The installation is a marvellous work of art, deeply reflective of the thoughts expressed within the poem, and of Storm’s own circumstance and the trials she has faced. If you haven’t visited the installation, I urge you to do so before in closes in December, and while it may sound somewhat self-serving, I also offer my thoughts on the installation as well.
I have been drawn back to Invictus a number of times since then, wanting to produce a video of it for posterity. But what form should such a video take? Should it feature music, or the words of the poem itself? And if the words, should they be spoken, or presented on-screen? And if spoken, who should I look to recite them?
At the end of August, and having been reminded by several people that Morgan Freeman recited the poem in the film Invictus (and has done so elsewhere, it being a personal favourite of his), I opted to turn to the marvellous talent of Charlie Hopkinson, who is Morgan Freeman’s voice. And so it is that I offer a short film of Storm’s installation I hope you enjoy, and which encourages you to visit or re-visit Invictus in-world.
Lorin Tone is the name of a new aural installation, open through to the end of 2016, intended to to demonstrate the wide variety of uses in-world sounds can be put to within Second Life. The installation takes it name from the master of ambient sound, Lorin Tone, who shares the environment with Nance Clowes “and others” (one of whom I assume could be Lorin’s partner, Judi Newall).
For those who travel the grid extensively with local sound enabled, this might sound a “well, duh!”, kind of idea: many region designers spend a good deal of time adding a soundscape to their environment, so we’re accustomed to hearing them every day (although that in itself can cause us to “tune them out”).
Lorin Tone – Madcow Cosmos’ whimsical sound creatures
But sounds are also more than just ambient background; they can be used in a wide variety of ways to add atmosphere to an environment, both passively and actively, triggered or experienced in a wide variety of ways – touch, collision, proximity, and so on.
So it is that this installation offers a series of individual parcels (denoted by the stone paths running between them) in which various sound scape can be experienced. The layout might not be that visually appealing, but a slow exploration through it will reveal how aurally rich they are, and the cornucopia of sound options available for in-world use. There are things to touch, walk past and through; to step on, play, bounce across and ride.
Lorin Tone – hunated graveyard (set your environment to midnight 🙂 )
Signs throughout the installation offer an introduction to each area and when touched will furnish some additional information on what is being achieved (and how to use each area). There is a certain degree of fun to be had in exploring and colliding with or touching things, and it is hard not to end up smiling. The bouncy (sand) castles got things off to a good start for Caitlyn and I (take the rope slide to the right of the landing point as you face them), while a skyborne race track offers something for petrol heads.
But – there is sadly a “but”, albeit a small one. The soundscapes largely stand as parcels without visual theme, and some might be seen as slightly repetitive in form. While this is intended to be an aural environment, I couldn’t help but feel more might have been gained by making it more visually immersive as well.
That said, for anyone interested in the depth and range to which in-world sounds can be put to good effect, the installation is well worth a visit. As noted, it will be open through until the end of December 2016.
On September 13th, I relayed the news that the University of Western Australia would be scaling back its presence in Second Life to just one region; with three others being retired and the fourth to be transferred to the San Jose State University. Well, things have now changed for the better.
In a blog post issued on Monday, October 10th, the day after two of the regions had been scheduled to close, FreeWee Ling gave the news that all three originally slated to vanish from Second Life will now remain in place through until July 2017, while UWA Virtlantis has now changed hands as originally planned.
UWA campus
This means that through until July 2017, the regions will comprise:
University of WA: the “main” region, this is home to the iconic Winthrop Hall clock tower, Sunken Gardens, and Somerville Theatre facilities, as well as the new starter resource facility, and is set to remain in place for at least another year
UWA: home to the UWA gallery, which is currently hosting the IMMATERIAL exhibition, now set to remain in place until July 2017
UWA Winthrop: home to the UWA’s permanent exhibition of art from past winners and selected pieces from previous 3D art challenges are displayed, now set to remain in place until July 2017
WASP Land: the technical region, and home to the St Basil’s Cathedral model, fractal works, etc, now set to remain in place until July 2017
SJSU Virlantis: is now under the management of Sonicity Fitzroy (aka Dr Phylis Johnson) of the San Jose State University. It remains attached to the UWA regions, but has a revised name/ SLurl.
Following the original announcement of the three region closure, Second Life artists and residents wrote to UWA Central concerning the plans, and this may have contributed to the decision to extend a lease of life to those three regions. Either way, that they have been granted an extended lease of life to remain an active part of Second Life is most welcome.
Note; at the time of writing this article, WASP Land and UWA Winthrop were off-line, having been scheduled to close on October 9th, 2016. Given Jayjay’s announcement, they will hopefully be back on-line very shortly.
The Chamber Society 4th Annual Photography Competition: the three main prize winners – Dathúil Gallery
Now open at Dathúil Gallery, curated by Max Butoh and Lυcy (LucyDiam0nd), is a display of selected entries from the 4th annual The Chamber Society Photography competition.
Unlike the usual monthly exhibitions at the gallery, which focus on a single artist, the October 2016 exhibition features individual works from the “top twenty” entrants from this year’s edition of the competition, which challenges members of the Chamber Society – a private member’s club – to explore the club’s home region (which is also home to Dathúil Gallery) and capture images reflective of the club’s theme, for submission in the competition.
he Chamber Society 4th Annual Photography Competition – Dathúil Gallery
The aim of the club is “to create a deep and erotic atmosphere for role-play and erotic chat for members. We focus on politeness and manners with a twist. Our members expect intelligent, lively conversation and imagination along with beautiful and detailed surroundings.” Membership requires adherence to a dress code, an understood code of conduct, and observation of the society’s rules.
