Category: Reviews

Studies in light and shadow, and Photopoetry in Second Life

Posted on by Inara Pey
Gallery Asaki Yume Mishi, Jan / Feb 2024: Noa Cloud – Photopoetry

I recently had the opportunity to visit two small and very different art exhibitions presented by two diverse creative talents in Second Life; and while they are entirely unrelated in terms of their visual composition and content, both appealed to me in such a way that writing about both within a single article struck me as not unreasonable.

The first is a very modest – I wish it were more extensive! – exhibition by Noa Cloud, presented at the Gallery Asaki Yume Mishi, which has a novel underwater setting. Noa is perhaps best known amongst SL explorers as the holder and creator of [REN], with its seasonal designs and opportunities for photography (and which is also the home of his own gallery); however, he is also a gifted writer, a musician and actor, and an explorer of Second Life as well as an expressive photographer of both avatars and Second Life landscapes.

Gallery Asaki Yume Mishi, Jan / Feb 2024: Noa Cloud – Photopoetry

Within Photopoetry, Noa combines both his writing and his photography both directly and indirectly. Directly, because within the selection of pieces is a slideshow featuring all six of the presented pieces taken from around Second Life, each with its own single-stanza poem presented in both Japanese and English. As I don’t speak Japanese myself, I cannot say of they all form traditional Haiku, but the flow of their English metre suggests they are free-form Haiku (which do not necessary follow the 5-7-5 on), and each certainly has an implied kigo.

Indirectly, because while the combination of each image with a poem leans the observer into a line of thought suggested by the poet-artist, Noa also includes the six pieces individually around the gallery space (and within the slideshow prior to its accompanying poem gently fading-in), allowing visitors to view them free from any suggestion of rhyme and meaning. Thus, each piece is able to speak to us in its own right – and there is much each has to say; Noa’s photography carries within it a mix of homage to Nature’s beauty – often combined with a sense of spiritual reflection or uplift – together with a hint of mystery or social commentary, all of which makes for a thoroughly engaging visit.

Nitroglobus Roof Galley Annex: Frank Atisso – Shadows and Strength

Frank Atisso is also well-known within Second Life. He was the founder of the Art Kornersl blog which later morphed into the Art Korner Exhibits HUD and the Art & Photography Calendar. He also founded the Art Korner Gallery and currently co-runs the Artsville Hub, exhibitions at both of which have been, and continue to be, featured within this blog. And if that weren’t enough, Frank also keeps himself busy as a DJ in-world! However, his work as a photographer is something which may be less well known, and so his exhibition at the Annex of Dido Haas’ Nitroglobus Roof Gallery offers an excellent opportunity for those who have not done so to acquaint themselves with it.

Entitled Shadows of Strength, this is an exhibition of male semi-nudes (something of a rare subject in SL!) which are specifically designed to explore the complex interplay of light and shadow within photography. Presented as chiaroscuro greyscale pieces, the nine images comprising Shadows of Strength are on a technical level a perfect embodiment of the technique: using bold contrasts (light / dark) to frame the entire composition and achieve a sense of volume and depth in modelling three-dimensional objects and figures within a two-dimensional canvas.

Nitroglobus Roof Galley Annex: Frank Atisso – Shadows and Strength

However, these are pieces that achieve for more than a technical embodiment of a technique. Such is the subtle interplay of contrasting light and dark in all their varying volumes and as determined by the subject’s pose and the positioning of the (off-camera) illumination, the eyes is naturally drawn to the manner in which both light and shadow ebb and flow across the subject, both of them giving subtle emphasis in their own way to changing skin and muscles tone which also highlighting features and hiding others to give an intrinsic and life-giving depth to each piece.

Thus, within each of these pieces we have not only a single-frame study of the human form and the use of light and shadow, but also an exploration of mood, thought, emotion, even vulnerability (particularly in those images where the subject is not looking at or towards the camera), conveyed as narrative threads to further engage the eye and mind.

