Study: Mapping Room

I spent some time doing a study focused on art direction and stylization. I wanted to explore how different shape languages and materials could work together within a consistent visual direction.

For the overall forms, I focused on using softer edge-to-edge shapes, especially for the more organic elements, while pushing sharper and harsher shapes for the metal components. My goal was to create a clear visual distinction between materials across the entire piece.

For surfaces like wood, I leaned more into a painterly texture treatment, while the metals were approached with a more grounded PBR workflow using roughness variation and grunge detail to maintain a sense of realism. Normally, these two directions don’t fully meet in a traditional pipeline, but I was curious to see what the balance between stylization and realism would look like when pushed further.

Stylized PBR is already a well-established approach, but this study was more about exploring and visually organizing ideas I had in my head until they felt fully realized.

Let me know what you think. Any feedback, advice, or thoughts would be greatly appreciated.