Playscapes
Playscapes, 2026
Playscapes (2026) is a never-ending generative journey through four abstract biomes inspired by the physics and intricate patterns at the foundation of the universe.
A visitor is an active explorer of the virtual ecosystems, who navigates surreal digital universes with a joystick. In this exploration of the cosmic depth, a person experiencing the artwork is a mind that makes sense of the patterns of infinity and an actor who chooses to look outwards and beyond the horizon of the familiar.
The dynamic and mesmerising worlds of Playscapes capture natural complexity that surrounds us every day, unnoticed in our daily life. Biomes in the artwork consist entirely of elementary particles that are constantly transformed through light and colour, forming structures informed by physical and biological forces and signals. The locations are created in real time based on the defined parameters, so every journey through them is unique.
Maxim Zhestkov is an artist and director who uses emergent technology to explore simulated realities in a variety of mediums. Coming from the architecture and design background, he started working with the computer-generated imagery in 2001 to create behind the limits of the material world. Moving from illustration to animation and further to interactive mediums during the course of his career, Zhestkov is guided by his interest in the potential of the technology to support creativity and expand his visual language.
In his work, Zhestkov continuously imagines new worlds and expands the understanding of the phenomena present in our universe. He blends architecture, sculpture, and natural algorithms to form a distinct aesthetic approach that becomes a foundation for representing a variety of concepts — from physical phenomena and futuristic technology to philosophical ideas and embodied non-human agents.
As a founder and director of a game company Cosmos Interactive and a creative XR studio FUN AND AWE, Maxim is exploring different sides of interactive technology and its potential to tell stories that are not bounded by the linear narrative. By using real-time engines as his main tool, he expands his vision to build the entire new worlds and create stories based on emotional non-verbal storytelling.
