Virtual Rhyming is a small, semi-interactive exhibition of Second Life photography and poetry by Sunset Quinnell and Guerreira Xue (Brazilian social media writer Hilda Milk in the physical world), two friends in both the virtual virtual and physical worlds. It features nine images by Sunset flanked on either side by a poem in both Portuguese and in English by Guerreira.
I took the photos in different locations in Second Life, then sent them to Guerreira so she could see them fresh and be inspired to write about them.
– Sunset Quinnell, describing the process behind the exhibition
Virtual Rhyming, November 2019
The nine images with their accompanying poems are grouped into set of three, with one set focused on NevaCrystall’s Borneo; one set on Kekeland – Bardeco by Terry Fotherington and Bridget Genna and, between them, a triplet of pieces focused on the arts, and featuring pieces by Bryn Oh, Cherry Managa and Kicca Igally and Nessuno Myoo.
The approach of Sunset taking the photos and sending them to Guerreira, rather than them both visiting the locations together, perhaps gives the poems an extra level of sensitivity, approaching as they do each piece not just in terms of interpreting the scene presented, but possibly Sunset’s mood in taking the pictures. Thus, there is something of a personal sensitivity present in both words and images.
Virtual Rhyming, November 2019
For those who are curious, seven the pieces have interactive elements: just click on the sign below them and follow the instructions that come up in local chat (in both Portuguese and English). These offer a mix of activities intended for a little fun, rather than necessarily adding to the interpretation for the image / poem.
Fusion is a Full region that features an urban setting of distinctly Japanese looks, complete with some stunning wall paintings which are, I believe, also Elizabeth’s own work. Located on a sky platform, the setting is a lot smaller than the area for a region, but there is a lot packed into it to keep visitors engaged.
Fusion, November 2019
Such is the size of build, a blow-by-blow description is perhaps overkill; from the landing point, situated within a concrete block of a building that offers the opportunity to join the local group (L$500 fee, rezzing rights granted), it is easy to find one’s way around the town, given the buildings are set around a series of small roads.
Which is not to say there is nothing to see; this is a place where attention to detail has produced a setting worth taking the time to appreciate.
Fusion, November 2019
Take, for example the marketplace just outside of the landing point building. Offering multiple food outlets, it points the way to a sake bar with adult overtones, but which also offers a place to sit. Eastwards, across a central square bounded on two sides by apartment houses is a school with furnished classrooms, playground and general facilities.
To the west, the town gives way to a ribbon of countryside sitting between buildings and cliff-like surround. This offers a haven of peace from the possible hustle of the city. Water tumbles from the north end of this reach, feeding a stream that flows rapidly south to enter a large pool. With a opportunity to fish and places to sit and appreciate the view. it offers a place of sanctuary typical of many a town or city environment, giving Fusion a further sense of reality.
Fusion, November 2019
With plenty of opportunities for avatar photography, Fusion makes for an engaging visit that does not over-tax one system, but offers opportunities for discovery, all wrapped in a gentle sound scape. Recommended.
They do so by bringing together artists, galleries, event organisers, musicians and speakers in a multi-faceted, art-centric season intended to focus on the levels of physical, sexual and psychological violence that are specifically directed towards women and girls around the globe, and raise awareness of the need to put an end to what is one of the most widespread, persistent and devastating human rights violations in our world today.
Some of the facts surrounding violence against women are horrifying:
1 in 3 women and girls experience physical or sexual violence in their lifetime, most frequently by an intimate partner.
1 in 2 women killed worldwide were killed by their partners or family in 2012; while only 1 out of 20 men were killed under similar circumstances.
Only 52% of women married or in a union freely make their own decisions about sexual relations, contraceptive use and health care.
Worldwide, almost 750 million women and girls alive today were married before their 18th birthday, and often in force / arranged marriages, including in countries such as the United States where between 2000 and 2010, more than 167,000 children — almost all of them girls, some as young 12 — were married in 38 states, mostly to men 18 or older.
200 million women and girls have undergone female genital mutilation (FGM).
71% of all human trafficking victims worldwide are women and girls, and 3 out of 4 of these women and girls are sexually exploited.
In the past, the 2Lei exhibitions for November had tended to be focused on a full region installation at the Linden Endowment for the Arts. However, this year, 2Lei is presenting a range of exhibitions across the grid – something that is allowing a far greater cross-section of artists to participate. In all, seven separate galleries are hosting 2Lei exhibitions, featuring around fifty 2D and 3D artists.
Listing all fifty participating artists here would be somewhat tedious for those reading this article. Fortunately, the event is supported by detailed note cards, one of which provides a breakdown of artists by location, and which includes landmarks both to each of the participating galleries and directly to individual art displays.
