonder, making it a truly memorable and interactive experience for all who visit.
