Logos representative only and should not be seen as an endorsement / preference / recommendation
Updates from the week ending Sunday, July 18th
This summary is generally published every Monday, and is a list of SL viewer / client releases (official and TPV) made during the previous week. When reading it, please note:
It is based on my Current Viewer Releases Page, a list of all Second Life viewers and clients that are in popular use (and of which I am aware), and which are recognised as adhering to the TPV Policy. This page includes comprehensive links to download pages, blog notes, release notes, etc., as well as links to any / all reviews of specific viewers / clients made within this blog.
By its nature, this summary presented here will always be in arrears, please refer to the Current Viewer Release Page for more up-to-date information.
Note that for purposes of length, TPV test viewers, preview / beta viewers / nightly builds are generally not recorded in these summaries.
Official LL Viewers
Release viewer: Project UI RC viewer, version 6.4.20.560520, dated June 14th, promoted June 23rd – No change.
Release channel cohorts:
Fernet Maintenance RC viewer updated to version 6.4.21.561414, on July 14th.
The Blackwood Farm, July 2021 – click any image for full size
Following a recommendation from Shawn Shakespeare (SkinnyNilla), I opted to spend a little time on the farm. The Blackwood Farm, to be precise, a Homestead region gorgeously presented for public visits / use by Corvus Blackwood.
Sitting under a burnished summer sky, the clouds turned to bronze by a low-hanging Sun, the region presents as a single island into which a channel of water has cut its way, roughly dividing the landscape almost into two. To the west, the land is predominantly low-lying, to the east it is dominated by a raised table of rock marked to the north and south by ribbons of scrubby coastline, the former of which sweeps east and west across the width of the region, curving past a small off-shore isle to the west, the home of a squat lighthouse watching over the channel between the two landmasses.
The Blackwood Farm, July 2021
The western side of the setting is home to the Blackwood Farm. This is a place, we’re informed by a large friendly sign close to the landing point, that is family owned and operated. An unfenced field of corn sits just behind the sign, stretching south along the track leading up to the farm, fir trees and a rocky mound also sitting with it within an oval of rutted tracks.
An aging gateway and fading wall guard the entrance to the inner sanctum of the farm. They face the imposing farmhouse that is flanked by barns to either side, and is fronted by a square fenced field of cattle. It is a peaceful, pastoral setting: chickens wander freely, apples are in the process of being picked from a little copse of trees, a little lemonade stand awaits those in need of refreshment. In fact the setting is so peaceful, deer are happy to graze on the grass within the farm’s grounds.
The Blackwood Farm, July 2021
The farm is overlooked to the west by a uplift of land topped by a windmill that offers one of the many places to sit within the setting, a pair of batterer trailer homes sitting in the shadow of the hill, between it and the span of the south coast. Very rough and ready in their set-up, the two trailers are clearly occupied: a fire pit is burning, a fan is on to cool seats under one of the trailer’s awnings – but both have been left to a little goat to watch over. It forms one of several small vignettes awaiting discovery by visitors, and which bring the entire setting together as a whole.
Over to the east, the primary upland is home to the Apple Fall Old Manufactory, a structure that is so popular among region designers that at times it feels as if it is a required feature within an public region. Its popularity is likely down to both its aged looks and its flexibility of use. Here it has been turned into a charming house, complete with a large patio terrace that stretches from it to a little open-sided potting shed. It is an altogether eye-catching setting – but do please be aware that the house is actually a private residence, as indicated by the localised ban lines that will appear if you stray too close.
The Blackwood Farm, July 2021
The rest of the hilltop is very much open to exploration, as is the rough coastline to the north and below it. Reached by steps cut into the slope of the upland, this coastal area is again a place of little vignettes – a camp site, walks, a dock stretching out over the water and little boats that again add to the richness of the setting.
Those wishing to rez within the region can do so by joining the local group (fee: L$250) – but those who do re asked to clean-up after themselves.
The Blackwood Farm, July 2021
Such is the all-round natural looks to the setting, it really is an ideal location for avatar photography whilst the landscaping is equally photogenic; what is more, the setting works equally well under a range of different environment setting to the default – as I hope can be seen in a couple of the images here.