Nitroglobus Roof Galley Annex: Frank Atisso – Shadows and Strength

Both Photopoetry and Shadows of Strength will remain open through February 2024, and I recommend both to fellow patrons of the arts in Second Life.

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Dreaming in Oblivion in Second Life

Posted on by Inara Pey
Oblivion, January 2024 – click any image for full size

There are many beautiful regions in Second Life presenting all manner of settings and environments and put together with care and love for the enjoyment and appreciate those who visit them. It has been my privilege and joy to visit many of them over the years, and to write about them. Some have faded away with the passage of time, but remain in photos and memory; others are reinvented periodically to offer something new and enchanting or mysterious or fun to visit, and some – and their designers – have become established in a growing catalogue of places I regard as personal favourites; places I will happily revisit time and again.

One such region was that of Winter Moon, a place I visited on several occasions between 2013 and 2020 and wrote about on three of them. A Homestead region held and designed by Dream Shadowcry, it was always a place of serene beauty and opportunities to decompress and renew. However, and for reasons unclear to me – or perhaps because the region was retired at some point; I genuinely have no idea – I lost track of Winter Moon in late 2020; so when a little bird whispered in my ear that Dream was back with a new setting (and with a new name for herself – Dream Softpaw), this time occupying a Full region, I knew I’d have to play a little catch-up.

Oblivion, January 2024

Oblivion – for that is the name of the setting – offers all that I found so attractive in Winter Moon, but with a richness of detail which can only come within a Full region’s additional Land Capacity. A veritable tour de force of design, it is – without hyperbole – simply magnificent in presenting a place that is rich in celebrating nature’s beauty; a veritable tapestry of ideas and themes deftly woven together into an engaging whole.

The “official” landing point (not actually enforced, so people can teleport out and back in anywhere within the region) sits at the southern end of a suspension bridge which appears to have been modelled after Liberty Bridge connecting Buda and Pest across the Danube. However, rather than spanning a river, here the bridge links a large sandbar occupying the south-east portion of the region with the main landmass. Also unlike its namesake, this bridge has only one suspension span, and is not a walkway in the traditional sense; rather, it is a garden space reaching out over the water to the rocky northern tip of the sandbar, where it drops down by way of steps to ain unsurfaced path leading to a grove of fir trees crowning the highest point above the surrounding sands.

Oblivion, January 2024
As well as suggesting the region enjoys a temperature rather than tropical climate, the trees lay gathered around and on the sandy hill in a manner which suggests the surrounding beaches – despite the deckchair and parasol placed close to the current water’s edge – might well be subject to periodic submergence by the tide; a suggestion additionally made by the fact the sandbar’s lone wooden deck extends out over the sands whilst raised well above them on stout timbers.

Both ends of the bridge are marked by boxwood hedge arches, with the northern end also having steps descending from it to a small headland of sand dunes matted by wild grasses, together with a beach where a large deck has been constructed, complete with a walled garden area and upon which comfortable chairs, braziers and parasols have been set out to allow visitors to relax and enjoy a cocktail or glass of wine, together with selections of fresh fruits, – just don’t sit on the furry occupants of one of the chaise lounge!

Oblivion, January 2024

Westward, and beyond another boxwood arch, the path climbs the slopes of the main island, meandering through and between grasses, ferns and wildflowers and beneath the tall fingers of high fir trees and redwoods as they form a not-too-dense woodland. Branching mid-climb, a part of the path wriggles its way to stone steps as they  slip down to a further deck, this one raised over the rocks and cliffs sitting at the landward end of the setting’s sheltered bay. Meanwhile, the rest of the trail continues upwards to run along the spine of the island, skirting the edge of a wash of lavender as it adds a splash of deep colour to the greens and browns – and even the pinks and reds of the blossoming trees sitting amongst the fir trees.

