CB
    HomeProjectsAboutContact
  • Home
  • Projects
  • About
  • Contact

Sea the stars

14
concept & art direction01process & techniques02
14

Concept & Art Direction

Two worlds. One single image. The visual is almost absurd at first glance: an astronaut underwater. And yet, something about it feels strangely natural. The title, "Sea the Stars", bridges the gap between the two universes while playing on the double meaning — seeing and sea, stars above and stars reflected below. No heavy message, no moral to extract. Just a collision between two spaces that should never meet, and the quiet feeling that maybe they're not so different after all. The image spoke for itself from the moment I found it. My role was mostly to orchestrate that encounter, to make sure the astronaut remained the anchor point — almost surreal, standing perfectly still in an environment that should be impossible for them, while everything around feels alive and shifting. There was no specific inspiration at the start, no mood board or reference. Just a strong image and the desire to build a bridge between two worlds that never meet, and to let that contradiction breathe without over-explaining it.

Process & Techniques

In Photoshop, I used noise, crystallize and posterize to add texture and depth, working to make the underwater environment feel dense and layered without losing the clarity of the central figure. I then adjusted brightness/contrast and curves specifically to bring out the white glow of the astronaut's suit — that brightness needed to feel almost unnatural, like a light source in itself, to reinforce the sense of displacement. The main challenge was layering the textures without making the image feel overworked. Every addition had to serve the visual without pulling attention away from the central tension. The same careful thinking applied to the placement of the stars, which needed to feel both at home in the aquatic setting and like a deliberate reminder of the universe beyond — a quiet signature that ties both worlds together.