Alley is a mysterious work by Taiwanese digital artist and composer Jinyao Lin. The piece started as an experiment, exploring a new style with a dramatic perspective that approached a popular theme differently. When Alley was released, many incredible generative landscape works were being minted and seeing success — Lin wanted to put his mark on the trend.

Alley #7

Notably, Alley uses lines to create the perspective of standing in an alley looking out at the city skyline. Each mint contains different ColorModes and Densities to produce distinct environments. The moon (or sun) stands above you in an empty sky while the walls feel like they may crush you. These effects are magnified by some iterations feeling narrow, with a dense grouping of lines to portray darkness.

Alley #17

Lin said about the piece, “I used massive lines to create a scene between real and unreal, a memory in Hong Kong, especially those days I’m worried about Hong Kong’s democracy.” The world Jinyao Lin has created is bleak; however, there is always something at the end of the tunnel (or alley in this instance).