Bursting clear of the trees, the path provides access to a huge glass-and-iron greenhouse, now converted into a chandelier-hung bar, a further place to sit and relax. Beyond it, on the high headland, an eye-catching floating stage reached by wooden steps and held aloft by three large balloons as it overlooks and small and slightly overgrown dance floor to outside and the cliffs that drop away to a further beach on the other. The latter is marked by a massive rock arch which itself sits close to a final sentinel at this end of the island: a stone pavilion raised at the end of a slender finger of sand – although how you reach it is a matter for you to determine 😉 .

Oblivion, January 2024

Across the endite setting are hints of fantasy and romance gently woven into the setting to add to its beauty: a gentle voice might in places be heard singing on the breeze; an empty mausoleum has been converted to a quiet retreat; the beacon-like braziers point blades of light towards the sky; an armchair surrounded by (mostly!) quiet cattle content to simply observer whoever uses it, awaits those in a contemplative mood; a clockwork owl keeps a careful pair of eyes on the comings and goings of visitors…

Oblivion is without a doubt one of the most visually engaging, soul warming settings it has been my pleasure to explore; the depths of detail Dream has provided are wonderful to find – hence why in some cases above I’ve given hints, not directions, on what you might witness! – and the sheer natural flow form location to location is utterly sublime, while the many places to sit and share or rest in solitude further add to region’s welcome – and increase the desire to spend time within it.

Oblivion, January 2024

Simply outstanding.

SLurl Details

  • Oblivion (Avalon Shores, rated Moderate)

A Bloom of Flowers of Evil in Second Life

Posted on by Inara Pey
SLEA6: Bloom: Flowers of Evil, January 2024

Lalie Sorbet invited me to visit her latest collaborative piece – working with Chrix (chrixbed) – entitled Bloom: Flowers of Evil, and which is currently open to visitors at the Second Life Endowment for the Arts. A dynamic installation built around what I understand to be a scripted particle system of their own design (and called, appropriately, Bloom), mixed with 2-dimensional elements also under scripted management.

The result is a hard-to-define but infinitely beautiful series of collages-in-motion, centred on a 3D element of standing stones and a “starfish” which looks to be an elegant star-like piece of lava. Close by is an upright piano atop which a female form reclines and with an arc of benches with singles and couples poses ranged before it, allowing people to sit and appreciate the particle display.

SLEA6: Bloom: Flowers of Evil, January 2024

The artists state that the installation is inspired by the works of French art critic, poet and essayist, Charles Baudelaire – the title being the English translation of what is regarded as his most famous volume of work, Fleur du Mal, first published in 1857. The original volume, with its focus on decadence, eroticism, sexuality, original sin and death, caused a considerable stir when it first appeared, with six of its poems leading to Baudelaire and his publisher being prosecuted for “creating an offense against public morals”, resulting in both being fined and the six “offending” poems being suppressed for several years, only appearing in volumes of their own published outside of France (as with Épaves  – The Wrecks – published in 1866 in Belgium).

However, both despite and because of the outrage it caused, Fleur de Mal not only remained in publication – less “offensive” works by Baudelaire were substituted in place of those which caused some to try and suppress the volume entirely – it became synonymous with all his works, with the title being used for successive collections which both incorporated the original poems and other works, including an edition printed in 1868 following the poet’s death at just 48 and which includes 14 of his previously unpublished poems.

SLEA6: Bloom: Flowers of Evil, January 2024

It is in this wider guise, and as a source of inspiration / reflection that Lalie and Chrix appear to utilise the title, rather than offering a more direct visual interpretation of poems from the volume (although there are what appear to be small nods towards some of the themes, here and there, for those familiar with the various sections of the volume). Baudelaire is regarded as a master of rhyme and rhythm within his prose-poetry – demonstrated by the fact that his style and work not only influenced poets down the years, but also artists and musicians, with some of the latter utilising Flowers of Evil or Fleur du Mal – and it is this aspect of his work which appears to be celebrated most directly through the ebb and flow of the piece, where particle patterns and images might be seen as poems and the stanzas therein, caught in a delicate dance of imagery.

