Nitroglobus Roof Gallery: Maghda – Demons of Reason
Monday, June 17th see the return of evocative photographer Maghda to Nitroglobus Roof Gallery operated and curated by Dido Haas with a monochrome collection entitled Demons of Reason.
Maghda’s avatar studies are never less than richly composed and layered, frequently presenting explorations of self and life, and this is clearly evident in Demons, offering a visual essay on the struggles we have all doubtless suffered: dealing with the demons of irrationality as we try to face the daily challenges of life.
The Demons of Reason lurk in the shadows of our thoughts, challenging the clarity of our understanding. These elusive forces twist logic and distort perceptions, leading us into the labyrinth of irrationality. They whisper doubts and fears, causing us to question even the most evident truths. In this eternal struggle, the Demons of Reason remind us of the fragile balance between knowledge and ignorance.
– Maghda
Nitroglobus Roof Gallery: Maghda – Demons of Reason
These are beautifully minimalist pieces, the majority set against a plain white background, with several using the motif of a bottle or bottles – a motif also seen within the sculptures by Adwehe which support the exhibition. It’s an interesting motif, potentially symbolising a number of elements within the overall theme, such as referencing the way we so often try to bottle up the doubts and irrational thoughts we have all they way through to how we might try to silence them though more liquid means.
As well as the use of the bottle, the images in the collection offers views on how we might respond to our inner demons – and how thy might equally and irrationally take us over, becoming more that tiny voices inside us but near-physical entities whom we cannot ignore, leaving us feeling their darkness or somehow separated from those around us, leaving us ghosted to them – or them to us. Meanwhile, the tinges of green suggest the jealousy / envy that so often accompanies such irrationalities.
Nitroglobus Roof Gallery: Maghda – Demons of Reason
Maghda has intentionally avoided giving her images individual titles, and this allows us to appreciate them more fully, allowing each one to speak directly and individually to our own thinking / mood / imagination. As such, Demons of Reason is an exhibition which should be seen rather than experienced second-hand.
Infinite Darkness, June 2024 – click any image for full size
I recently received an invitation from Gian (GiaArt Clip) – together with some very gracious words, thank you, Gian! – to visit Infinite Darkness, his latest region design. Having previously visited and written about Gian’s Buddha Garden and Monkey Island (all of which can be found here), I hopped over at the earliest opportunity to explore.
Anyone who visited either of these two past designs is going to find Infinite Darkness very different – and yet, equally rich in the kind of detail that made both Buddha Garden and Monkey Island so notable as places to visit – and places with a story to tell. A clue to that story lies within the About Land description for the setting:
Good and evil, water and fire, light and dark, are the essence of Infinite Darkness. The majesty of the gothic style, the occult symbolism and the dark powers of the vampires will immerse you on a hellish journey.
– Infinite Darkness About Land description
Infinite Darkness, June 2024
So it is that visitors find themselves arriving within the ruins of a chapel on the proverbial Dark and Stormy Night – and if not already set, it is at this point for the viewer to be checked to Use Shared Environment. These ruins (the marvellous Chapel Ruins by Marcus Inkpen, whose structures Gian has used throughout the region, allowing them to become a natural part of the whole, sit upon a pair of islanda, and give the first hints of the Light and Dark theme. To one side of the the chapel is a tombstone draped with a weeping angel. Facing it across the chapel’s worn floor is a stone plinth topped by an empty-eyed skull staring at the angel, as if mocking it and the idea of life after death.
A long and narrow bridge crosses the water, lined with further motifs conveying the ideas of light and dark, good and evil. These start on the left with a reproduction of Le génie du mal just outside the chapel. Meanwhile, at the far end of the bridge is what might be seen as depiction of the corruption of innocence in the form of a naked woman giving herself over to the predations of a demon.
Infinite Darkness, June 2024
These motifs continue at the top of the stone stairway climbing up the steep side of the isle at the far end of the bridge, and the stone figure of an angel holding out a golden apple, a serpent wrapped around its torso. A clearer depiction of the Lucifer / Satan mythology and its link to the “fall of Man” I’ve yet to see; with the statue also underscoring the idea that both good (aka light) and evil (aka darkness) are spawned from the same roots.
