Architectural Concept Trailer
Gaia: TheFloating Bio-Mechanical Recycler
This in an ongoing investigation into organic architecture of the literal kind. It's a plant, animal, and a machine, although how that all breaks down is anybody's guess at the moment, and the purpose of this little foray. Guiding the process is far from straightforward, however, as I did not know that ChatGTP was environmentally conscious.
Original Drawing
Pencil and marker on paper
approx. 18"x24"
A digital painting (right) was created from the drawing above, and with that image, I used the following prompt:
"Retain color, composition, tone, lighting, and design exactly as is, and re-render to make image coherent. Add background structures referenced in attached images."
The next step was to peel away the surface and see what it looked like inside. I was curious what response I'd get with a simple prompt, "Create a cross-section through the factory."
I don't know what all that stuff is but it looks pretty cool. Ultimately though, an unsatisfactory solution because of the very inorganic linear floor structure.
For the next generation I specified that it was a living organism with a series of rooms formed in its branches (right). I loved the dense organic structure, but it wasn't coherent or useful.
I've found that AI is generally good at making things pretty-- filling in the gaps-- especially if you don't look too closely, but you usually have to replace it. A tell-tale sign of 'slop' is fuzzy and ill-defined content.
Thinking it would be easier to work with just the structural framework and add the rest in Photoshop, I attempted to produce just the structure without all the greenery. Little did I realize how difficult it would be. Not even "reproduce exactly without the green leaves" worked. I went through many iterations, failing to produce anything remotely remotely close to what I was looking for.
I made a mask (left) from an earlier render by erasing everything but the structure, then had Chat render it again. I use a variation of the prompt "Reproduce exact image, and unify stylistically" to clean it up and pull it together.
From there it was all Photoshop. I collaged in bits and pieces from previous renders, did some paint-over then edited the text and added that for the final print.