Within Bloom: Flowers of Evil, the artists capture the essence of Baudelaire’s rhythm through the particles and images offered, whilst also reflecting the romanticism which also lay at the heart of his work. It also (possibly in part coincidentally) offers echoes of other ways in which Baudelaire’s influence has been felt; within the audio stream accompanying the installation is Sahalé’s Fleur du Mal, a piece with takes the iconic title and mixes it with the rhyme-like rhythm of Eastern and African music, whilst the presence of the piano put me in mind of Susanna Wallumrød’s Baudelaire and Piano (2019), which set several of Baudelaire’s works to music.

SLEA6: Bloom: Flowers of Evil, January 2024

Whether or not you are a follower of Baudelaire or feel compelled to seek out his works (I admit to finding some of his work “florid” (for want of a better term), although Tableaux Parisians is a captivating read, presenting both a contemporary walk through Georges-Eugène Haussmann’s renovation of Paris at the behest of Napoleon III and a critical response to its modernity, thus combining Baudelaire’s gift as a poet with his work as a critic), Bloom: Flowers of Evil stands in its own right as a visually engaging installation; just be sure to try sitting and viewing it in Mouselook, rather than purely through a 3rd-person view!

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Grauland’s derelict appeal in Second Life

Posted on by Inara Pey
Grauland, January 2024 – click any image for full size

It was off to Grauland for me for my first of 2024 trips to Jim Garand’s always photogenic region, which also serves at the home for his M1 Poses store (tucked neatly out of the way in the sky). The last time I visited, the region was home to a setting featuring ancient stone ruins awaiting exploration, set with a somewhat tropical environment; it’s a theme which-sort of continues with the iterated I visited in January – albeit featuring ruins of a very different kind.

For this setting Grauland presents an almost flat island; whether temperate, tropical or sub-tropical is hard to say at first glance, although there are clues to suggest the former is likely the case, rather than the latter two, and on which stand the remnants of what may have been a sizeable industrial operation.

Grauland, January 2024

Quite what that endeavour might have been is open to to imaginative interpretation; to one side of the island, old pumpjacks stand in a field of wild grass, the “nodding donkey” head of one still rising and falling as the little group comes close to resembling a drove of their four-legged namesakes grazing quietly. They suggest that oil might have been a focus of efforts here; however, two of the surviving structures suggest something else to have been the mainstay of work here.

To the west of the island, and partially build on blocky concrete stilts over the water, stands a massive elevator / silo building with eight massive silos forming two column- like rows supporting the high roof built over the great hall between them – a hall now oddly home to a grove of trees which reach from main doors to the iron stairways climbing the far wall to provide access to the upper levels of the building as they stand out over the watery shallows. An outer wall of these levels, complete with their glassless windows staring across the island and out to sea, proclaims the building to belong to Black Stripe Grain, Inc., although it is a little hard to imagine the eight massive silos being home to mere grain – so might the building’s labelling by a cunning disguise? As I said, this is a place open to imaginative interpretation!

Grauland, January 2024

A short distance from this huge elevator with its silos stands a hopper for loading bulk goods onto railcars. Again, its looks suggest it was used for something other than grain, but such has been the passage of time here, who can really tell? And it is clear that a fair amount of time has passed here.

The rail line that once proceeded out from the hopper and – one assumes – over a low-lying trellis across the waters to – well, somewhere – now lies rusting and broken. With rails no longer carried over the water but instead sloping down into it, the line is blocked by derailed boxcars and a rusting carriage which might once have carried a workforce to and from this place.

Grauland, January 2024

Contrasting the sense of human desertion present across most the island, the east side of the complex remains relatively intact, with concrete wharves still in good working order and offering berths to a large boat – perhaps a trawler pressed into other duties – which appears to be in good working order, and a smaller cabin cruiser to which time has been less kind.

