Elements

We wanted to explore the beauty of nature that our planet earth has to offer.

The 4 western elements were very close to our culture and understanding. But when compared to what Asia has to offer in term of basic elements, we found Asian elements a bit more real, palpable and material.
So we settled for the Asian Elements to give a path to follow.

Then, the next part of the process was to ask ourselves “How do we represent those Elements?”.

We could have gone 2 ways. We could have looked at the meaning of each element in the Asian or mainly the Chinese culture. We were worried that we, as westerner, would not grasp the full meaning of the elements according to the rich Chinese culture and Lifestyle.

So, we decided to represent them in a more physical manner, less in meaning and more in the look. We striped each elements down to their title and associate them back to what we think when we name them.

For Fire, we started with reds and yellows. Fire to us is strong, serious with a bit of fear and respect, something that is strict.

For Water, we wanted to go with the smoothness of the liquid. It can be cold and not seizable as it flows around your fingers when you try to hold on to it.

For Earth, we wanted to illustrate the calm and serenity of a field of flower in a sunny afternoon. The soft rays of sun warming up the grass and the flower popping out of it.

For Wood, we went back to the forest. We looked at the raw material. Its colors is something so specific that we wanted to picture this in the creation of the makeup and background.

And for Metal, we went with the edginess of the material. We used the dark colors of forge iron with accent of the more precious gold and silver. We wanted something edgy, strong, aggressive and bold.

So these are the five Elements of nature that inspired the work.