I exhibited this work this year
Step 1: Ideas
I started by looking back on last year's work. Last year's work did not rank well, but it was possible to create a composition that could not be defeated by gravity because of the technique of combining small pieces of wood to make materials and hanging them .
Unique texture etc.
It was a work that made me feel the possibility that it might lead to new expressions . However, I was thinking about how to make it while proceeding with the production, so I couldn't get enough time to grow the aquatic plants.
There were many points that I wanted to redo because of the low maintenance production method, so I decided to proceed with this year's work as an updated version of last year's work. First of all, since it's an updated version from the design , I didn't change the impression much, I flipped last year's work left and right, changed the vanishing point from the lower right to the upper left, and thinned the thickness of the driftwood on the ceiling
I aimed for a lighter impression than last year, even though the ceiling is buried .
I wanted to start production as soon as possible, so I made a planting image.
I was making specific preparations.
I didn't feel comfortable with it, so I continued to review past works , trekking and sketching designs to get inspiration from nature. It's not good if I think about it by myself, so I asked Katsuki's adviser and club members to look at the designs during club activities every week. Among them, I was asked to pick up "This is interesting"
This inverted triangle composition. I felt that it would be a waste to let go of the work in progress, which has been suspended, but I felt the possibility of this inverted triangle form.
I decided to make the design more specific.
increase the number of motifs. Try to be conscious of the movement of the line of sight until the vanishing point. Like a tornado associated with an inverted triangle
Try replacing it with a natural phenomenon
Trying to make the ground look like a natural object like an eroded rocky mountain
In addition, the ground is slanted to emphasize the slanted composition
Flip left and right. Be conscious of perspective
This year's composition
I didn't care if it was technically reproducible or not, so the next issue was how to recreate it. Since there is no reference anywhere for the method, we will repeat trial and error again
Step 2: Materials
Step 3: Hardscape
The base is for water permeability and heightening
Bag of pumice stone and lava stone (I used the one I started making). We will install a hanging device there, but last year's
How to hang driftwood with square lumber. Since the height was adjusted by stacking squared timbers on both ends, Unstable and too difficult to adjust
In order to update this hanging method and improve maintainability, Using a lighting stand and using S-shaped hooks and chains
I found a way to hang. By changing to this method, the upper part of the tank becomes free and a space for maintenance can be secured.
By changing the place where the chain is hooked, the angle can be adjusted many times, so it is now possible to set the driftwood at the desired angle .
In order to reproduce the design, we will repeat the adjustment by combining the pieces of wood and hanging them. The point of this work is to align the angle of the line from the angle of the material to the flow of the wood grain .
A diagonal guide is pulled on the glass surface with a string and curing tape. The inverted triangle motif in the center of the design is created by combining small pieces of driftwood under a large piece of driftwood .
Use small wood screws to secure points where load is likely to be applied. Use a cable tie to prevent it from collapsing during the adjustment stage .
installed in water tank
Confirmation of proportions and angles. While repeating this, I got closer to the design image
It is quite effective to be able to adjust the fine angle at the position where the chain is hooked. Once the composition is decided
Remove the zip ties To accommodate layouts with depth
Vertically placed stand for hanging. Seen from the side
Seen from above
Almost no load is applied to this constricted part
Completion of the overall composition.
Step 4: Planting
I finished adding the soil, willow moss on driftwood, on a low floor
Mist management with new large pearl glass hair glass short trap. Up to this point, I think it is the same as general mist management, but this time I experimented with the follow-up mist . In the basic layout, I think that the humidity can be maintained sufficiently by just covering the mist with plastic wrap, but if there is a lot of material in the upper part of the tank like in this layout, the upper part will dry out easily , and even if you spray the mist in the morning, it will be late at night. By the time you get home, the upper part of the driftwood will be dry . In order to cope with this, a plastic cup was fixed to the edge of the water tank with a wire, and a mist generator was placed in it, and the mist was controlled by timer control .
Mist splashes upwards, so cover with a plastic cup. When the mist is activated ,
Humidification
The water in the plastic case will run out in about an hour, so set the timer accordingly. As a result, it is now possible to maintain a high level of air humidity throughout the day without the need to manage misting . Here, the vertical lighting stand for hanging the driftwood at the top of the tank fits perfectly with the installation of metal harassment. The upper part of the tank, which had been cluttered, became stable (Lucky!)
Confirmation of rooting of undergrowth and development of new leaves
I will pour water. Most of the moss was gone after the water was poured in. I tried the layout of the background with driftwood in a shape similar to the verification design.
I couldn't feel the continuity with the driftwood in the foreground, so I decided to make the background with a combination of small pieces.
Willow moss, which had taken root in places where the willow moss had been peeled off, was put on the driftwood while keeping the remaining willow moss alive.
With the growth of aquatic plants, the direction of how to create a background that is integrated with the driftwood and the willow moss that has taken root has become clear.
Anubias nana petit under the driftwood (image of mushrooms growing in the shadow of an old tree) Cryptocoryne petchy and Echinodorus tenellus planted on the side of the driftwood and Strogyne repens between the driftwood and the low floor. Planting Rotala Green, Rotala Rotondifolia Myriophyllum , Orange Myriophyllum, Myriophyllum Guyana Dwarf in the background
In parallel with growing aquatic plants, I continued to brush up the driftwood in the background to bring it closer to the impression of the design.
As for the fish, it was confirmed that the moss of the lava stone with moss placed on the driftwood was attached to the driftwood, and Microsorium Trident was planted in the gap.
The aquatic plants have also grown, and the driftwood in the background is getting closer to the impression of the design. It's time to shoot
Step 5: Final
I was able to secure the period for growing aquatic plants. Take a picture at the end
Complete!
Author Kazuma Takeuchi / Japan
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