The Wild Within - Sanctuary

'Sanctuary' is a digital artwork that conveys a compelling narrative about the cycle of time, the resurgence of nature, and the socio-historical nuances of architectural landscapes. This 1/1 piece is a collision of the past and future, as well as the physical and digital worlds. Part of the chapter 'Symphony' from the collection 'The Wild Within', 'Sanctuary' brings an abandoned historic building back to life by combining photography and animation to create a surreal, meditative, moving architectural space. The artwork aims to revive this vacant space, essentially bringing life back into the building. Ryan Koopmans and his partner Alice Wexell traveled around the world exploring and photographing forsaken buildings and unique architectural sites. They were drawn to these locations based on their historical, cultural, and architectural qualities. Locations include ancient temples in the mountains of Armenia, abandoned villas in Lebanon and Italy, sanatoriums in Georgia, ruined villas in the Middle East and beyond. Once the architecture is photographed, the images are modelled into virtual environments, and overgrown plant-life is added digitally. Lighting and structure are then modified, an original musical composition by Swedish composer Karl-David Larson is created, and the static picture is transformed into a moving image that loops seamlessly. ‘Sanctuary’ finds its artistic expression against the backdrop of an abandoned health spa in the outskirts of the country Georgia. Upon collapse of the USSR in the early 1990s, sanatoriums and other similar buildings fell into disrepair. The historic architecture serves as a perfect canvas for the artists to unleash their creativity, resulting in a meditative artwork that brings new life to this timeless setting. In real life, this building continues to deteriorate and is being slowly disassembled, further emphasizing the primary theme of the work, the passing of time in a cycle of growth and decay. Through these artworks, the artists aim to transport the viewer into an alternate place and time. This fusing of documentary-style photography with the imaginative potential of animation techniques results in a captivating looping digital artwork. Apart from the tradable NFT, 'Sanctuary' offers an additional immersive experience developed with Wildxyz.