Whether or not you opt to play with the environment settings or use the shared environment, The Blackwood Farm is visually and – thanks to its sound scape – aurally engaging, richly detailed, and a joy to explore and photograph. This being the case, it should come as no surprise that I’d note it as a recommended visit.
Since its first major event in October 2020 as a new centre for arts in Second Life (see: Unveiled: a new art experience in Second Life), Chuck Clip’s Sinful Retreat has become a genuine hub for art and artists, with continuously rotating 2D and 3D art exhibitions and permanent (or semi-permanent) displays and collections, many of which I’ve covered in these pages).
The venue covers two regions – Sinful Retreat itself and the neighbouring Artists Retreat – to offer a multi-level experience from the main galleries on the elevated level, complete with the airship Dionysus offering an event space, to the open-air 3D ground-level displays through to the additional 2D galleries both on the ground and higher in the air, all the way to the the UWA-like challenge space which is currently home to Sinners and Saints, which you can also read about here.
Sinful Retreat – London Junkers
From the main landing point it is possible to directly visit the Janus I and Janus II galleries, the 3D sculpture by Bryn Oh, Cica Ghost, and Walton F. Wainwright (Faust Steamer) entitled The Exquisite Corpse and the studio spaces in between, or use the numerous teleports to reach the open-air exhibitions of 3D art to be found across the two regions – which is the element of the setting I wish to focus on here.
Within Sinful Retreat it is possible to visit areas featuring the work of (at the time of writing – names may vary over time) Aequitas, Cica Ghost, Ciottolina Xue, Ilyra Chardin, Kraven Klees, London Junkers, Mariposa Upshaw, Melio Minotaur, Phenix Rexen, Pixels Sideways, and Toysoldier Thor.
Sinful Retreat – ArtemisGreece
Meanwhile, Angel’s Rest features the work of Alchemelic, ArtemisGrecce, Havit Neox, Sharni Alazee, Suzanne Graves, Thoth Jantzen and DB Bailey and Venus Adored, together with a display by region holder and Sinful Retreat owner / curator, Chuck Clip. Between all of these are various displayed of art that Chuck is displaying from his own collection, whilst two further sky galleries were, at the time of my re-visit, presenting exhibitions by Leo Bhalti (photography entitled Second Lives) and Wolfgang Ginka (poems and photography entitled Remembering Blue).
In terms of the ground-level 3D art displays, I’d recommend picking one that grabs you and then when on the ground, using your pedal extremities to explore those across the rest of the two regions. This is because the sheer richness of the art on offer unfolds quite naturally, and it is possible to find yourself being call onwards from location to location on what becomes a voyage of discovery.
Sinful Retreat – art across Angel’s Rest
These include several blasts from the past – such as Ciottolina Xue’s exquisite Little Paradise in Second Life and Covfefe! The New World Disorder by Djehuti-Anpu (Thoth Jantzen), both of which appeared at SL15B (with the latter forming a part of the larger Moments of Immertia).
Also to be found within Angel’s Rest is Sharni Aalzee’s Never Say Never 2, a recreation of her 2014 UWA Grand Prize winner in the 2014 Grand Art and MachinimUWA Challenge, Never Say Never – Love Transcends Borders. This sits on a plateau that forms both an art display area and a memorial garden that includes a remembrance to Ebbe Altberg and with candles lit to those whom Second Life has lost.
Sinful Retreat – Sharni Alazee, Messuno Myoo and the memorial garden
Such is the richness of the art on display – from Greenies getting up to mischief to giant lava dragons and parring by way of glittering cathedrals, little towns, figurines, robots at play, magical gardens and more – Sinful Retreat and Angels Rest are well worth taking an hour or two to explore. And should you feel in the mood for more art, there’s also Roxkstudio across the bridge to the west of Sinful Retreat – but I’ll save that for another day.
It’s time to highlight another week of storytelling in Voice by the staff and volunteers at the Seanchai Library. As always, all times SLT, and events are held at the Library’s home in Nowhereville, unless otherwise indicated. Note that the schedule below may be subject to change during the week, please refer to the Seanchai Library website for the latest information through the week.
Sunday, July 18th, 13:00: Tea-Time At the Movies: All About Eve
The tea-time team turn to one of the great classics of Hollywood this week with All About Eve, the 1950 drama starring Bette Davis and Anne Baxter, directed by Joseph L. Mankiewicz.
