# Flowers at the Edge

> My latest artworks, process, and impacts of creative community

**Published by:** [earthbits](https://paragraph.com/@earthbits/)
**Published on:** 2024-07-12
**Categories:** nft, art, nature
**URL:** https://paragraph.com/@earthbits/flowers-at-the-edge

## Content

This summer, I lived in Edge City - a 'society incubator' bringing people together at the forefront of technology, science, and culture to accelerate human progress. I created a series of artworks inspired by my time there and the community:https://app.manifold.xyz:443Edge Esmeralda FloraThese works are a recollection of the environment and community at Edge City / Esmeralda. Each piece is derived from a 3D scan of an Esmeralda-based flower, includes live footage of the plant, time of capture, and species.You can collect this piece as a free, open edition NFT – available until the next season of Edge City. You will receive one of three flowers based on a set of probabilities. 🌻 What I've loved about creating with nature is that a big part of my creative process involves being outside – in necessary contrast to computer time. It's a practice of presence, remembrance of what I value, reliance on the environment, and beauty. Through repeating this process, I've become sensitive to my surroundings.Some of my 2023 explorations: lessons from an empty gardenIn this article, I'll take you through my creative process and how I created this series. Let's get started!(1) Collecting Specimens 🔎 The first step in my process involves spending time in nature and capturing what catches my eye. Plant numero uno in this series, Vitis Vinifera (2% chance of getting it if you mint!), came from owners of a local venue. They went above and beyond giving us access to their space, so I wanted to capture some of their property for them as a memento. Other flora came from local farmers' markets and from walks around town.Favorite tools - Picture this: plant identifier app - Merlin: birding app Favorite discoveries - Observing slug movement using timelapse - Recognizing repeat flowers across locations - Learning about hummingbird dive bombing(2) 3D Scans 🤳🏼 Next comes scanning which uses a process of photogrammetry to stitch together ~200 images to create a 3D model. I taught a workshop at Edge on the process! Check it out here. Teaching others in turn inspired me to do more scanning for this project 😄Favorite tools - Polycam - Kiri Engine (3) 3D Manipulation 🧊At this stage, you'll now have a bada$$ 3D model of a beautiful, intricate plant - much wow. For this series, I played with a variety of programs that can handle 3D files and explored different aesthetics that resonated. Favorite tools - Cinema4D - Touchdesigner (4) Telling the story ✨I've been thinking about how to tell the story of the work as part of the work. Not all work is suited to this – but there is something that feels particularly relevant here. As we move further and further away from our hunter-gatherer lives, there is a deep need to recall our connectedness to nature and stillness; it serves as a counterbalance to our zippy, technologic lives. I hope to evoke:a connection to naturethe wonder found in presence, and the uniqueness that can be found in any momentbeautyIn this series, I experimented with bringing in timestamps, narrative text, music, and actual photos/video of the plant. It's an exploration I'll continue. Favorite tools - AfterEffects - iPhone cam - Suno.aiFinI found myself deeply inspired by my time in Edge City. The following moments in particular inspired this series:The Monaverse hackathon and teaching a workshop on photogrammetryLearning about 3D sculpting, XR, and life on MarsVanessa's talk on world building – I was particularly moved by music's impact on character narrativeThe city itself: for its beautiful Californian floraI'm looking forward to continuing explorations around narrative, remembrance, and participation via my works, at the next Edge, and beyond.🔔 Subscribe below to receive occasional musings from me, and collect a free flower here🌻https://app.manifold.xyz:443Edge Esmeralda FloraThese works are a recollection of the environment and community at Edge City / Esmeralda. Each piece is derived from a 3D scan of an Esmeralda-based flower, includes live footage of the plant, time of capture, and species.

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