To further assist getting around, 2Lei provide a teleport HUD that will page you through galleries and artists. Clicking on the HUD when displaying a specific artist / gallery will open the World Map, allowing you to teleport directly to them. Both the HUD and the note card of locations / artists makes visits to exhibits through the various locations exceptionally easy.
Also provided is a note card listing all of the associated events throughout November and December, which includes music events, special openings of specific exhibitions, plus talks and discussions on the subject of violence against women and girls. These will take place at Black Label Exhibition Corner and urban city as follows (all times SLT):
Tuesday, November 19th, 22.00 – 01.00: Meeting with Flavia Solo, author of From Dream to Fear, with Arcantes Moyet and Jos Bookmite.
Thursday, November 21st 22.00 – 01.00: Red code and feminicide crime– Word to the lawyer, with Rosanna Zabelin and Ortensia Zahm
Monday, November 25th 22.00 – 01.00: – The work of anti-violence centres, a meeting featuring Grazia Rossi with Ortensia Zahm and Kristine Blackadder.
The overall length of the 2019 2Lei No Violence season means that there is plenty of time to visit all of the participating gallery spaces and witnessing the art and / or joining with events. With all things being equal, I hope to return to some of the exhibitions over the duration of season and provide a more detailed look at them.
In the meantime, I do urge people to take the time to appreciate the extraordinary art on offer, and absorb the messages against violence they contain.
A year after his last return to DiXmiX Gallery, Kimeu Korg currently has an exhibition there – at least for a while longer, as it opened at the start of November.
Osmosis De Un Sueño (Osmosis of the dream”) is something of a “continuing” theme with Kimeu’s work exhibited at DiXimX, the “first part” of which appeared in June 2018 (see Colour, whimsy and monochrome in Second Life, June 2018), with the second part appearing in the aforementioned November 2018 exhibition (see: Kimeu Korg: a return to DiXmiX in Second Life).
I’ve always found Kimeu’s work to be be among the most visually expressive and often surreal art to be found in Second Life – and this is very much on display in this exhibition, which features a wonderful mix of Kimeu’s Second Life art and physical world paintings, all of which have a delightful twist of humour within them.
DiXmiX Gallery: Kimeu Korg
As I’ve previously noted in writing about Kimeu’s work, he often warns those visiting his work not to “burn your mind thinking about the meaning of this or that in my works,” before continuing, “but if you think there are symbols and hidden messages, feel free to imagine. Go any way the wind blows!”
In the case of this exhibition, the humour within the dozen pieces offered here very much speaks for itself. Take Mug of Coffee for example – who can honestly say that they haven’t felt like that first thing in the morning, or after a long day at work? However, at least one does speak to something deeper: The Border, has imagery that would appear to comment on the controversy of the United States’ southern border and the Trump administration’s immigration policies.
DiXmiX Gallery: Kimeu Korg
This is another series of images worth taking the time to see. When viewing it, visitors might like to avail themselves to the two other exhibits currently on offer at the gallery at the time of writing this piece. By Mrs. S and Natsumi Xenga, these are altogether more adult / NSFW in nature, touching as they do on themes of sexuality, eroticism and BDSM. They can be found in the gallery’s Grey hall (with the main entrance) and the upper White Gallery.
Also, those going to The Womb,, directly below the gallery’s main halls can find Theda Tamas’ 3D piece utilising Animesh, Dancing In Between.
Alia Baroque is one of Second Life’s foremost fantasy designers. His avatars, clothing, and accessories for fantasy role-play in SL are legendary – as are his region builds for each year’s Fantasy Faire. His base of operations in-world has been – and remains- a set of regions focused on his in-world store at Selidor, which had additionally been places for exploration and photography.
I mention this because Annie Brightstar brought to my attention the fact that Alia has decided to retire Annon, one of his regions and a well-known setting in Second Life, and will be doing so at the end of Sunday, November, 17th 2019; so I decided to hop across to take a last look.
Annon, a homestead region, is the home of The Tower Gate of Annon and Flowing Monastery. It’s a place I’ve visited on numerous occasions – although I’ve only actually blogged about once, far back in 2012. It’s also a place with a long history, dating back to 2010.
Annon, November 2019
The Tower Gate originated as a build for the 2010 RFL of SL weekend, and was constructed in just 7 days. A prim build, it is has been standing guard over the Fallen Gods regions largely unchanged since being relocated. Alongside of it, just across the water, sit the Flowing Monastery, another prim build sitting atop a rugged knuckle of and island. But for a single blossoming tree in the cloister, the monastery is an empty building, lending a haunting beauty to it and the island on which it sits. The Tower Gate, however, offers multiple points of interest for those exploring its halls.