The film is not only noted for its cast and story (which, while uncredited, is based on the 1946 short story The Wisdom of Eve, by Mary Orr) and the fact that it received a stunning 14 Oscar nominations, and won six including Best Picture. To this date, it remains the only film in Academy Award history to receive four female acting nominations (Davis and Baxter as Best Actress, Celeste Holm and Thelma Ritter as Best Supporting Actress – although sadly, none actually won). For film buffs, it is also noted for the appearance of a young and then relatively unknown actress going by the name of Marilyn Monroe in one of her earliest roles, that of Miss Casswell.
The film tells the story of Margo Channing (Davis), a highly regarded but aging Broadway star, and ambitious young fan, Eve Harrington (Baxter). Following a back-stage introduction, Channing, who is worried about her advancing years as a leading actress on stage having turned 40, is drawn to the apparently besotted Harrington thanks to the younger woman’s apparently encyclopaedic knowledge of Channing’s career.
Taking Harrington on as her secretary, Channing is initially impressed with Harrington’s ability to understand her every need and whim, coming to rely heavy on her – although Harrington is perhaps a little too in control, too attentive and too well-liked – almost as if she has an agenda of her own.
Then Channing witnesses something that causes distrust and jealousy enter her thinking, and she starts trying to sideline Harrington. At the same time, Eve casts her net of manipulation even wider, determined to supplant Channing as the queen of Broadway and build a glittering career in film.
Join Corwyn Allen, Gloriana Maertens, Caledonia Skytower, Kayden Oconnell & Elrik Merlin for more of this classic tale of intrigue, jealousy, and manipulation.
Monday, July 19th 19:00: The Weigher
A world ruled by sentiment big cats where the rule of law is enforced by the Weighers, a combination of judge, peacemaker and accountant through a brutal code of honour and combat. Without their violent intervention in things, all-out war and anarchy would ensue.
When two human explorers – fragile, weak and potentially easy prey – arrive on that world, Slasher, a Weigher of skill and talent in physical combat, finds herself defending them. In doing so, she finds herself a disgraced outcast.
Join Gyro Muggins as he read the story by Eric Vinicoff and Marcia Martin.
Wednesday, July 21st, 19:00 Hogwarts An Incomplete and Unreliable Guide
a collection of J.K. Rowling’s writing from the Pottermore archives: short reads originally featured on pottermore.com. These eBooks, with writing curated by Pottermore, will take you beyond the Harry Potter stories as J.K. Rowling reveals her inspiration, intricate details of characters’ lives and surprises from the wizarding world.
Hogwarts An Incomplete and Unreliable Guide takes you on a journey to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. You’ll venture into the Hogwarts grounds, become better acquainted with its more permanent residents, learn more about lessons and discover secrets of the castle . . . all at the turn of a page.
With Caledonia Skytower.
Thursday, July 22nd, 19:00 Summer Poems at the Glen
A celebration of Caledonia Skytower’s Rez Day with a picnic in the Glen and a rousing round of poems for the sublime summer months, and maybe a dance or two! Potato Salad, optional.
Friday, July 23rd, 14:30: Terry Pratchett’s Unseen Academicals
Football in Ankh-Morpork is not as we might know it. Rather than being comprised of rules and played within a recognisable ground, it is far more akin to the somewhat violent mob football of medieval Europe.
Not that this is a concern for the elderly, mostly indolent and (some might be tempted to think) somewhat inept old wizards making up the faculty staff at the city’s school of wizardry, the Unseen University. Until, that is, their very handsome annual endowment becomes subject to their playing the game themselves.
Thus, Archchancellor Mustrum Ridcully sets out a two-pronged strategy: to ensure the city’s version of football is restructured with proper (and favourable?) rules, and to put team preparations at the university in the hands of the talented candle dribbler, Mr. Nutt and his assistant, Trevor Likely, the son of the city’s most famous (if deceased – did I mention the game can be violent?) player, who are in turn supported by Glenda Sugarbean, who runs the university’s night kitchen and her assistant Juliet Stollop.
