About The Project:
Meridian started off as a collaborative body of work shared between me and my partner, Joshua. This project was intended as an experiment in speculative storytelling, and therefore cover a variety of creative disciplines including model-making, industrial design, branding, UX/UI etc.
The fictional premise is used to reflect our views on several much-debated affairs happening today, such as: the future of transport, virtual reality, socio-economic implications of globalisation/ gentrification etc.
The Premise:
In the near future, climate change and socio-economic bureaucracy have taken toll on the wellbeing of most of Earth's populations. This gave rise to Stratum Global, a powerful corporation that saw the construction of multiple super-skyscrapers where only the rich and powerful reside. These mega-structures are the size of entire cities, and are located in all of the major cities of the world.
To connect these 'cityscrapers', a global train service known as the Meridian was built to connect the entire network as one. Travelling at hypersonic speed and across multiple terrains, these trains meant that experiences such as grabbing a meal in another country or even continent have become the norm.
Part 1 focuses more on our multidisciplinary approaches to visualising the environments in which Meridian exists.
Part 2 explores the visual identity as well as digital platforms of the Meridian, as brand. (Coming soon)
(C) 2016-17 Louisa Luk & Joshua Smith. All rights reserved.
After spending a day exploring and photographing London's more industrial parts, we used a mixture of composite imagery and drawing to create the first concept art: Stratum Global's gargantuan cityscrapers standing tall against
a dusty skyline. The Meridian's tracks are subtly visible amongst the lower-ground buildings, as they extend into the distance in two directions.
a dusty skyline. The Meridian's tracks are subtly visible amongst the lower-ground buildings, as they extend into the distance in two directions.
The second part involved two 3D models: one of them again depicts the Meridian tracks running amongst an urban landscape, while the other one is of a world map depicting how the train service intricately joins each and every one of Stratum's cityscrapers into one global network. We then took atmospheric photos of these models using a light-box and projector for effect.
Last but not least, the overall train route was visualised as a proper transport map: since the train service runs through every major city in a constant loop, there really isn't a true start and end to any of the lines. Hence, instead of a linear form, we've adopted a circular form for the map.
Concept art by Joshua Smith; Model-making and studio photography by Joshua Smith and Louisa Luk; map design by Louisa Luk.
Above is an abridged preview of how the Meridian is then explored as a brand and as a digital platform. Moving away from physical visualisations, it is also important to focus on how it connects and interacts with passengers, shown through its visual identity as well as user experience (maps, onboard services and experiences etc.). This will be explored in much more detail
in Part 2 (coming soon).
in Part 2 (coming soon).
