Category: Art in Second Life

Chronophobia and mementos mori in Second Life

Posted on by Inara Pey
Split Screen Installation Space: Chronophobia
Split Screen Installation Space: Chronophobia

Chronophobia marks the return of Rebeca Bashly to creating her large-scale art installations in Second Life after an absence of over a year. Long noted and admired for offering work that is thought-provoking and which often challenge our perceptions about a subject, Rebeca continue to do so with this installation, which opened at Dividni Shostakovich’s Split Screen Installation Space in February, very much continues in this tradition.

The term chronophobia refers to the the persistent and often irrational fear of the future or of passing time. This is much in evidence within this installation, which also seems to take as its foundation the form of artistic expression referred to as mementos mori.

Split Screen Installation Space: Chronophobia
Split Screen Installation Space: Chronophobia

From the landing point, three gigantic stone sundials present platforms rising into the heavens (and I use that term intentionally, given the subject matter), our only mean to reach them being to ascend (again, choice of term deliberate) to each. All are in a state of decay, chunks of each of them falling away, with the lowest exhibiting the greatest decay and the highest the least. Each presents a unique skeletal gnomon: a human torso on the first (representing the heart), Pegasus on the second (its presence resonating with the idea of tempus fugit), and a seated couple, man and woman (with unborn child), the woman cradled gently by the man.

The symbolism here, whether in taking the three sundials as a single whole or viewing each in turn, is both powerful and layered. Transcendence, mortality, the passage of time, reminders that we have but a short span of years in which to account for ourselves, are all to be found here. so to are symbols which could be taken to represent a parallel concept to mementos mori: vanitas (the skeletal forms, the decaying sundials, complete with their bubble like trails of crumbling stone, Pegasus as a substitute for the more usual bird’s skeleton).

Split Screen Installation Space: Chronophobia
Split Screen Installation Space: Chronophobia

There is perhaps another message here as well, besides that of our mortality and the need to watch the passage of time if we’re to achieve what we desire. Chronophobia presents a view that the past is what it is. There is no point in looking back to it, because we cannot return to it or change it; we can only move forward and try to reach higher / further, even if, ultimately, time is our master and our curse.

Were I to try to summarise Chronophobia, I’d perhaps use the word “metaphor”, as this truly flows through the installation, making it a wonderfully interpretive piece. It will remain open until the end of April 2016, and a visit is recommended.

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  • Split Screen Installation Space: Chronophobia (Rated: Moderate)

Strawberries with Cica in Second Life

Posted on by Inara Pey
Cica Ghost: StrawberryLand
Cica Ghost: Strawberryland

Strawberryland, which opened on Wednesday, March 23rd, is the latest full region installation by Cica Ghost – and for those with a love of strawberries, it offers a feast for the eyes – a rolling field of them!

“I didn’t plan this,” Cica told me, as we discussed the build. “Every day in front of my building, I see a guy selling things [like strawberries].”  And so,as the gardener nurtures their planets and fruits (or pseudo fruits), Cica tended to this thought and a few others, growing them into another delightful installation for us to explore and enjoy, full of treats of its own.

Cica Ghost: StrawberryLand
Cica Ghost: Strawberryland

One thing the visitor will immediately notice is that this is no ordinary crop of strawberries; they are on a huge scale, as are most other things in the region (see the image below for a sense of size – not the figure standing near the tricycle). The latter take the form of stone-flagged terraces and large structures (one of which forms the landing point), connected by grassy trails.

Three of the terraces feature Cica’s familiar and delightful figures: on one, a woman pegs out her sheets to dry in a gusting wind, while on another two children stand with hands tightly gripping the strings of their balloons as the wind tries to snatch them away. Then, on the third, a man stands next to a wall, paintbrush in hand, splashes of colour on the wall – and his clothes and face – his expression suggesting he’d really rather be somewhere else.  Between two of these scenes stands a woman feeding a gaggle of geese, the wind catching her hair as she does so.

Strawberryland
Cica Ghost: Strawberryland

Nor is this all that’s to be seen; the structures can be entered and explored, while giant children’s toys sit here and there, and everywhere places to sit can be found, be it on the huge leaves of strawberry plants or oversized picnic benches, or the toys and massive furnishings, while off to one side sits a little (comparatively speaking!) greenhouse in which a single strawberry plant grows.

With Cica’s signature characters and sense of whimsy, Strawberryland is a thoroughly enjoyable visit, delightful on the eye and bound to have you smiling.

Cica Ghost: StrawberryLand
Cica Ghost: StrawberryLand

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Essence and existence in Second Life

Posted on by Inara Pey
DaphneArt: We Are No One
DaphneArts Gallery: We Are No One

“In We Are No One, artists, Jammie Hill and Joslyn Benson, seek to approach the eternal existential quest of the individuals  … In the beginning, we only exist, ‘we are no one’ but material. We are nothing else but what we make of ourselves …  We, human beings, create our own values and meanings for our lives, but this responsibility may bring a sense of anxiety, anguish and fear.”