As Alia notes, both builds have stood for almost a decade, almost unchanged through the years – and certainly untouched by Alia for around half of that time. Thus, while they are in some ways monuments to Second Life’s history, they are also something that now sit outside of his Second Life vision. So, he plans to retire the builds to inventory before returning the regions to Linden Lab on November 20th, 2019.
Annon, November 2019
In retiring the region, Alia has emphasised hie is doing so not because of issues with tier or anything like it, nor does he wish to have donations made towards their possible upkeep or enquiries about purchasing them, noting:
They need to go to allow Selidor and Athan to flourish and be reborn …I am not interested in selling them or any contribution for their extended existence, the tip jar was always there so it won’t make a difference as I take this choice happily and without regrets. So please, if anyone has a sudden moment of making a fund-raiser thinking I am doing this because of a dire need, don’t.
I hope you enjoyed it until now and will remember the region with fondness, happy memories and longing, but I also hope you will be excited to see the new rebuild and update of the rest of the Archipelagos of Fallen Gods that I plan, hopefully soon.
– Alia Baroque, November 13th, 2019
Annon, November 2019
Those who wish to pay a last visit to Annon are encouraged to do so before the end of November 17th, 2019 (SLT). In addition, those who can are invited to join a Fantasy Faire LitFest tour of the region that will start at 14:00 SLT on Sunday.
Frogmore, November 2019 – click any image for full size
We first visited Frogmore in August 2019, when it was located on a Homestead region. It has now relocated to a Full region that includes the full region land capacity bonus, and we were invited back to take a further look at the expanded setting by Bengta’s SL partner, Atze Boucher.
In the original build, Frogmore offered a focused interpretation of a childhood in Öregrund, Sweden. with the new Full region installation, that focus is broadened somewhat, with Bengta and Atza noting, ” we share with you a touch of life in Sweden and the magic that is Scandinavia”. This has resulted in a location that blends much of what will likely be familiar to those who visited the original Frogmore with much that is new, thus presenting a setting that carries with it a sense of returning to a familiar place in life, whilst also offer more opportunities for exploration and discovery.
Frogmore, November 2019
For those who have visited previously, that sense of familiarity is imbued on arrival: the cinder road is still there, forming the landing point and pointing the way between wooden buildings sitting on a narrow waterfront with the sea on one side and rugged steps of hills on the other. The ocean-facing wharves are still there as well, but a walk along the road will reveal that the buildings fronting them have been a little thinned out, before the road arrives not at a rocky headland, but at a large harbour market that may well be past its prime.
I say “past its prime”, because the main pier looks to be in need of repair, and the waters next to it don’t appear that welcoming to fishing boats (there’s even a poor piano caught in the detritus floating there), while the buildings on the headland look tired, with a couple now given over to entertainment, rather than serving market buyers with fish and produce. Even what might have been a large, solid warehouse looks to be in the process of being re-purposed as a art gallery.
Frogmore, November 2019
Elsewhere, other familiar sites await discovery. The rocky stream bubbling its way through one of the original setting’s two main islands, and which drew my attention during or first visit is still waiting to be found – although I don’t recall it being blocked off at both ends.
Other familiar elements include the need to scramble over rocks to get from place to place in some part of the region, which can give a sense of being on a hike when exploring, while the oyster bar still stills above that main cinder-topped road.
Frogmore, November 2019
The move to a Full region has also allowed for expansion, with several new areas appearing in the new design. There are coastal camping cabins, inland paths switch-backing through the landscape between rocky spines and hills, leaping narrow brooks with the aid of bridges and fallen tree trunks. An old cable-car system runs somewhat diagonally across the largest island, while the two smaller island to the north and east show signs of more occupation that I recall from our August visit.
All of this makes the “new” Frogmore – or as Atze termed it to me, “Frogmore 2.0” – well worth exploration, as there is so much that is new – including multiple new spaces to sit on your own, share with friends or experience a little intimacy with a lover. However, it does come with a caveat: perhaps a little too much has been packed into the region in terms of unique textures and volume of mesh, as a visit can really impact viewer performance if you have options such as shadows enabled or have a mid-to-high draw distance (e.g. 120m or more).
Frogmore, November 2019
I also found the issue of the region surround taking time to render to be apparent here (an issue I experienced and other commented on with the original Frogmore). In my case it took some 70-80 minutes for the surround to pop into view, hence why it is absent in the majority of images here – all of which were taken in that time period. I’ve no idea how common this issue might be with this build – but a lack of the surround doesn’t unduly spoil the region’s looks.
However, those points noted (both of which can be dealt with by either ignoring the surround, or by making some adjustments to the viewer), the new Frogmore is as photogenic as the original. Those who do take photos are invited to submit them to the Frogmore Flickr group.
Inara Pey: Living in a Modemworld 