It is before this figure that the adventure of discovery truly begins; one that I do not want to write above in great depth, as doing so would spoil anyone’s visit. Instead I’ll endeavour to offer some pointers for explorers.
Infinite Darkness, June 2024
Follow the path to the left from the top of the stairs, and alongside the stream, and it will bring you to a high bridge pointing north over the surrounding waters to another plateau of an island. Demons line the bridge, which is watched over by the decaying hulk of a stone gazebo, the demons giving a clue to what might be found on the island at the end of the bridge’s span.
Pass by the bridge here, and the path crosses the stream and then heads down around the island’s peak – but more on this below.
A second path runs southwards (to the right) from in front of Lucifer / Satan and around that side of the island’s peak, using a weathered board walk and mossy path to guide people to where a mix of ancient steps and wooden ladder provide access to the shadowy house above.
The house carries an air of mystery inside, with the art inside – as with the rest of the painting and statues in the region – very much adding to the setting’s overall narrative. As such its interior should be examined carefully.
Straddling the flattened top of the rocky pinnacle, the house sits above two waterfalls to west and east, the latter also falling down into the cleft separating this island from the one rising even higher behind it.
A bridge spans this deep, narrow gap between these two isles, linking the front door of the house with a switchback path leading up to where the top of the taller island gives way to a the impressive bulk of a Gothic castle shrouded in a veil of heavy rain as if trying to conceal itself from view and with thunder rumbling overhead. With it tall towers lit from within, and the giant figure raised against its west face, the castle wraps itself in a cloak of foreboding and vampiric menace.
Infinite Darkness, June 2024
Like the smaller house, there is a lot to be found within the castle, which builds on the contents of the house and lean further into the side of darkness/evil. The main halls are particularly stunning once reached, and rich in motifs and imagery. I’ll say no more about them here so as not to spoil things; however, they are not all that awaits; there is the path winding its way down the side of the smaller central island, as mentioned above.
At the base of the island, and end the end of a short tunnel, a skeletal boatman standing in his vessel like Charon waiting to ferry the dead across the Styx. Fortunately, the living do not have to take his boat across the misty waters: a rickety bridge spans them to provide access to another tunnel and caverns awaiting exploration.
Infinite Darkness, June 2024
Whether or not you are – like me – fascinated by the visual motifs and prompts neatly woven into the setting or simply love places that stir the imagination and represent time well-spent in exploration – or have a love of things occult / vampire -, Infinite Darkness offers a lot to see and appreciate, all of which is beautifully executed. For those who do share my fascination for symbols and motifs, I will in closing suggest you cam overhead and look down on the setting from above using your camera.
If you do, you might sport the region design, with it’s west-to-east orientation looks remarkably like the layout of a cathedral. To the west lay the entrance (the landing point), with its long bridge forming the nave, whilst the tall island with its Gothic castle sit as the chancel with its quire (or choir, if you prefer), ambulatory and apse. Meanwhile, the island to the north and south form the two transepts, their aisles and that of the nave coming together at the island with the smaller house to form the crossing.
Thus within its form, the region offers a further juxtaposition of “light” and “dark”: in form it resembles the “light” of Christian mythology, whilst the further into it one progresses, the more one is surrounded by the the “dark” of the occult and ideas of vampire and demons, with the latter form what might be seen as the most holy elements of a Christian cathedral, sitting as they do over the what might be seen as the location of a cathedral’s chancel, again giving focus to the idea that what we regard as “good” and “evil” are born of the same roots (our own imaginations).
Infinite Darkness, June 2024
All told, a superb setting and one deserving of time and thought when visiting.
Addendum
As pointed out to me by Gian, I did actually miss a detail within the build that is worth pointing out. Those who do delve into the tunnels and caverns should mouse-over the items they find within them carefully, as one has a hidden teleport. Those who find it will be transported to what I’ll call the layer of the vampire; a place which contains a sense of the ruins of Whitby and Bram Stoker (without actually being so), and carries with it a further element of the occult. With a vortex-like opening at one end, it also suggests it might be a further entrance to hell. I’ll say no more here, and leave it to visitors to discover.
It’s been a while since I’ve covered an exhibition at Lizbeth Morningstar’s Starborn Gallery, in part because Lizbeth has been busy with various projects, one of which has been the re-designed and expanded. To mark this, the gallery is officially re-opening on Saturday, June 15th, 2024 with a special event and a featured exhibition of new work by Lizbeth herself.