But again, while the wharves remain relatively pristine compared to the rest of the island thus far described, the same cannot be said of the warehouse / factory built alongside them. With one side either collapsed or ripped open, it is in a sorry state, now apparently the haunt of graffiti artists visiting the island, whilst the intact section its upper floor reveal it to have once been a literal body shop or sorts, the sad remains of its produce scattered on decaying pallets, sitting in aging crates or hanging from rusting irons.

Grauland, January 2024

Elsewhere there is yet more evidence of past use and hints that further buildings once stood here whilst the workers at least enjoyed some amenities. For example a single, lonely bus sits out on the dirt, its paintwork slowly fading in the sunlight or being slowly corroded by rust. It’s presence suggests it once spared workers the drudgery of walking too and from the rail carriage(s) which may have once brought them here.

But civilisation has not entirely deserted this place. As noted above, the old factory has obviously has the attention of street artists, whilst between the towering “granary” and the factory sits a concrete-side tank. although it might be surrounded by iron railings which may have once suggested it to be a place of potential harm and has machinery alongside it which dips the snout of a pipe into it, the waters within it are clear and blue enough to encourage whoever visits to turn it into an outdoor swimming pool, regardless of its former use. Several places to sit have also been established around the island, further suggesting it receives frequent visitors, something backed-up by the RHIB drawn on up one shore, a picnic basket and blanket close by.

Grauland, January 2024

Desolate yet remaining strong hints of life, carrying a sense of mystery among its deserted buildings, this iteration of Grauland has much to say about itself whilst at the same time holding back enough of its history to set the imagination wandering as much as feet might wander through its structures and open spaces.

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Susann’s Impressions of Second Life

Posted on by Inara Pey
NovaOwl Community Centre & Gallery, January 2024: Susann DeCuir

Open through until late February 2024 within the ground-level main gallery at NovaOwl Community Centre & Gallery operated by ULi Jansma, Ceakay Ballyhoo & Owl Dragonash, is a small but engaging exhibition of images by fellow blogger and Second Life traveller, Susann DeCuir.

Entitled Nature and Animal Impressions from Second Life, this is a modest display of pieces with – as the name suggests – a focus on animals (particularly our feathered friends!) and landscapes. Taken at various locations around Second Life, they images serve to both illustrate Susann’s enthusiasm for the many faces of this digital realm and her richly engaging style of photography.

NovaOwl Community Centre & Gallery, January 2024: Susann DeCuir

It also, if I might say so, provides insight into Susann’s humour and philosophy on life. The former might be found in the captions provided for some of the works, with Attention, this morning… carrying a hint of a Jets and Sharks confrontation to the point where you can almost hear Bernstein’s music in the background, and Owls Tribunal with its quintet of owls sitting atop fence posts like judges at the bench considering Issues Of Import.

The latter – Susann’s outline on life, might be most clearly glimpsed within Don’t Cry Because It’s Over, Smile Because It Happened; a valid philosophy for looking on life, loss and love.

NovaOwl Community Centre & Gallery, January 2024: Susann DeCuir

What I particularly appreciate about Susann’s work is her approach and style. Not only does she have an eye for capturing a scene and an theme or idea, she has a deft approach to processing her images, as she notes herself.

I only use one program for the Second Life photos, the free version of Fotojet. I use it to put the motif in the right light by using some minor effects. Apart from that, everything is shown in its original form as created by the sim designer. I pay particular attention to the fact that I use the region’s own EEP.

– Susann DeCuir

This results in images which are both personal in the message they may carry whilst also giving a richness of depth to her impressions of the places she has visited without betraying the creator’s original intent. All of which makes this a genuinely treat of an exhibition; my only regret with it is that there are not more pieces on display to enjoy!

