Inara Pey: Living in a Modemworld
Second Life, virtual worlds and virtual realities
Due to a missed communication from the Lab, which indicated a preference on their part for this issue not to be blogged about, this post has been withdrawn, at least until such time as I can resolve matters with them.
Updated: Further to a discussion with Oz Linden on Friday, June 5th, there will be an updated report on these changes available on Tuesday, June 9th 2015.
One of the strengths of Second Life that’s often pointed to is the collaborative power that lies within the platform. Thanks to the broad range of tools and capabilities offered, collaborative efforts can take many different forms, from content creation through to teaching or music, cinematography, research, and so on.
Where art is concerned, the platform can be a very effective means of collaboration, and I’ve covered a number of examples through the arts reviews in this blog (menu: EVENTS-REVIEWS-TRAVEL > REVIEWS > SL ART AND LEA). However, Kylie Sabra drew my attention to a particularly interesting collaboration between herself and Nils Urqhart, which is currently the subject of a modest exhibition now open at the gallery space at W.E.at Home.
“It started as a whim,” Kylie says of the exhibition. “Upon a visit to Nils’ photo gallery, I was taken once more by the beauty of his work. I’ve always been a fan of macro lens photography and began to see the possibility the work afforded as an art medium; a beginning point for a new view.
“Nils and I worked together choosing just the right pieces and then I headed in to the Photo Shop and went to work. It was freeing and I had a wonderful time with the project. ”
The result is an intriguing series of paired images, an original macro lens photograph by Nils, who has a passion for colour and lighting, as evidenced in the pictures on display, together with a digital art piece by Kylie which takes all or a part of Nils’ original and offers a different interpretation / perspective on it.
Taken together, the paired pieces offer a fascinating view of how a subject can be uniquely interpreted and presented, while at the same time, each individual piece by Nils or Kylie, works entirely on its own, offering an eye-catching work that lends considerable grace to any in-world wall and home, with all of the pieces are offered for sale individually.
As noted, this is a modest exhibition, offering just 6 pairs of images. Nevertheless, it stands as an ideal introduction to what I hope will be a continuing collaboration between Kylie and Nils.
In April, I wrote about Ape Piaggo’s latest waterborne project: the AD25H “Little Bee” tender speedboat. Since that time, things have progressed, and while the boat is still not quite ready for release, Ape offered me the opportunity to do some further testing on what amounts to the pre-release version – and obviously, I jumped at the chance!
This latest version features just about everything the “full” version will include, other than the car.
Yes, that’s right, the car. As this is a trailer-mountable speedboat which comes complete with its own trailer, Ape has decided to include a car capable of towing both in the release version of the boat as well. Coming on top of everything else packed into the Little Bee – an extensive range of couples and singles poses, a racing mode, the hydrofoils, ACSS, painting options, the ability to let friends drive it, coffee making (yup, really!) plus the wakeboard and parasail, this makes for a pretty comprehensive package.
The parasail system was actually available on the earlier model of the boat I previewed. However, this has since been improved and was one of the things Ape asked me to test. So, one bright Second Life morning, as the Sun came up over the straits, I hopped into the boat and bravely volunteered my Crash Test Alt to give the parasail another go while I tried the wakeboard. The last time my alt took to the air in the parasail, she was fully clothed; I was kinder this time, and furnished her with a swimsuit 🙂 .
Both the wakeboard and the parasail are rezzed from the boat’s Accessories menu. Note that you will have to be on water that allows object entry, and should leave a degree of space behind the boat (don’t rez them when moored with a pier right behind you, for example). Once rezzed, riders simply sit on the wakeboard / parasail (and will receive a wearable handle for the former), and away you go.
During testing, I found it best to keep the boat to around 40% of throttle; any higher, and things began to get decidedly iffy on region crossings. The board is independently steerable from the boat using the LEFT / RIGHT arrow keys, and the parasail rider can adjust their height with the UP / DOWN keys. The wakeboard also includes stunts accessed via the PAGE DOWN and the UP / DOWN keys, although I could only get the latter to work, which had me dipping low to run my hand through the water.
The PAGE UP key for both the wakeboard and the parasail allows the “CineCApe” camera to work, which provides interesting views of things for the rider of either, and I’ve made use of this in the sneak peek film below. I do recommend using the camera with the wakeboard in particular, as it really adds a further dimension to riding the board.