Thus Daphne Arts curators SheldonBR and Angelika Corral state of their current guest artist exhibition. We Are No One is a series of evocative (and predominantly nude) images by (and of) artists Jammie Hill and Joslyn Benson which offer a rich mix of human emotion: the aforementioned anxiety, anguish and fear, together with comfort, fragility, longing …

DaphneArt: We Are No One
DaphneArts Gallery: We Are No One

While both artists have enjoyed an exhibit in the past, We Are No One presents a series of images exclusively produced for the DaphneArts  exhibition, their collaborative approach to art resonating with Angelika and Sheldon, who also collaborate with ideas, themes and presentations, as evidenced by Shadows of a Dream, hosted by Dido Haas at Nitroglobus Hall, and which you can read about here.

“Sheldon and I like to say that our works are having a ‘conversation’,” Angelika notes of their work. Sheldon agrees, adding, “For this reason we asked Jammie and Joslyn to exhibit here at DaphneArts.” Angelika then concludes, “There is a connection between them in their work.”

DaphneArt: We Are No One
DaphneArts Gallery: We Are No One

And this is clearly evident in the pieces displayed on the ground and lower floor of the 3-storey gallery. Nude images they may be, but it is the emotional content which strikes the observer, rather than any statement of sensuality or nudity. The emotive resonance in the pieces continues through to the upper floor of the gallery, where Sheldon has a series of his RL drawings on display, and the complimentary approach to the subject matter is clearly in evidence between his work and that of Jamie and Joslyn.

We Are No Open is a powerful exhibition, and should be running through until at least mid-April, possibly a little longer. It marks the first in an ongoing series of such events at DaphneArts which will see Sheldon and Angelika inviting artist who they feel match their approach to art to display at the gallery – and potentially collaborate with them on joint exhibitions.

DaphneArt: SheldonBR's work
DaphneArts Gallery: SheldonBR’s work

I  know that on the strength of this exhibit, I’m looking forward to making return visits to DaphneArts, and reporting on future exhibitions held there.

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Shorelines and Solitudes in Second Life

Posted on by Inara Pey
Holly Kai Art Garden - Shorelines and Solitudes
Holly Kai Art Garden – Shorelines and Solitudes

Currently open at Holly Garden Art Garden is a joint exhibition by Derry McMahon and Bear Silvershade.

Shorelines and Solitudes presented on the Art Terraces in Holly Kai Garden, features the contrasting but complimentary styles of Derry and Bear. For her Down the Shore Everything’s All Right exhibit, Derry presents a series of colour images of shorelines and coastal scenes. Bear, meanwhile, offers some more of his stunning monochrome images under the title Solitudes.

“When I began work on this exhibit, it was cold dark winter,” Derry says of her exhibit. “I wanted very much to be at my happy place – by the water; but there were snow storms and flooding and other nasty weather events. Second Life gave me the answer. Plenty of lovely warm pretty beaches to photograph.  As Bruce says in his Jersey Girl song:  …down the shore everything’s all right…   It’s true!   I hope you enjoy!”

Shorelines and solitude: Derry McMahon
Holy Kai Garden – Shorelines and solitude: Derry McMahon

Derry started in Second Life in 2007, initially working as an event coordinator and DJ at the West of Ireland. In 2008, she founded, as librarian and storyteller, the West of Ireland Library, which is today known as Seanchai Library. More recently, she retired from the Library and started to focus on her creativity as a photographer, exploring this virtual world with camera in hand, working hard to develop her skills and create expressive images that revel in the interplay of colour, light and form, and now tells her stories via images instead of words.

The images selected for the Holly Kai Garden exhibit offer us a tour of the shorelines and waterfronts of many picturesque regions in Second Life, each of them demonstrating Derry’s eye for detail and rich in her love of vibrant colour. each really does tell its own story – although I confess, I was very drawn into Seagull Seats, which had me contemplating who might have strolled along the pier under the gaze of the seagull, or sat in the seats to be found along it and what their thoughts might have been…

Holly Kai Garden: Shorelines and Solitudes - Derry McMahon
Holly Kai Garden: Shorelines and Solitudes – Derry McMahon

“Jean-Paul Sarte one said, ‘if you’re lonely when you’re alone, you’re in bad company’, and loneliness and solitude are two different sides of the same coin, with isolation being their common thread.” Bear notes in introducing his exhibit. “But while loneliness brings wretched feelings of estrangement and something missing. Solitude, though, is a chance to explore our inner selves,  our passions, or just enjoy the tranquillity of union with the universe.”

A photojournalist by profession , Bear discovered Second Life by chance towards the end of 2010 after what he refers to as “getting twitchy three days into a ‘relaxing’ vacation. Enthralled by a world by a world where there is no limit to creativity and imagination, he has taken the traditional tools of the landscape photographer and uses them to abstract the line and form of Second Life, distilling its complexity into elegant, evocative imagery.

Holly Kai Garden: Shorelines and Solitudes - Bear Silvershade
Holly Kai Garden: Shorelines and Solitudes – Bear Silvershade

I confess that I’ve always had a deep admiration for Bear’s work. His monochrome images are, to me, some of the most emotive art I’ve witnessed in Second Life, the imagery always matched by a powerful and appropriate title, such as evidenced with his Lonely Man series – and now with Solitudes.

