Category: Art in Second Life

Storm Septimus’ newly opened AIR-6 installation The [Void] is not, in the words of one of her friends who witnessed it being built, “a happy fun town”. But then, it’s not designed to be, as Storm explains in the comprehensive introductory notes:

The idea was to create a representation of the space that falls between waking and sleeping, but one born of an exhausted mind.

As such, this is a place where insomnia rules, and the line between reality and the imagination becomes increasingly twisted, mixing the two together the longer the condition goes on, confusing the eye and mind.

Insomnia isn’t the easiest of subjects to tackle for many reasons – the most obvious being that few of us ever suffer from it, and for those who do, it isn’t perhaps the easiest sensation to describe, even when willing to do so; particularly once it has gone on so long, our mental faculties are less than optimal unable to correctly process even the most basic sensory inputs.

This is a very dark piece – literally. If your viewer doesn’t automatically switch to the region’s default windlight, flip it over yourself to AnaLu Outdoor City Night (or failing that, Midnight, if your viewer doesn’t have a really dark option). Do bear in mind the images here have been toned-up to reveal details. The darkness is intentional; long-term insomnia is said to induce feelings of confusion, disorientation and upset, and the use of an extremely dark setting of this piece soon induces the same feelings in the visitor.

You start off boxed into a claustrophobic environment where the only sources of light coming from flickering television sets, the first of which will provide information on the installation, the rest of which appear to be literal flashes of random thought from a tired mind (and also, in places, the artist, offering words of comfort).

Nothing is linear here; movement is a case of feeling your way around, walking, falling, flying and discovering things as shapes and forms loom out of the darkness. Here and there, power cables from the different television screens snake through the murky world, offering guidance; but how much guidance rather depends.

Frustration is liable to be a common reaction to initial attempts to explore, as will be the temptation to try to “turn up the lights” with a brighter windlight. I’d encourage you to try to resist the latter and accept the former; frustration and confusion are very much a part of the experience, as noted above. Just stay with things, and you will find your way around. Remember, as per the hints card, touch is an important part of the experience, and keys and a heart play important roles in moving you between the various levels of the piece, which range from high in the sky, right down to beneath the waves and back again (the last being the one genuinely bright element o the exhibit).

Symbolism is strong throughout the piece, such as with the aforementioned televisions. Poppies are also much in evidence here as well, unsurprisingly given their link with opiates and sleep (perhaps the greatest desire of the insomniac), their association with death and remembrance (the memory of times when sleep came), and their classical links with resurrection after death (perhaps mirrored in the insomniac’s mind as their awakening after that hoped-for deep and peaceful sleep they long to experience).

This is a quite powerful piece, assuming you can keep your frustration from getting the better of you – I confess, I read Honour’s post on it in the LEA blog late at night and hopped over only found my own (minor, in the scheme of things) tiredness caused me to get frustrated enough to give up first time around!

I understand from the introductory notes that some live events may be planned for The [Void]. Keep an eye on the LEA blog for details.

Related Links

• The [Void] SLurl (Rated: Moderate)

Earlier in March, I previewed The Creature from the Black Lagoon, Livio Oak Korobase’s AIR-6 installation at LEA-11. This is a wonderful homage to the old 1950s B-movies, primarily focused upon (but by no means limited to) Bill Arnold’s 1954 film of the same name, together with a nod to a number of other great classics of the silver screen.

Since my initial preview, Livio has been hard at work, adding to the piece, and things are now ready for a formal opening. Eupalinos Ugajin gave me a nudge to make sure I remind people of this :).

Things will kick-off on Saturday March 15th at 13:00, with a party (Livio informs me the Creature loves to party!), with music by Dj Violette Oakleaf), which will feature a playlist described as “unknown, but sure to be a nice surprise!”

Those attending are asked to come suitably dressed for the occasion and in keeping with the nature of the installation, and Eupalinos jokingly informs me that any humans showing up may be subject to being eaten by any one of the creatures inhabiting the region – so consider yourself warned!

Related Links

• The Creature from the Black Lagoon SLurl (Rated: General)

There have been some ambitious art installations displayed at the LEA; some have been elaborate, some have been fantastical, some have been immersive, some have been mysterious, some have been slightly disturbing, and some have been challenging to the eye and to the mind.

At LEA12, as a part of the Artist in Resident series, theoxyz (Thomm Pye) combines all of the above, from ambitious undertaking through to challenging the eye and the mind, as he seeks to present a 3D interpretation of The Garden of Earthly Delights by Hieronymus Bosch.

