Artificial Forest

PROJECT OVERVIEW

This project includes spatial research on a small section of the Durham Division of the Duke Forest that includes but is not limited to The Shepherd Trail and Oxford Road, and a 72″x40″ paper print highlighting a hierarchy of power that dominates the Duke Forest.

CONCEPT & INSPIRATION

This forest is unlike any other I have visited; it exudes a sense of authority from the moment you enter. Signs scattered throughout the forest constantly remind visitors that Duke University, the forest’s owner, has designated it primarily for research, restricting the freedom typically enjoyed in other, more ‘natural’ forests. Silvicultural signs further emphasize that much of this seemingly ‘natural’ environment is, in fact, the result of human intervention. Thus, I perceived a top-down hierarchy of authority, which I aimed to highlight in my paper print.

OBJECTIVES

• To emphasize a top-down hierarchy of authority observed in the Duke Forest through Illustrator designs.

PROCESS & METHODOLOGY

Site Research

Raw images documented during site research can be found HERE.

Photoshop

The backgrounds of selected raw images were converted to black and white to emphasize the presence of signs and humans in the forest, while the human-made signs were removed to depict a natural forest, creating a contrast with the artificial one.

Illustrator Design

To emphasize the top-down hierarchy of power, the font size is largest for the party at the top and decreases as the hierarchy descends, with repeated use of downward-pointing arrows.

OUTCOMES