Slowing the boat will have the obvious effect of dropping both the wakeboard and parasail rider back into the water, and the former will adopt a “waiting” pose, ready for the boat to start moving again, while the latter will see the parasail gently collapse as the air resistance lessens, and the rider drops down to a gentle splashdown.
Given all it has packed into it, the AD25H “Little Bee” is liable to be a “must have” buy for anyone interested in owning / driving a compact speedboat; I’ve yet to come across anything quite so enjoyable to drive and ride it in its class, and given the price is set to be under L$3000 for the boat, trailer and car, it’s going to be an absolute steal when released.
I’ll hopefully be running a full review of the boat once it is available. In the meantime, as noted above, another sneak peek video.
Crestwick Island (Flickr) – click and image for full size
Crestwick Island is a small town sited in a picturesque bay, and it’s not unreasonable to state that it has perhaps been better days; the streets are a little careworn, some of the houses equally so. And while there are attempts at colour and gaiety in the town centre, it’s hard not to escape the feeling that you’re visiting a little corner of the world that has passed its prime while seeking to hang on to it as best it can.
Which is not to say it is in any way a place that shouldn’t be seen – entirely the opposite, in fact. Designed by Isa Messioptra and Ciphertazi Wandin, Crestwick Island is actually a joy to see and wander through, and considerable care has been taken to offer a place that has a very genuine feel to it while enfolding the kind of quirks and whimsy that will bring a smile to the face of any visitor as they perambulate through the streets and along the footpaths and tracks. There’s even a few nods towards the the realm of Hollywood – although they may escape immediate recognition except to the film buffs among us.
Take, for example, the town’s beauty salon; the sign over the windows proudly proclaims it to be The Best Little Hair House in Crestwick – a play on the title of a certain musical and 1982 film about a Chicken Ranch in Texas, and starring Dolly Parton and Burt Reynolds.
The beauty salon shares the town’s main street with the local medical centre, newspaper offices, bank, books shop and dance studio, with the town hall presiding sternly over all of them. Sitting kitty-corner to the beauty salon is the still chic Rosewater Cafe, offering refreshments, a place to while away the hours and dancing for those in the mood.
At the opposite end of the street to the town hall can be found the art gallery, featuring Isa’s stunning artwork (which can also be found on Flickr, as can Cipher’s) and which sits under a fading billboard which will take movie buffs Back To …. another film from the 1980s starring Michael J. Fox…
Nor is art limited to the gallery; there is some impressive graffiti to be found on the walls of certain buildings, and it can also be found in doors as well. In this respect, do make sure you pay a visit to the local place of worship; it has something quite novel to offer visitors, and a trip to Crestwick Island would be incomplete without stopping by!
Further out from the town the landscape is a little more rugged, and a tall plateau rises to the north west, topped by what looks like an old observatory dome and a smaller building. Stone steps with rusting iron handrails offer a way up to the dome, as does a winding sandy track – and anyone who has visited Griffiths Park and Observatory in Los Angeles might has a slight sense of deja-vu walking up the track; I know I did.
Do take note, however, that like the town’s church, the observatory isn’t all it seems, and I wouldn’t be at all surprised if the name “Roswell” slips into your thoughts once you’ve climbed the ageing metal stairs up to the dome…
All told, Crestwick island is a visual treat, whether seen under the default windlight (to which I made only minor tweaks for most of the picture here) or under … well, probably just about any one you care to choose; it’s instantly picturesque, the slightly running-to-seed look actually adding to the look and feel of the town. If you’ve not visited already, it’s well worth the time in stopping by; you can even enjoy a little wine in the park or a snuggle at the cliff side camp…
Set to open at 15:00 SLT on Wednesday, June 3rd, is the latest exhibition at Max Butoh’s marvellous Dathúil gallery. Visionary Tales features the artistry of Pollyanna4, who describes herself as a “photographic storyteller” – and a visit to Dathúil will reveal why.
“My artworks are stories, people, places and moments in time.,” Pollyanna explains. “I am inspired by many things, music, a lyric, a verbal conversation, or the mood and atmosphere of what greets me.”