The painting, dating from between 1490 and 1510, is regarded as Bosch’s most ambitious complete work, and one which experts and commentators have struggled to interpret over the centuries.

A triptych in form, the original comprises a central square panel with a rectangular “wing” on either side, each of which is hinged to close over the main panel. When closed, these show a grisaille painting of the biblical Creation. When open, the side panels offer two distinct images, the one on the left showing God presenting Eve to Adam, and the one to the right depicting the torments of hell.

It is the central, square panel which forms the main focus for the LEA12 installation, and it is also the panel which has caused the most debate among scholars as to its intended meaning. It is believed that the painting is designed to be read from left to right, and so the central panel has most frequently been interpreted as a warning of the perils of temptation. However, it is also seen as possible representation of paradise lost.

Within LEA12, the major elements from this central panel are represented, but so to are elements form the other two panels (perhaps most noticeably the panel on the right), all of which come together to provide a unique interpretation of the original, which is not in any way intended to be an accurate reproduction, as theoxyz points out in the welcoming notes.

There are two structures within the installation which are not a direct part of any interpretation of the painting. The first, reached via steps leading up from the piece, presents a copy of the Bosch’s triptych together with theoxyz’s own interpretation of its meaning, and which also includes pictures of some of the elements of the original alongside images of their representations within the installation. Follow a glass walkway to the second structure, a dome set above a part of the work, and you’ll find links to additional resources about the painting, including a BBC documentary.

As noted above, theoxyz indicates that the installation is not intended to be a 3D representation of Bosch’s original piece, but rather a reflection of the painting’s surrealist atmosphere. This is something which is, to my mind at least, achieved in spades.

Related Links

• The Garden of Earthly Delights, LEA12 SLurl (Rated: General)

Earlier in the week, I dropped in to LEA13 and Xineohp Guisse’s The {Lost} Garden of Sundarya Lahari, his mythology-in-the-making, and the first part of which I visited on February 9th.

At the time I dropped in, the second chapter of the tale was being installed – most notably, a huge creature rising from the sea, but the book had not been updated, so I tiptoed away to wait to see what transpired.

I didn’t have long to wait, as a couple of days later, Honour McMillan and I bumped into one another exploring Cica Ghost’s Little Village, and Honour dropped me a note card containing chapter 2 of story. Even so, it wasn’t until this weekend that I managed to hop back over to see what else had been added.

In the first part of the story, we learned how the Ancients discovered a kind of reed capable of resonating a sound frequency when touched. Harvesting the reeds, the Ancients used them in a meditative and spiritual garden. When the Ancients discovered a symbiote, which they called the Pentapuss, and which fed off the sound waves made by the reeds, they created biospheres in which to nurture juvenile Pentapuss, helping them to reach maturity.

And so the story was told; that many moons had passed, and the Ancients had built their garden of tranquility – a place of musical beauty providing solace and much enjoyment.

So opens the second chapter of The {Lost} Garden, which continues:

A wondrous creature rose from the waters one day. With fear in their hearts and in haste, the Ancients captured and killed the “beast”.

The Ancients realised, that in their foolish haste, they had killed the mother to the creatures they had so lovingly nurtured, and that Mother had only arisen from the depth of the blue waters to the call of her younglings.

So the Ancients built the Mechanicum – to keep mother alive so that her species live on …

It is the Mechanicum that forms the great sea-beast rising from the waters near the Garden’s arrival point. Beneath it lies a wondrous underwater garden, which can be reached either by stepping off the side of the walkways leading from the arrival point, or by falling up to the headless maw of the creature and then walking down through it.

This latter route will see you fall through an organ which appears to be laying eggs. More of these eggs are cradled in shell-like cups. Rolling around the seabed beneath these are young Pentapuss, while swimming around them are one-eyes larvae which occasionally penetrate the eggs, causing them to glow. Around all, nutritional spores fall from the mother-beast and rise from the eggs.

The symbolism evident in the eggs and the swimming creatures is clear  – and quite visual, given the nature of the texturing on the eggs themselves. It’s also entirely intentional, given that this represents the birthplace of the symbiotic Pentapuss. Photos alone actually don’t do the Mechanicum or the undersea scenes justice; there is far too much movement and changes of colour for a still image to capture; rather, it is best witnessed and experienced.

More chapters of the story are due to be added in the coming months. In the meantime, if you have not already done so, I do urge that you visit The {Lost} Garden; it really is visually stunning.

Related Links

• The {Lost} Garden of Sundarya Lahari SLurl (Rated: General)