Volume II: Dystopian

Sketchbook Saga - Volume II: Dystopian

Dystopian art captures the essence of societies characterized by the remnants of a broken world. It is rooted in literature and cinema, often focusing on themes of technological collapse, environmental destruction, or authoritarian control. The art style portrays a simple yet striking vision of the future, utilizing harsh contrasts, desolate landscapes, and fragmented architecture to evoke feelings of isolation and unease.

Many times, a dystopia doesn't mean that the world is orderless. But instead, it means that the world has fallen under a single order or structure. Say the world has been nearly depleted of its resources so consequently, the people relocate to a central area where they can use the remaining resources in the most efficient way. 

Sometimes a dystopia is a world of chaos, but other times it has a concise order. Many times, in a concise ordered dystopia, the story will magnetize towards a group of people who are fated to fight against the order. This is the draw to dystopian fables; neither side is necessarily in the right: the order may be good for the future of society, but it may also hurt the current society. This is also why in most dystopian literature there is a divide of some sort. 

Day One:

I wasn't exactly sure where to start so I asked ChatGPT to generate an image of a dystopian world. The AI provided me with a very distant image without many layers to it, so I rewrote the prompt, insuring I had a more focused image with a subject in it. 

The AI gave me the image below and I made a sketch gathering the basic structures but mostly trying to focus on the perspective. The new image consisted of a dark and desolate background--as one would expect--with a mysterious, hooded character that I decided to reuse in future drawings throughout the week. 

Day Two:

Day Two was some more practice on perspective. I wanted to practice two-point perspective while still having a little bit of depth to the image. To add this depth, I attached a large moon rise, along with two other planets in the background. 

Day Three:

Day three I used an idea that a I saw on YouTube of a man looking of into a cityscape. I created my own version of the idea, while implementing the generated character into the drawing. Rather than creating a nearer point, I acted as if the vanishing-point was so far out that the lines would look parallel. 

Day Four:

The drawing for day four is definitely my favorite. I think it ties together the feeling of a dystopian world really well. There are barren, swamp like trees, with a decaying mickey mouse head, alongside a dirty stream. But in the distance, there is an opening in a very tall wall. There is nothing there, representing the unknown, but also the chance for a new future. The idea behind it is that there is a civilization on the other side of the wall--good or bad--you decide.

Day Five - Conclusion:

Day five isn't the most abstract piece, but it is interesting. It conveys some mystery but also a sense of humanity behind the character. The fact that he is able to tame a large dog in the arctic, tells us that he is not just a shadowy figure. 

In all, I have enjoyed creating dystopian pieces. The week went by really fast; by Friday, I hadn't even realized that I created five drawings. I think during the process I was able to push my creative limits and enhance my skills on perspective. In all, I really enjoyed the week, and I am truly looking forward to the next.