Bardez

Bardez is the Armenian word for garden. It is etymologically tied to an ancient word for paradise, but that link goes deeper than etymology. Gardens have always been small pieces of paradise for me, and hearing the word in Armenian triggers a flood of warm memories.

Memories of wandering around my grandfather’s garden, plucking ripe plums and figs from their branches.
Memories of playing in my parents yard, the scent of jasmine in the summer heat.
Of sun warmed tomatoes in my mom’s vegetable patch.
The smell of dirt and grass.
Mud on my hands.
Sun on my skin.
Memories of paradise.

I hope you enjoy these gardens I’ve planted, and I hope they remind you of some warm and wonderful memories.

Nat Sarkissian

Notes:

• This piece uses a shader to compute the lighting of the terrain in the first frame. If you don’t have a graphics card, you may have difficulty running this.

• Append “&mag=N” to the end of the URL in live mode to specify a resolution multiplier. It will render the image N times larger than the size of your window. If you have specified anything greater than 1, a download will start automatically once the rendering is done. The maximum resolution seems to be limited by what your web browser allows. I have been able to output up to 11140px tall and wide using Firefox, which should be enough detail for prints up to 37x37 inches. I recommend keeping the console open while attempting larger renders. It will show you the progress of the render, and also show you if you have attempted too large a render for your system. N can be any positive whole or decimal number greater than or equal to 1.

• Finally, collectors at the highest tier will be entitled to a signed print of their edition. For further details and updates, keep an eye on my Twitter (@_NatSarkissian).