The gallery itself now covers three floors and, in a little touch I’ve not seen at a gallery before, includes a garden on the roof where visitors and patrons can not only relax, they have the opportunity to buy the plants and items found within the garden, as supplied by the Featured Store. A teleport board within the event space fronting the gallery and between it and the beachfront provides access to the roof gallery and to the various levels of the gallery – although the latter can all be reached from this the gallery itself.
Starborn Gallery June 2024: Lizbeth Morningstar – Be Tough
Lizbeth has a very distinctive style with her photography, often leaning towards a sense of white contrast suggestive of intentional over-exposure, together with a use of soft focus and colour-washing that I’ve not seen used by other SL photographers. While it is not Lizbeth’s only approach to photographs – as I’ll come to – it does give her photography a unique tone and look: images with a sense of watercolour paintings or which have been given a gentle colour wash. It’s an attractive approach to photography, and well suited to landscape images whilst also working with pieces that include avatars. Further, there is a purity within this approach which is very much reflective of Lizbeth’s use of her SL photography as a means of meditative self-therapy.
It’s also an approach very much in evidence on the ground floor of the gallery, which features a large display of Lizbeth’s work to the left as one enters, and the feature exhibition, entitled Be Tough to the right.
Starborn Gallery June 2024: Lizbeth Morningstar – Be Tough
The latter might be defined as a essay on the life of the modern professional woman; someone who is all too often required to be both feminine and tough and unforgiving at the same time, forced to compete with male colleagues on terms defined solely by those same male colleagues – but who can, at the same time, celebrate themselves for who they are and celebrate the moments of freedom and delight to be found within the sunny streets of the city or when out to meet friend at night. It’s also, as the introductory notes suggest, something of a celebration of Lizbeth’s relationship with her avatar: how the persona of her avatar is both a reflection of Lizbeth as she is, and a facet of her personality as she would at times like to be – something I think we can all recognise in our own relationships with our avatars.
The majority of the upper floors of the gallery feature a further exhibition of Lizbeth’s work, entitled Before Dawn. This showcases Lizbeth’s approach to night-time photography, in which there’s often that use of a softer focus but here combined with a more obvious use of layering and employment of deeper contract and colour enhancement. In this, Before Dawn perhaps demonstrates a boarder range of images, running from hauntingly mysterious forest scenes rich in a sense of enchantment, through city scenes filled with enigmatic light and streets filled with a soft neon glow suggestive of noir-like settings, to more personal pieces presenting moods and emotions.
Starborn Gallery June 2024: Lizbeth Morningstar – Before Dawn
Both Be Tough and Before Dawn are evocative in their ability to evoke and reflect mood. They also (and her I include the broader exhibition of Lizbeth’s art on the ground floor of the gallery alongside Be Tough) form a richly contrasting but complementary pairing, both in terms of the styles and themes enfolded in each, and in the manner in which the sections of the gallery have been outfitted by Lizbeth.
The official opening of the gallery will take place between 098:00 and 10:00 SLT on Saturday, June 15th, 2024 . I’m pleased to see Lizbeth make a return to operating Starborn Gallery and continuing her love of SL photography, and I look forward to seeing more exhibitions at the gallery.
Starborn Gallery June 2024: Lizbeth Morningstar – Before Dawn
Nathhimmel: Lavender Fields of Madame Loutre, June 2024 – click any image for full size
From the east and south the land rises in a gentle slope, climbing gently to the west and north to meet with the upward sweep of land for the north side of the region so that all three slopes slopes form the low hump of a hill before falling back towards the western edge of the region. Across this landscape and broken by precious few trees, is spread a blanket of lavender, running from the water’s edge on all sides and drawn into regimented lines and blocks by avenues of grass in places topped by short lines of paving stones.
This is a tranquil place, the eastern shoreline interrupted by two bays pushing into it, the smaller of which looks like a giant thumb has been pressed into the ground to leave an indentation for the surrounding waters to claim as theirs. Such is the lie of the setting, were the wind to come from the east and passing over these bays, it is not hard to imagine it driving waves to where the shore breaks their progress so they transfer their momentum to the lavender, causing it to ripple inland and up the slope to wash around the house atop that single low hill.
