continuing her botanical studies using transparent plant specimens arranged in underwater landscapes, artist luna ikuta extends her‘afterlife’film series, this time working with belladonna lilies and gerbera daisies. dubbed‘afterlife: belladonna’, the new project merges the worlds of land and sea, transforming the flowers into anemone-like forms mystically swaying in dark waters.
full view of belladonna
all images courtesy of luna ikuta
stripping away their hue and chlorophyll, luna ikuta has made the plants transparent, creating a surreal, enigmatic presentation. grown in los angeles, the belladonna lily is a bulbous perennial featuring large clusters of up to 4-12 scented, trumpet-shaped, pink flowers, that grows naturally during summer. here, both the lily and daisy take a new form, appearing like alien life resting upon a rock arrangement of obsidian stones.
detail of gerbera daisy
the textural details and gossamer-thin vascular networks are visible in three-dimension, beautifully preserved and visible to the naked eye. the artist successfully suspends our disbelief in thinking these may be computer-generated, however, the details reveal non-replicable intricacies of floral anatomy that are lively as they are in their natural form. luna ikuta’s work opens a new way of plant preservation and floral art, and disrupts traditional practices of aquascaping.
oxygen beads on belladonna lily
belladonna lily
detail of belladonna lily
gerbera daisy
gerbera daisy
close up of belladonna landscape
belladonna lily and betta
gerbera daisy and betta
belladonna lily and betta
gerbera daisy and betta
project info:
name: afterlife: belladonna
artist: luna ikuta
designboom has received this project from our‘DIY submissions‘feature, where we welcome our readers to submit their own work for publication. see more project submissions from our readers here.
edited by: myrto katsikopoulou | designboom