Except Mr. Nutt soon discovers he has problems of his own to deal with, and Trevor has promised his Mum he’ll never get involved in the game. Meanwhile, Glenda has the daily responsibility of baking the Discworld’s best pies, and Juliet is about to find herself whisked towards the heights of fame as a fashion model, thus potentially leaving the team a little short on practical advice…
Join Caledonia Skytower as she presents the 37th novel in the Discworld series, and possibly one of its greatest satirical undertakings encompassing football, academia, traditions, the fashion industry, politics, love, fandom, and which mixes in more serious themes of identity, crab mentality and self-worth.
Saturday, July 24th, 13:00: Seanchai 101: Story Presentation Tip and Tricks
Caledonis Skytower discusses presenting readings of stories and more through the medium of a virtual world at the SLEA Literary Corner.
Nelipot, July 2021 – click any image for full size
Shawn Shakespeare (SkinnyNilla) and Lien Lowe invited me to get a sneak peek of their new design for their homestead region of Nelipot ahead of the region’s “official” re-opening in its new location – an invitation I was delighted to accept and jump upon.
The first time I visited the region, it offered a ruggedly handsome island surrounded by gently undulating off-region hills that together suggested a temperate archipelago, perhaps caught in early spring. Within the region itself lay a richness and depth of detail that delighted the eye and camera, as I noted at the time in Nelipot’s beauty in Second Life. This remains the case with this latest iteration, which includes a number of touches that harken back to that previous design that give an underlying sense of continuity between the two settings whilst also allowing this iteration to be unique in and of itself.
Nelipot, July 2021
While the region still sits within a surround, the low island hills have given way to a range of high mountains through which water from the sea beyond winds, giving the impression that the land here is a small nest of islands cupped within a sheltered bay, the tall peaks protecting and hiding them from the world beyond.
There are four islands making up the group. two small islets, one of which comes close to being an outlier such is its position and difference to the others in the group, and two main islands that sit as a cupped pair. Lying towards the south-west, the landing point is on one of the smaller islands, a grass-topped table of rock which the landing point shares with a small chapel. It is separated from the two large islands by a channel of tidal water that can be crossed in one of three ways: wading through it, flying over it, or by grabbing a swan pedal boat from the rezzer at the little dock just down from the chapel.
Nelipot, July 2021
Taking the pedal boat is perhaps the best option for those who wish to really appreciate the region naturally, as it presents the opportunity to skirt around the beach of the more western of the two large islands to reach the shallow open waters to the north. Here, it is possible to pedal around and have a little fun – providing boaters keep an eye out for the region boundary. More particularly, it presents the two large islands as they lie, one cupped in the curving arms of the other, the beach of the nearest of the pair continuing along its north side, facing the second of the two small isles.
This second islet looks almost like a an upwelling of coral that, for whatever reason, a departing sea level has exposed over time to allow nature’s other mechanisms – wind, rain, erosion – gradually turn into a group of connected knolls that offer a little retreat covered in scrub grass and where seeds of flowers have been blown to take root together with a quartet of scruffy, wind-blown pines.
Nelipot, July 2021
A further boat rezzer sits on a deck built out from this little isle, providing the means for visitors to come ashore and enjoy the islet’s offering before continuing their journey aboard another pedal boat. East of the isle the water is broken by humps of rock that stretch towards the headland at one end of the largest island in the group. Sitting like stepping stones a giant might use to cross the water, these rocks sit as a hazard to navigation by boat – but is is possible to plot a route through them and so reach the calmer channel of water that separates the two large islands.
Crescent-shaped, the larger of the pair holds its sandy-edged cousin cupped in its arms. Such is their position relative to one another, it appears as if these may have once been a single landmass, the slender tongue of land that almost connecting them adding to this – although the dilapidated state of the bridge that spans the narrow gap between tongue and island also suggests it’s been around a long time, so if the two islands were ever connected, then it might have been very long ago…
Nelipot, July 2021
All of the above is just a thumbnail sketch of the setting – the real meat is in the detail that Lien and Shawn have built into it, something they have done without a major impact on viewer performance. It is within some of this detail that those little echoes of the previous build can be found. Take, for example the sheep that graze on the crescent island, and the way some of them are doing so close to a parked vehicle. This directly reflects Nelipot’s previous iteration, whilst the change in vehicle and presence of the nearby headland and its lighthouse makes it clear its is not just a copy of the past design.