Nathhimmel: Lavender Fields of Madame Loutre, June 2024
Boxy and long, the house presents a tiled roof to the sky which extends out over a north-facing veranda, affording it some protection against the likes of sunshine and rain. It is counterbalanced by the rising second floor of the house rising from the southern end of the house to provide sufficient space for a cosy bedroom. Aside from broken ruins a short walk down slope, the house is the only human-made structure on the island – and the only place still occupied.
With its low-walled garden lushly overgrown with flowers allowed to grow wild on one side and the other planted with cobbles, the house exudes the tranquillity that seems to flow outwards over the surrounding lavender and to the very edges of the region. Alone and at peace, this is the home of Madame Loutre, the last inhabitant of this restful setting, and the spread of aromatic plants growing around it are known as the Lavender Fields of Madame Loutre.
Nathhimmel: Lavender Fields of Madame Loutre, June 2024
But who is she? I hear you ask, and where might this place be found? Well (and to ignore the surrounding waters, I’ll let Konrad (Kaiju Kohime) and Saskia Rieko explain, for they are the people who have made our journeys to this place possible:
In the secluded one-house village, nestled deep within the enchanting region of Provence, resides the mysterious Madame Loutre, an ethereal otter spirit … Madame Loutre is both a guardian and a secret keeper of the village, known for her wisdom and the enchanting, calming presence she bestows upon visitors. The villagers from nearby towns speak in hushed tones about her magical abilities and the tranquillity her lavender brings. This idyllic haven remains untouched by time, a place of quiet wonder and mystical charm.
– From the Nathhimmel website
Nathhimmel: Lavender Fields of Madame Loutre, June 2024
Saskia and Konrad are, of course, the designers of Nathhimmel region settings in Second Life and which have appeared in these pages several times since the couple started offering their work as places for Second Life users to visit and photograph; and the Lavender Fields of Madame Loutre is the latest iteration of their work, having opened at the start of June 2024.
This is a design which – quite genuinely – does not require description or explanation; it speaks beautifully and clearly for itself. The house offers a focal point around which endless stories might be woven about the mysterious MMe. Loutre – who she might by, why the locals think she has magical powers, what has given her a love of lavender – and more. The landscape offers subtle opportunities for photography, whilst dotted around three sides of the region places to sit / rest are awaiting those who seek them. Should props be required for photography, then joining the local group (no charge) will provide rezzing rights – but do please remember to pick your thing up afterwards!
Nathhimmel: Lavender Fields of Madame Loutre, June 2024
The landing point, located in the south-east corner of the region includes a link for obtaining additional information on the region (although the supplied notecard does give details on a previous Natthimmel design), and a teleport link to the region’s gallery – although this was without art at the time of my visit, so possibly awaiting a new exhibition. Neither of these latter points detract from the setting, which offers a relaxing and gentle visit for all who choose to drop in.
Kingsand, June 2024 – click any image for full size
I recently received an invitation from .Tempest Rosca-Huntsman and her SL partner, John (Johannes Huntsman), to visit their latest project, completed under the banner of the Formal Knot group and in association with Kultivate Magazine and Art Hub.
Kingsand is a Homestead region designed by Tempest and adjoining the Kultivate Gallery region. It is offered as a location for relaxation and photography – and to mark its opening, it is also host to a photographic competition running through until June 30th, 2024 offering a combined prize pool of L$30,000 – of which more anon.
Kingsand, June 2024
Accessed via the southern side of the Kultivate Water Haven region, Kingsand presents an open, semi-rugged setting sharing the same region surround as the former, thus allowing it to be enclosed on three sides with high mountains which add depth to photographs taken within it.
The land comprising the region has been divided into three parts, each separated from the others by water channels. The land directly adjoining the Kultivate gallery spaces is fairly low-lying, carrying with in a hint of a wildling garden, ancient paths and steps providing routes between the more even elements of the land, walls and gates offering a further sense of sub-division among the trees and flowers. To the east, this land forms a long finger of a headland, far rockier in nature, bordered by relatively open waters to one side and that larger of the channels cutting into the land on the other. Cut through by a narrow gorge, this headland ends in a low-lying promontory topped by a giant windmill.