As one might imagine, given the erotic overtures within [the Chamber], the images on display within the gallery are of a similarly erotic nature, with many among them perhaps NSFW – which doesn’t make them any the less artistic. In fact, the range of styles and approaches seen in the images displayed at this annual event make it an intriguing and eye-catching exhibition.
he Chamber Society 4th Annual Photography Competition – Dathúil Gallery
A prize purse totalling a generous L$42,000 was on offer this year, with L$12,000 going to LoVeLy (lovelyxan), L$8,000 to Annjalyk Storm (annjalykh2o) and L$5,000 to Ravi Schou, all of whom have their pieces displayed on the ground floor of the gallery facing the main entrance (and seen in the banner image for this article). The remaining 17 selected pieces are arranged around the walls of the gallery on the ground and mezzanine levels, the members responsible for them each having received L$1,000.
“This is not exactly a regular exhibit,” Lucy said as she accompanied me while I previewed the exhibition ahead of the opening. “But it’s a very special one; during the whole month of September you see people running around all over the region, rezzing props and poses which Max loves!”
he Chamber Society 4th Annual Photography Competition – Dathúil Gallery
“In events like this it’s kinda more about the development throughout the month than the show itself, because of the goals of the whole thing,” Lucy continued, her enthusiasm for both the lead-up to the exhibition and the exhibition itself, obvious. “With the regular shows, it’s just the one artist, and a focus on the gallery. With this, it’s our members letting go creatively, which is a lot of fun for everyone!”
The exhibit runs through until the end of October 2016, and as is always the case with exhibitions at Dathúil, I have no hesitation in recommending it.
Tucked away in a corner of a region called Battlestar and rising from calm waters are two galleries of modern, open design. They are the respective homes for art by Nessuno Myoo and Kicca Igaly.
The White Gallery is a glass-sided C-shape building rising three levels above the water. It is home to Nessuno’s 2D and 3D art, and includes a rooftop auditorium for presentations – although I’m not sure how active this is; the last event shown on the screen dates back to 2012.
Between the auditorium and the water, however, there is much to see; Nessuno’s sculptures are highly stylised in form, captivating the eye and drawing the observer into their narrative with ease. Some offer a twist of humour, others a sharp observation, all are evocative. His 2D art is equally attention-grabbing and can be sharply observational (iGirl). When visiting, do keep an eye out for the cubes displaying his art from the physical world.
Across the water, Kicca’s Art Gallery also rises three to three levels above the water as a C-shaped building. It is slightly offset to Nessuno’s gallery as they face one another, with the three levels connected by a central spiral ramp. Kicca makes similar use of the space to display her 2D and 3D art, including pieces from the physical world.
Kicca’s 3D work can also be stylised in looks, but also carries sentiment and narrative which draw the observer into each piece. Her 2D art, static and animated, offers excellent pieces for home display. Such is the diversity of pieces displayed, it is easy to find oneself drawn back to particular pieces – I freely confess to being attracted to her physical world art on display on the upper level of the gallery (three of which are imaged below).
Like the artists themselves, the two galleries complement one another and offer an overlapping display of fine 3D and 2D art. Almost all of the pieces on display at both are for sale if you are collector, and if you have enjoyed Nessuno’s and Kicca’s work and installations on display elsewhere in Second Life, but haven’t previously visited their galleries, then this is a destination very much worth adding to your itinerary.
The 2016 Rock Your Rack Art Show and Auction in support of Rock Your Rack opened on Saturday, October 1st, 2016, and will run through until Saturday, October 15th, alongside the Rock Your Rack 2016 events.
Rock Your Rack is the annual fund-raiser started in October of 2012 by Jamee Sandalwood and the team at Models Giving Back for the National Breast Cancer Foundation ((NBCF). Founded in 1991, NBCF’s mission is to help women in the United States by providing help and inspiring hope to those affected by breast cancer through early detection, education and support services. NBCF is also joining hands with organisations around the globe to provide breast cancer education.
Curated and coordinated by Kultivate Magazine on behalf of Rock Your Rack, the art show features 23 2D and 3D artists, all of whom are offering one or more items in their art displays with 100% of proceeds going to Rock Your Rack.
While the Art Show opened along with the rest of the Rock Your Rack events, there will be a formal Art Show opening on Monday, October 3rd from 16:00 SLT, with further events to mark the closing on the show on Saturday, October 15th. Two special raffles are also being held, featuring special bundles of work from Bryn Oh and Cica Ghost respectively. The main schedule of events comprises:
Saturday, October 1st: Rock Your Rack Art Show and Auction opens, and Bryn Oh & Cica Ghost 3D art bundle raffle tickets go on sale
Saturday, October 1st through to Wednesday October 12th: Art Auction bids open
Monday, October 3rd: formal Art show Opening with live performer Talleysin
Thursday, October 13th: Art auction winners announced and Bryn Oh & Cica Ghost 3D art bundle raffle winners announced
Friday, October 14th: The Pink Art Ball featuring DJ John 16:00-17:00 SLT and live performer Sam Quenda 17:00-18:00
Saturday, October 15th: Rock Your Rack and the art show ends.
During the event, visitors can also tour the wider Rock Your Rack activities taking place in the region and support fun-raising.
Inara Pey: Living in a Modemworld 