The best way to discover this details – the warehouse converted into a cosy house, the summer house on the beach island, the open-sided pottery shed with its pot-bellied kiln and pots and vases that await glazing and firing, and so on – is by exploring directly. This brings into focus the care with which Shawn and Lein have again created a setting that is welcoming to visitors and offers multiple places, indoors and out, where people can sit and pass the time and enjoy cuddles and quiet times if they so wish.
Nelipot, July 2021
Exploring also reveals all the little touches that help bring the setting to life – the wrap-around sound scape, the St. Bernard waiting to greet wanderers and the many cats who are content to sleep or ignore those who wander by in that way only cats can – aside from one, who is very clearly keeping his eyes on all that is going on from his vantage point! -, and so much more.
Rich in natural beauty, complete with a perfect soundscape folded into it, Nelipot remains a must-see destination. Many thanks to Lien and Shawn for the invite to drop in!
I recently had cause to drop into Vibes Art Gallery to witness a new exhibition of art featuring a trio of artists – Matt Thomson (MTH63), Zia Sophia (Zia Branner) and Wan (Wan Laryukov), entitled Vibes of Painting.
Curated by Eviana Raider (eviana Robbiani), as well as being a centre for exhibiting art, the gallery is also something of a statement of purpose in its own right. In developing it, Eviana has intentionally utilised industrial elements to create a space suggestive of a warehouse facility – three storage buildings with loading / unloading bays and areas, etc., – that has been repurposed rather than invoking the carbon-costly process of demolition, clearing and replacing. As such, the setting is something of an immersive environment for art displays.
As the name of the exhibition – which opened on July 14th, 2021 – suggests, Vibes of Painting focuses on physical world art the three artists have produced. I was attracted to it for both this reason – I do appreciate the opportunity to witness art from the physical world in Second Life – and because one of the three artists is a name new to me, whilst another is someone who is perhaps more usually associated with Second Life photography, rather than painting.
Vibes Art Gallery: Matt Thompson (MTH63)
That person is Matt Thomson (MTH63). whose work I’ve appreciated through a number of SL exhibitions, and whose sense of humour I’ve enjoyed through reading and re-reading his biography at each of his exhibitions. Here, in one of the two smaller (and linked) warehouse units, he presents a selection of vibrant abstract expressionist pieces worthy of Jackson Pollock or Jean-Paul Riopelle without being in any way derivative. Far from it, in fact, given that Matt is himself an experienced abstract artist. As such, these are pieces that can be fully appreciated as being works by an established abstract art and for the statements they make (mostly in reflection of Matt’s sense of humour and self-deprecating manner).
In the neighbouring hall, Zia Sophia offers a selection of her always layered art. Working mostly with acrylics with accents in oil crayons and in, and to which she often adds materials such as paste, gel, sand, glue, bandages and paper to give her work a tactile sense before finishes with a layer of varnish to act as a binder, Zia produces pieces that have their own unique sense of life.
Vibes Art Gallery: Zia Sophia (Zia Branner)
Embracing a range of techniques and subjects, Zia here presents a selection of pieces that include the purely abstract to a study of a flower in bloom (and which is quite marvellously attractive) and with a slight focus on pieces that feature water and / or coastal scenes. These combine to offer an engaging cross-section of Zia’s art that perfectly sits within the exhibition’s theme and compliments Matt’s abstract pieces, just as his compliment Zia’s.
Occupying the largest of the three display space, Wan Laryukov offers both 2D and 3D work that is richly evocative and oft provocative in theme and content, and which covers multiple styles and genres. Expressionism, allegorical art, symbolism art, figurative art and more are to be found in the selection offered across the floor and on the walls of the hall.
Vibes Art Gallery: Wan (Wan Laryukov)
Presented in colour and black-and white, the 2D art is fascinating in content, with the strongest lean perhaps being towards expressionism, whilst the 3D pieces perhaps lean more towards symbolism in their themes. Both 2D and 3D work make for an engaging display which, when taken as a whole, also offers a stitching of oneirology that brings all of the pieces together as it offers a central point of appreciation.
Inara Pey: Living in a Modemworld 