NovaOwl Community Centre & Gallery, January 2024: Susann DeCuir

SLurl Details

  • NovaOwl (Novatron, rated General)

A walk through Timeless Seasons in Second Life

Posted on by Inara Pey
Timeless Seasons, January 2024 – click any image for full size

Occupying a Full private region leveraging the available Land Capacity bonus, Timeless Seasons is a location designed by videographer Suzie Anderton as a place where visitors can – to quote the Destination Guide entry:

Experience the magic … and revel in wonders as you descend its hills. Gather loved ones for a journey through this kingdom uncovering cuddle spots, event venues, portals to the unknown, and a cavern system. Welcome to a realm where seasons unfold timeless experiences for you and your family.

All of which is a heady promise to fulfil, but the region does so quite admirably.

Timeless Seasons, January 2024

Presenting something of a south-to-north orientation, the region features tall uplands to the former which both step and flow down to northern lowlands, where a channel of water almost cuts the landscape in two, coming close to leaving an oval lake sitting within an island of its own.

This is a place which, whilst there are signs of human habitation, appears to be largely given over to the unspoiled beauty of nature. However, this is perhaps a little deceptive; the zip lines descending across the landscape from the highlands and the kayaks and boats down on the waters of the channel and lake reveal opportunities for fun and laughter which might break into the sense of serenity as they offer the more active visitor the chance for a little good-natured excitement.

Timeless Seasons, January 2024

Exploring the setting can be done either on foot or on horseback – there are several places throughout where a horse can be obtained, whilst those with their own wearable horses can always use those, if so minded. Those who really fancy a challenge can also grab a bicycle and use their pedal extremities as motive power – but to be honest, riding down the slopes from the north side of the island is not something I’d relish – and least, not without a parachute just in case!

The landing point is set mid-way down the southern highlands. Here, on a broad outthrust of rock extending away from the southern cliffs prior to itself falling away to the lands below, sits an impressive lodge. It presents itself as a place into which people can retreat for a game, time in a hot tub, an romantic meal or simply to rest in the bar lounge. Before it, and short walks from the landing point are the first of the bicycle and horse rezzers, whilst one of the region’s zip lines awaits the daring, as it drops away from a deck extending out over the sheer rock face fronting the lodge.

Timeless Seasons, January 2024

However, before being too quick to depart the lodge and start exploring, a wander around to the gardens behind the lodge is recommended, as it is within them that one of the setting’s little secrets is tucked away; a gated grotto with a mix of the magical and the romantic within, over which can also be found an outdoor space for entertainment and dancing.

Exactly how the latter is reached (save by teleporting) is a little unclear; there is a grassy path extending east which rolls upwards just beyond the wooden gazebo. However, it does not seem to connect with the dance area directly, but instead provides access to two further routes of exploration, both pointing westwards.

Timeless Seasons, January 2024

The first forms a rocky step directly behind and above the lodge’s garden, its southern side formed by vertical cliff walls from which water drops into a pool (and a subterranean channel, given the pool doesn’t overflow?) towards their western end, where the path become a broad grass slope tumbling gently down to the northern lowlands to offer a path along the banks of the water channel which cuts into the region.

The second path runs almost the entire width of the setting, sitting atop the high cliffs as it passes a further point where horses or bicycles might be obtained, before also turning north to follow a rocky / hilly shoulder of land as it descends down towards the lowlands to reach the little silver of land connecting the southern aspect of the region the ring of land surrounding the lake.

Timeless Seasons, January 2024

The land around the lake offers its own treats and places to explore, from the aforementioned boats and kayaks to little hideaways, a cosy beach, the opportunity to try one’s hand at slip boarding – and even conversing with the local centaurs! Places to sit and explore abound throughout, and those who wander the banks of the channel bordering the lake might spot another of the region’s secrets: the dark maw of a cavern mouth awaiting the adventurous (or curious!), one with perhaps a little touch of Smaug lying within.

Caught in an eternal spring afternoon, Timeless Seasons makes for a rewarding – and obviously photogenic – visit. With hewn rock signposts to help guide folk around it, lots of choice of both exploration and means of exploration or for just chilling and / or cuddling, the region is deserving of the time spent within it, and finished in a subtle soundscape.

Timeless Seasons, January 2024

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