AR Bonsai
Mixed Reality Mobile Application
2023.01-04
Role
Creative Direction; UX&UI Design; AR Develop; Film; 3D Render; Motion Graphic
Software
The art form of is seen as a symbol of harmony, balance, and peace. This project combine the traditional art with AR, providing a more immersive and easy-access experience in order to reduce stress and anxiety, connect people to the natural world, showcase different cultures and history.
Bonsai is the Japanese art of growing miniature trees and carefully styled to achieve an aesthetic effect in the pots, developed from the traditional Chinese art form of “Penjing”.
Result
Design Process
Challenges
- Busy and stressful lifestyles: Modern lifestyles can be fast-paced and stressful, leaving little time for relaxation and self-care.
- Limited access to nature: Not everyone has access to natural spaces like gardens and parks, which can impact mental health and well-being.
- Cultural barriers: Bonsai has its roots in Japanese and Chinese cultures, and may not be familiar or accessible to people from other cultural backgrounds.
Solutions
- Growing an virtual Bonsai provides a way to connect with nature and experience its calming effects, even in urban environments, without any previous experiences with plants.
- Virtual Bonsai at users' own space, provides a valuable tool for stress relief and mindfulness.
- This project helps bridge cultural barriers and promote cross-cultural understanding through the shared appreciation of bonsai.
Researches
Precedent Studies
Moodboards
Ideation
Concept Visualization
To visualize the experience I've tried to tell the story using 3D software.
AR Bonsai connects you with nature. Nature itself will light up your room with true colours.
Blender 3D modeling, texturing, lighting, compositing. And video post production with sound design in Final Cut Pro X.
UX & UI
Develop
Began by familiarizing myself with Unity's AR Foundation, examining each scene and testing its functionality on my phone.
Imported 3D assets created in Blender and 2D assets from Figma into my project. Explored and experimented on coding functionalities to optimize the performance and functionality of the project. During this process, assistance from ChatGPT helped me to further refine previous learnings.
Created the App's welcome page with sound effect and animations.
Utilized C# within Visual Studio to implement functional buttons within my project.
Focused on the Interaction Scene and imported 3D assets into the scene. Successfully enabled AR functionality.
Conducted multiple testings of the project by building it a total of 17 times, with multiple instances of failure requiring extensive troubleshooting. Ultimately succeeded on the 18th build. Then deployed the app using Xcode.
Customization with my own logo and name to create a polished final product by following Apple's official best practice.
