We are excited to present to you our first various artists compilation. Contours is a series dedicated to the versatile and obscure palettes of 140 based music and left field bass. For this first edition, we have the pleasure of working with musicians Pharma, SMYAH, MOSHINO, Sentient, Nightlife and Kyoshe. The stunning visuals are done by Micronavt studio by exploring organic material under a microscope.
Micronavt: The visual side of science has always attracted our attention. There are many discoveries that help us explore the universe in different scales or in certain parts of the light spectrum. With microscopes, we find many beautiful views that look chaotic or structured, organic and at the same time generated. We turn them into visuals with different light settings and microscopy techniques. We experiment until we find the interesting combinations of samples and light setups.
In this project we were looking for vivid colours, dense textures, and different shapes in order to reflect the different music atmospheres. There is a visual style for each track and the images represent the track’s composition development. Some of the elements represent organic structures mixed with synthetic element just like the fusion of different samples in the music.
Can you share a bit more about the techniques which you used to create the visuals on this collaboration?
Micronavt: For this collaboration, we tested several sweet substances that turned out to create very different structures. Literally eye candy. The samples were prepared by dissolving sugar, honey or sweetener with water or ethanol on a glass slide and left to grow crystals. Then observed with a 10x magnification objective on the microscope in cross polarized light. This technique shows the birefringence of refractive materials in this colourful way, so the photographs have not been digitally manipulated and this is actually what we saw in the eyepiece.
Has looking through the microscope for such long periods of time changed the way you view life?
Micronavt: Looking at these graphic views and realizing that the actual size of the structures is so microscopic is mind blowing! We see some similar patterns in bigger scale or in life forms and behaviours. This makes us look at nature and many aspects of life in a new way. All of this is really inspiring, and we want to explore it further out of curiosity. This feedback loop adds more topics and layers and expands our perception of the universe and we would like to share this experience because it is both beautiful and adds fuel the imagination.
