Category: Reviews

Now open at The Eye Arts, operated by Wan (Wan Laryukov) is a new exhibition of photography by the magnificent Hermes Kondor. Offered under the joint title of The Museum (The Visitors), it is a collection of Hermes’ work from the physical world that could also be called Watching the Watchers.

Spread across the two floors of the gallery is a series of black-and-white photograph that offer a unique take on a visit to a museum that Hermes explains thus:

I passed a few days in the Gulbenkian Museum in Lisbon, seeing how people react and behave in the presence of Art and Beauty. Some stop, look and enjoy it, others sit in front of it, looking deeply into the details trying to find the hidden magic and beauty of each piece of Art. Quite a lot, with ‘phone in hand take photos of every work, keeping it in a memory card for later enjoyment.

– Hermes Kondor

The gallery is home to what is regarded as one of the most important private collections of art in the world, that of Calouste Sarkis Gulbenkian. Comprising some 6,000 pieces covering 5,000 of human civilisation, it includes 2D and 3D art representing Egyptian, Greco-Roman, Mesopotamian, Islamic Oriental, Armenian, and Oriental history, as well as westen art which in includes sculptures, the art of the book, paintings and one of the most extensive collections or pieces by the French glass artist René Lalique, from whom Gulbenkian personally commissioned 140 individual items.

Given this, the halls of the museum offer a considerable amount to see and appreciate – and, as Hermes notes, captivate those who visit. As such, it is a rich source of material for the skilled photographer, and Hermes demonstrates this to the full in the images gathered in this collection.

These are a remarkable set of studies in human nature and behaviour, the use of monochrome giving them a timeless edge that perfectly fits the historical context of the museum and the collection within it.

The richness of human interactions – direct and indirect – found within these images cannot be overstated. Within them we find multiple expressions of how we interact with art and one another; from the unconscious use of stance – leaning forward or backwards whilst studying a painting – to the close inspections Hermes mentions and the manner in which phones are being used; even the manner in which some interactions can take place seemingly without awareness for those around us, caught as we are within our own social group, is perfectly reflected in some.

For me, what makes these pictures especially captivating is the fact that they have often been taken without the awareness of the subjects within them. Thus, there is a natural vigor about them that gives the museum itself a vitality of life. In addition, this approach allows the pictures to be presented as a most unique series of studies into the human body as a statement of art.

As well as the individual images being available for purchase, Hermes has also collected them together as a book that can be purchased at the reception desk on the lower floor, allowing visitors to keep a memento of the exhibition.

SLurl Details

• The Eye Arts (Gigli Waves, rated Moderate)

Recently opened in Second Life is a new region design by and Fred Hamilton (frecoi) and Lotus Mastroianni. Beira da Ribeira (roughly translated at “border river” or “riverside border”) is a lush forest setting strongly suggestive of the Amazon rain forest that is both simple in presentation and yet layered in potential message.

Cut into three main and unequal parts by the passage of water, the region’s two larger landmasses are home to a rich rain forest style environment – tall trees offering high canopies that leave the land below so in shade that little else has the opportunity to gain either the height of the trees or the density of their foliage. Instead, the ground is given over to a tangle of roots, ferns and low-lying shrubs through which natural trails speak to the passage of wildlife among the  shadows.

Between these two arms of the forest and sitting with a fork of the river, is a pair of islands, the larger of the two forming the third principal land mass. It  is separated from the smaller island suggests by a shallow channel of water that suggests they were once joined, but have separated perhaps as a result of rising waters – perhaps the result of seasonal rains.

That rainfall  is liable to be a factor here is shown by the fact that the little village that has grown on these islands (and extends along one bank of the river) is raised up on long-legged platforms. Made of rough-cut boards, it comprises simple houses and structures  made of whatever materials came to hand: wood, corrugated metal, clay tiles …

Those who built the village appear to live off the waters around them and responsibly use available timbers for their boats and buildings (the logos around the town indicate the villagers are licensed to use local wood), while their lifestyle presents a curious mix: the buildings are all clearly hand-made, somewhat makeshift, but they are not without modern amenities: a generator sits on one palette, providing power together with the solar panels located at the far end of the village. Also, a row of water butts are racked over the generator, apparently drawing clean, drinkable water from somewhere well beneath the river.

Even so, and despite the power and the presence of a little café-bar, it’s fairly evident that this is not a wealthy place; it merely sits in the passage of wealth that passes overhead in the form of microwave communications being relayed by the tall mast rising from a nearby hill. But as poor as it might appear, the village carries with it a strange sense of warmth and homeliness that is attractive.

Its presence also speaks to the changing times within the the Amazon: close by within a clearing is a trio of thatched huts that bring to mind the tribal heritage of the Amazon basin, a heritage that – thanks to the arrival of “civilisation” – has in places migrated over time to places like the riverside village, gradually adopting modern abilities as and where they can.

The landing point for the reason sits to the north-west and is a reminder of the manner in which the rain forest is being exploited  – be it for wood, to create room for agriculture or the extraction of other natural resources. It presents a tract of land entirely denuded of trees, the ground laid bare to the ravages of the wind, former tree trunks, cut and sized, either aboard ship ready for transport or piles awaiting their turn for shipment.

While it is far from clear, the float plane moored by the town might belong to those responsible for the deforestation; it’s unlikely it belongs to anyone living in the town – although it might just be responsible for bringing curious tourists to the basin, hence the café-bar with its two neatly-kept dormitory rooms.

Rich in detail – particularly throughout the village – with birds, animals and reptiles also awaiting discovery, Beira da Ribeira is a fascinating, natural setting which – as with all builds be Lotus and Fred – offer plenty of opportunities for photography.

My thanks to Shawn Shakespeare for the pointer!

SLurl Details

• Beira da Ribeira (STYX, rated Adult)