The Mayda Creative Co. Transforms Outernet into a Lush Intergalactic Universe

Creative studio The Mayda Creative Co. has unveiled its latest work for iconic British cosmetics retailer, Lush, as part of its 2023 holiday campaign. A continuation of the long-standing relationship between the two companies, this Lush Intergalactic Universe campaign follows the announcement of the “Storyverse” partnership. This collaboration marks the latest evolution of Lush’s ongoing strategy to extend consumer engagement and expand the Lush storyverse into long-form entertainment that showcases its customers' favourite products across a range of platforms, starting with this London installation. 

Airing at Outernet’s Now Building exhibition space in London, home to the world’s largest LED screen, ‘Lush Intergalactic Universe’ is a two-minute, 360 degree seamless mixed media animation that interprets and defines otherworldly environments and characters from Lush’s story, including Lord of Misrule and Snow Fairy.

Making its debut performance is Space B.O.T - an interstellar spacecraft piloted by Pebble Penguin - the characterised form of Lush Bath Bot - the world’s first Bluetooth floating sound and light immersive bath speaker, shaped like a Lush bath bomb, launching in 2024. Lush Intergalactic Universe is a theatrical animation that takes the audience on a journey between celestial worlds.

Understanding the characters and the worlds in which they live was paramount to Mayda’s creation of this magical universe. Providing the foundation for the ideas Mayda brought to life, independent entertainment studio, Realm Runner Studios, conceptualised the story, characters and script, coupled with artwork created by animation studio, Feral Child. 

With this as its inspiration, Mayda designed and animated each environment in a variety of approaches that embellished the rich intergalactic story at the heart of the project. The team tied these together with epic transitions between each world in line with the timeline within the story that maximises the use and scale of the space.

Adopting a bold and visionary stance, Mayda fully embraced the vast scale of London’s Outernet, recognising the prevalence of screens as a tool to cultivate an unparalleled sense of total immersion for onlookers. With this in mind, the creative process led to the conception of expansive landscapes and breathtaking transitions seamlessly connecting every facet of the space.

‘Lush Intergalactic Universe’ animation runs from 1st - 7th and 10th - 16th December, exclusively at London’s Outernet. 

Henry Foreman, creative director at The Mayda Creative Co, comments on the exciting project: “Transforming the Outernet Now Building into the Lush Intergalactic Universe an adventurous project. The pay-off of the experience within a 25 metre cube is unlike any other project I’ve undertaken. The sheer scale of the space is its biggest appeal, its greatest challenge, and also its largest reward. With an amazing team of artists coming together we’ve been able to transform the space into an alternate celestial realm.”

Ian Walker, executive producer at The Mayda Creative Co, adds: “Creating a piece of work at such a huge scale, in central London, with so many eyes on it each day meant we had an enormous amount of responsibility. Not only to ensure we represented this thread of the Lush tale beautifully, but also to create a series of environments and transitions that played into the theatre that this unique canvas allows. None of this would have been possible without the unwavering trust given to us by the Lush team. It was truly a joy to work on.”

Jack Constantine, chief digital officer at Lush concludes, “As a global cosmetics brand, we wholeheartedly believe in pushing the boundaries of technological and artistic innovation that ethically connects, inspires and brings people together. There is no better place to do this during Christmas than Outernet. Collaborating with the team at Mayda to create an animation installation that fills you with wonder is like nothing we’ve ever done before. Working with real artists, not algorithms on social platforms that play into the hands of big tech monopolies, is the future realised today. For festive revellers in London, this year may just be the best Christmas in the universe.”