The result is a series of 21 images, which can also be found on Pollyanna’s stunning Flickr stream, and here divided into three story sets, which she describes as, “Coming Home ~ Trials and tribulations of a difficult journey”, “Dolls ~ From the Heart” and “Abstracted world (stories/people/views/outlooks)”. Each of the pieces includes a small book in the lower right corner which, when clicked, will offer a short piece of text in personal chat to help frame the image; and these can themselves be powerfully emotive:
Lost and alone, cold and confused.
She fell to her knees and screamed to the heavens above Dear God, help me…there has to be a way!
Falling in a heap on the wooden slats of the bridge, she closed her eyes.
“Often, I create from the idea itself and build my imagery around the idea,” Polyanna continues in describing her work. “However, on other occasions it is a glancing feeling which makes me get out my camera and capture the essence. Texture and shadow within a photograph are things I enjoy exploring, giving many different variations on the normal photographic image created by the SL camera.
“My aim, is to make people think. To look at every part of the photograph and read for themselves, with the help of the title and or music/poetry, just what the story is being told. ”
The result is a series of pictures and associated texts which encourage the observer to enter into the piece that are looking at, to share in the story that is being shown to them, and thus to carry it in whatever direction they take – or it leads; .both images and words beautifully evocative.
This is another outstanding exhibition in what is fast becoming my favourite gallery in terms of its design, ambience and the range of exhibitions featured since it opened. I have no hesitation in recommending Visionary Tales as an exhibit worth seeing. In keeping with the theme, the formal opening event on June 3rd will feature singer and storyteller Russell Eponym. Thereafter, Visionary Tales will be open through until the end of June.
My thanks to Lucy and to Max for the warm invitation to drop-in and preview the exhibit.
FreeWee Ling is perhaps best known for her tireless work on behalf of the University of Western Australia (UWA), and co-organiser and curator of the UWA’s art-related projects, activities and galleries within Second Life.
At the end of 2014, she rightly gained recognition from the Australian Department of Education for this work, and was awarded an Endeavour Executive Fellowship that allowed her to travel from her home in the eastern United States to spend four months at the UWA in Perth, Australia, where she was based with the UWA’s Department of Physics.
FreeWee was encouraged to apply for an Endeavour Executive Fellowship by colleague Jayjay Zifanwe (Jay Jay Jegatheva in the physical world, Manager of the School of Physics at UWA) and her application was supported by a letter of recommendation from UWA.
Now, JayJay, FreeWee and the UWA are encouraging other Second Life residents to take the opportunity to follow in FreeWee’s footsteps, and applying for a 2016 Endeavour Executive Fellowship and, if selected by the Australian Department of Education, travel to UWA.
News of this was passed to me by Carmsie Melodie, who Tweeted me to point to a write-up on her blog. The same write-up is also available on the UWAinSL blog, where FreeWee has also written about her experience as a Fellowship awardee – so if you are interested in applying, do make sure you read FreeWee’s article.
The Endeavour Executive Fellowship is one of a number of Endeavour Scholarships and Fellowships offered by the Australian government to international applicants from participating countries who are considered high achievers in business, industry, education or government.
The Endeavour Executive Fellowship is a 4-month study period in Australia, focusing on learning and building skills and knowledge through a host work environment in the applicant’s field or area of expertise, rather than through formal enrolment in a study programme. It offers financial support (up to Australian $18,500) towards professional development opportunities for the successful applicant, and an opportunity to study at UWA for four months.
Commenting on her experience in applying, FreeWee said:
The Endeavour application process was fairly easy, all done online. You need to describe what you want to do, get a couple of people to write recommendations, get certified copies of transcripts, etc. But it’s all carefully laid out in the online application. I’m happy to answer any questions you might have about it. You can’t win if you don’t enter!
Once I was notified that my application was approved, the program turned me over to a caseworker who supported me from leaving for Perth to arriving back home. My caseworker was great, always responded quickly to any concerns I had and monitored my progress throughout my stay.
To find out more, please read the Endeavour Scholarship and Fellowship lead-in from the Australian Government, which also includes a link to the applications forms.
Should you decide to apply for the Executive Fellowship, please be sure to contact Jayjay (in-world via IM or note card or via e-mail to: jay.jay-at-uwa.edu.au) and / or FreeWee (in-world via note card) for advice and support on how the UWAinSL can assist you in your application.
Do note as well that submissions for Fellowship applications close on Tuesday 30th June, 2016.
With thanks to Carmsie Melodie for the pointer via Twitter.
Inara Pey: Living in a Modemworld 