The Project
‘Promote the book with 3 billboards displayed in HUBS (opt) Art direction of the room’
This brief was to promote, ‘The Art of War’ by Sun Tzu, by creating 3 billboards based on the book and to present to work in VR (using Mozilla Hubs and Spoke).
After having read ‘The Art of War’ by Sun Tzu, I found the book very inspiring and direct. The book is a very literal treatise on war, it gives the reader ancient techniques and advice on how to confront battles/challenges in life effectively. These tactical pieces of advice have been used in business and workplaces all over the world.
The most impacting quotes I found from the book were:
‘If you know your enemy and know yourself, you need not fear the result of a hundred battles’
’The supreme art of war is to subdue the enemy without fighting’
’Appear weak when you are strong. Appear strong when you are weak’
Thought Process
Considering the theme and the chosen quotes, I decided to create the three story boards in the style of a story. The billboards have a narrative which begins from the right-hand side to the left. The inspiration behind having the boards viewed from right to left was after reading that traditionally Chinese text was read from top to bottom, right-to-left. Therefore, I thought it best to have the viewer embrace a similar approach in the exhibition.
Creating the Billboards
As the viewer enters the VR world, they are confronted by the three billboards surrounding them.
1 Before fighting
2 During fighting
3 After fighting
The billboard on the right ’The supreme art of war is to subdue the enemy without fighting’ shows a woman meditating at the centre of the text and surrounded by red petals which represent peace and harmony. This visual represents tranquillity before fighting.
The second middle visual ‘Appear weak when you are strong. Appear strong when you are weak’ shows two warriors preparing for battle on either side of the text with darker leaves surrounding them (symbolising tension before the battle).
The third visual on the left with ‘If you know your enemy and know yourself, you need not fear the result of a hundred battles’ highlights the words ‘enemy’ and ‘yourself’ underlines how to win a battle with knowledge.
The reason behind creating this sequence of billboards was after reading the narrative style Sun Tzu used in the book. This concept for me couldn’t be dismissed, and therefore the visuals had to have a flowing concept. The colours, font and backgrounds are matching to further display the importance of each element of battle – before, during and after fighting.
Furthermore, the text had to remain the main focus of the visuals so the background needed to be relatively simple and not too chaotic. The overall aesthetics of the pieces looked well connected and showed narrative sequence as intended.
Mozilla Hubs Presentation in VR
Inspiration and Practical Work
When looking at other VR world styles online, I realised I wanted to create a Chinese theme to the whole exhibition and make It out-doors rather than in a building. After researching further into the Chinese theme, colour scheme, style, objects etc… I experimented with my ideas on website Spoke (by Mozilla Hubs).
By exploring first hand on Spoke, I was able to create and develop my idea in 3D which was very exciting! I imported 3D objects such as mountains and trees, created stairs to lead up to the banners, positioned the billboards to surround the audience, changed the lighting over the exhibition and much more!
In the end, I didn’t want to over complicate the composition, so I left the scenery simplified in order to bring the main focus on the billboards.
After creating the scene on Spoke and importing the file into Mozilla Hubs, I show-cased my work to the students and lecturers on my Design Marketing Course. The feedback I received was very positive, and they had an enjoyable experience being immersed in the Chinese VR environment.
Reflection Overall this project has been very eye-opening and enjoyable. Before this brief, I had never created anything with VR, so having this useful tool will be very beneficial in the future.
KatiesBlog 