Each of the images Bear has selected for Holly Kai Garden offers a rich, layered narrative which contrast yet complements the monochrome approach taken to it. The framing of each piece is exquisite to the point where it is impossible to remain simply an observer; one becomes a part of the story being told, a witness to the private thoughts of the sole subject (Bear himself) who appears in some of the pictures.

Holly Kai Garden: Shorelines and Solitudes - Bear Silvershade
Holly Kai Garden: Shorelines and Solitudes – Bear Silvershade

Together, Down the Shore Everything’s All Right and Solitudes are a perfect pairing of styles and images, and it is an absolute delight to have Derry and Bear exhibiting Shorelines and Solitudes as the second Art at the Garden series at Holly Kai Park through until Tuesday, April 5th.

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The universes of Barry Richez in Second Life

Posted on by Inara Pey
Retrospective Barry Richez
Retrospective Barry Richez

Open through until the end of March 2016 is Retrospective: Barry Richez, an expansive exhibit reflecting the vast catalogue of work by this expressive artist, who works in both 2D and 3D.

Barry opens his introduction to the exhibit with the words, “Welcome to my Universe,” and thus we are thrust into an environment with a distinctly science-fiction edge to it, in which he has framed his work for visitors to appreciate.

Retrospective Barry Richez
Retrospective Barry Richez

This is actually a journey through three “universes” of art, undertaken via teleport, with the artist recommending visitors proceed through each in teleport order from the arrival point (teleport 01), with station 02 – 11 taking visitors through the Centaurus galaxy, stations 12 – 14 through the Tourbillon galaxy, and 15 – 20 though the Sombrero galaxy.

Station 19 is worth an additional note, as it offers a special exhibition of art by Barry’s partner Lou Robinson, in what I believe is her first public exhibition.  The remaining stations are also split into two groups, with 21 through 25 presenting “relaxation places” with Tai Chi, meditation, and dancing, while 26 – 28 teleport visitors to additional poseball spaces in each of the three galaxies, where they can simply float around, meditate or observe.

Retrospective Barry Richez
Retrospective Barry Richez

For maximum impact, visitors should set their viewer to midnight and make sure particles are enabled. I’d also recommend Barry’s suggestion of running through the teleport stations in numerical order as far as station 20, and then perhaps taking more of a random look around.

The sculptures on display tend to be one per level, and some offer opportunities for interaction. The 2D art is displayed in a more gallery-like form, and everything is presented against a galactic backdrop of turning stars, the spaces filled with planets, space ships and space stations (some of which can also be explored at which may contain little treats of their own) alongside of the art.

Retrospective Barry Richez - Lou Robinson
Retrospective Barry Richez – Lou Robinson

This is a fascinating trip through the art and mind of the artist; the items on display a veritable kaleidoscope, but in terms of the use of colour and the narrative in the pieces on display, some of which share a gentle humour with the visitor, while others challenge our thinking. The inclusion of Lou Robinson’s art adds a further touch to the exhibition, and has certainly left me hoping we’ll be seeing more of her work in the future; Her fractal images are captivating.

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The Good Days for art in Second Life

Posted on by Inara Pey
The Good Days: Immersed by Hillany Schofield
The Good Days: Immersed by Hillany Schofield

Friend and artist GoodCross recently opened a gallery of his own – and my sincere apologies to him for getting to this post later than intended. For it’s inaugural exhibition, The Good Days features Immersed by Hills (Hillany Schofield).

“Immersed is  an exhibition about the duality of being an insular individual in a world of contexts, interests, opinions, rules,” Hills says of the exhibit. “Whether it is the so-called ‘real life’ or this, our ‘second life’.”

The Good Days: Immersed by Hillany Schofield
The Good Days: Immersed by Hillany Schofield

Around the walls of the gallery space are nine large format monochromatic pieces  depicting uniform female mannequins all striking very similar poses to one another, with the exception of one individual, who is in a strikingly different pose. In a tenth image, which adds a subtle splash of colour, the single figure of an avatar hangs in repose, floating over the floor. Finally, over the central area of the gallery, a slowly rotating box displays two monochrome and two colour images of avatars, either alone or posing before the mannequin-like figures.

The juxtaposition of individuality and living within a world of contexts is clearly expressed in each image; the individual or contrasting figures in each piece a manifestation of the former, the groupings of mannequins presenting the latter.  “We find safety, community and acceptance,” Hills says of our desire to find context among peers, the similarities expressed by the mannequins, “But we also stumble, fall, feel trapped and isolated.”

The Good Days: Immersed by Hillany Schofield
The Good Days: Immersed by Hillany Schofield

“So what do we do? We break out, we question ourselves, we go back with the flow. Or we try to dance away the pain.” And thus the individual figures express these latter responses – as do visitors to Immersed. To enter the exhibition space, we must walk between the mannequins, becoming the expression of the individual in their world of contexts, opinions and rules.

Immersed will remain at The Good Days through most of March, with GoodCross planning to hold monthly exhibits in the gallery.

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