Kingsand, June 2024
Across the channel, the larger of two islands cam be reached via a stone bridge. Low-lying to the south and west, this island rises to a tall central peak with highlands reaching up to it from the eastern side. These slopes provide the means to reach the ruins of a cathedral or some similar structure sitting on a shoulder of rock thrusting outwards from the peak.
Apparently now the home of a library / story-telling space rich in flowers and blossoming vines and presided over by a dryad caved into a tree at its centre, the ruins might also be used as a means to reach the top of the mountain – although this does entail dropping down their flank and scrambling through the brambles at their base, and getting back again might be a challenge on foot, given there is no mean to climb back up into the ruins. Although that said, the bare peak is easily visible from the ruins, so such a climb isn’t really necessary unless you’re really wanting to take a photograph of yourself up there.
Kingsand, June 2024
To the west, the land sweeps around the mountain and along the second of the water channels to reach another bridge, this one offering the way to the smaller of the two islands. The most rugged element of the region, this island forms two rocky hills cut through by a natural canyon. The latter leads the way to a deck built out over semi-turbulent waters and offering one of multiple places to sit and pass the time spread throughout the setting.
The overall design is such that the region might be enjoyed by multiple visitors without them necessarily tripping over one another, and with sufficient space for photographers to rez-out props for photography again without necessarily interrupting others. Those who wish to do so should join the Formal Knot group; there is no charge and auto-return is set for 90 minutes. This should be more than enough time to compose props and photographs – but if you take advantage of this and complete your work within the time limit, do please consider taking back your items.
Kingsand, June 2024
Which brings me neatly to the June 2024 photo contest. Full details are in a notecard available from the region’s landing point – together with another card providing region information and rules – however, and in short:
Entries must comprise images taken within the Kingsand region, and entrants are limited to two such images apiece.
Entries must be submitted to the Kingsand Flickr group and bear the tag “Kingsand”.
Prizes will be awarded on the basis of L$10,000 each to two winners and L$5,000 each to two runners-up, for a total prize pool of L$30,000.
In addition, winners, runner’s up and a selection of commended entries to the competition will be exhibited at Kultivate Art Gallery at a date to be announced.
Kingsand, June 2024
Sitting under a fairly neutral environmental setting, Kingsand is perhaps best suited to being photographed using your own EEP settings – the landscape being such that its naturally lends itself to a range of day cycles and settings extremely well. It also seems to lack any ambient sound scape, which is a shame given its natural beauty. However, accepting the region is primarily designed for photography, this does not overly detract from its appeal.
In all a superb setting ideal for photography and avatar studies. My thanks to Tempest and John for the invitation to make a pre-opening visit.
June brings with it Cica Ghost’s installation for the the month, located on her Homestead region of Mysterious Isle, and this time it is a little different from recent installations from Cica.
Entitled Under the Stars, it comes with a quote from John Green’s debut novel (2005), Looking for Alaska, which – as with the majority of the quotes Cica uses – frames the theme of the installation, without necessarily reflecting the source it is taken from (in this case, Looking for Alaska being a coming of age story):
At some point we all look up and realize we are lost in a maze.
– John Green
Cica Ghost: Under the Stars, June 2024
Instead, the quote literally describes the core of the setting – a maze carved into the ground and sitting under s starry sky. The landing point sits at the start of the maze and to one side of the region, the way forward marked by high walls of terrain and the path quickly splitting. Which arm you take is entirely up to you – but what I would suggest is that you resist the temptation to cam upwards and look at what might be sitting above and instead allow the maze to unfold before you.
This actually makes describing the setting a little hard, as it really is best taken as a voyage of discovery. However, within the maze is a series of open spaces, some of which are home to giant creatures of fantasy; but these are not monsters; rather they are more like oversized cuddly toys, some of which bring to mind memories of Dr. Seuss. All are sleeping, the stars overhead looking like lights spread across a green sky of grass, presenting the feeling we are somehow underground whilst at the same time suggesting the creatures are all lost in happy dreams. Those spaces with a creature contain one of Cica’s marvellous drawings.
Cica Ghost: Under the Stars, June 2024
Also scattered through the maze are ladders leading up to the ground above. These can be climbed to reveal what lay overhead. Again, I don’t want to spoil things by saying too much here.
With a number of places to sit, creatures to photograph (and purchase!), Under the Stars is another genuine delight from Cica and fully deserving of a visit.
