Tag: Art 2021

Recently opened at the Kultivate Signature Gallery, curated by Johannes and Trempest Huntsman is Symmetry, an exhibition by physical world artist JudiLynn India.

With a lean towards abstract art, JudiLynn has been drawing and painting for as long as she can remember, and studied art at high school before moving to graphic design at Tyler School of Art/Temple University in Philadelphia, PA. Since the turn of the century she has focused on working in acrylics and digital painting, joining Second Life in 2009 and embracing the platform as a means to reach a broader audience with her work.

Spread across the three floors of the gallery is a series of paintings by JudiLynn that speak directly to the title of the exhibition through their use of symmetry as well as her trademark depth of colour, a factor that always gives her work a vibrant sense of life.

Abstract they may be, but there are strong subliminal elements to be found in these paintings, some suggested by the titles of individual pieces, others by the titles placed around the walls of the gallery and which echo the essence of symmetry: balance, harmony, equilibrium. Some of these may help the eye and the mind to construct a frame of narrative in each piece, while the others, the flow of colour and shape might suggest a tale that sits quite aside from any given title.

Viewing the pieces in turn, I was particularly struck by the manner in which several suggested to me they could so easily have had a fractal origin, rather than being traditional paintings. These pieces (Dark Web, Emperor, Colour of Life and Confetti Fun as examples) give an additional twist to this collection: whilst fractal art is created mathematically as an intersection between generative art and computer art, JudiLynn’s pieces present a sense of generative art that has entirely natural origin. Thus, these pieces might be said to offer a unique statement on the fusion between human and digital art forms.

Enticing, attractive, and rich in colour, Symmetry is another engaging exhibition by someone I regard as one of Second Life’s foremost abstract artists.

SLURL DETAILS

• Kultivate Signature Gallery (Water Haven, rated Moderate)

Orenda is a term with a number of definitions. Perhaps the most apt is that it is the Iroquois name for a certain spiritual energy inherent in people and their environment.

I’ve no idea if it is this meaning that Zia Branner wishes to encompass in  her new exhibition of the same name at the United Artists of Second Life (UASL), and which opened on June 25th, 2021; however, it is true to say that the paintings she presents are rich in energy and carry all of her spirit as an artist.

Working with acrylics and using a variety of structure materials like paste, gel, sand, glue, bandages and paper, and often accentuating parts with oil crayons and ink, Zia always finishes her work with a layer of mat or gloss varnish or binder. All of this gives Zia’s work a sense of depth and life that is captivating – a fact that is further reflected in the way she embraces a variety of styles in her art – still life, abstract, landscape, impressionism, and so on.

All of this can be seen within the pieces Zia presents at UASL in Orenda. In all 17 pieces are on display, running from paintings of animals through studies of the human form to semi-abstracted landscapes. Among these is the titular piece itself, an abstract that is rich in energy and fully embraces a spiritual element through its use and balance of colour.

Beautiful in form, fabulous in colour and powerful and / or engaging in content, Orenda is a very visual, engaging exhibition by one of SL’s most engaging physical world artists.

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• Orenda by Zia Branner at UASL (Karpov, rated Moderate)

I was stunned to discover it’s been over 2½ years since my last visit to Ini Inaka’s Blue Orange music and arts venue.  True, for part of that time, the space seemed to be quiescent, but the gap has meant I may have come close to missing the 5th of the Blue Orange Art Projects, given it opened at the start of the 2021.

These Art Projects bring together an ensemble of 2D and 3D artists and creators from across Second Life, who are invited to display their work as something of a contiguous, semi-thematically linked series of displays and installations to be found throughout the seemingly random jumble of display spaces – a layout which encourages careful exploration in order to discover all of the art.

For the 5th Art Project, Blue Orange brings together Amanda (aht1981), Andromeda (pehi61), Chibbchichi, Tx (ThierryTillier), Eupalinos Ugajin, Gitu Aura, Grady Echegaray, Kleines Sternchen, Mistero Hifeng, Olympe (Olympes Rhode), Stabitha (What88 Zond), Talullah Winterwolf, Tx (ThierryTillier), Venus Adored and  Xirana (Xirana Oximoxi). Together they present a mix of 3D elements (perhaps only 1 per 3D artist) and 2D art displays that have been put together around the theme of four core art movements: Dadaism, Surrealism, Avant-garde and Expressionism (with a lean towards German Expressionism of cinema in the Weimar Republic, 1918-1933).

Each of the artists has been left free to adopt whichever of these movements they find personally appealing, with some touching upon more than one, and others folding-in additional artistic statements. for example, Xirana’s Children in War, and Andromeda’s compositions (some of them interactive – by sure to touch the stars of the constellations) on the subject of astronomy / stargazing.

The latter may not initially appear to fit in any of the four movements. But when you consider the marvels of the cosmos around us, and how they can present a juxtaposition of realities (our own finite span of years compared to the seeming endless enduring of the universe around us); the manner in which some of us illogically assign the happenstance alignment of distance celestial bodies as seen from Earth with some kind of mystical power that affects our lives, and yet we can create images of painting of them which match our ability to photograph them, then the alignment between astronomical images and surrealism starts to become clearer, particularly when you add the fact the way they evoke emotional experience rather keeping us focused on the physical reality of everyday life, and the link gains further strengthened.

Elsewhere, Olympe marvellously captures aspects of Avant-garde together with elements of surrealism through her fractal paintings that are richly captivating in form and colour. In the space below, Tx celebrates the irrationality and photomontage of Dadaism in the company of Amanda, who leans more towards Expressionism – as does  Grady Echegaray in the neighbouring room, whilst also borrowing from the art of collage (also to be found within Cubism).

This is a exhibition that should be explored carefully and without rush; there are multiple ways through the various exhibit spaces, not all of which may at first appear obvious (look for the arrows and the signs). Venus Adored, for example, has an immersive 3D experience that touches on all four movement, but can be missed by the unwary if the sign and  arrow inviting people to walk through a wall are not spotted.

Venus’ exhibit is also one that requires both Advanced Lighting Model (ALM) and shadows to be enabled in order to appreciate it fully; elsewhere it is probably best to have ALM enabled (Preferences → Graphics → Advanced Lighting Model checked), but it is not necessary to have shadows enabled throughout.

Richly mixed,  Blue Orange Art Project 5 makes for an engaging visit.

SLurl Details

• Blue Orange (Empire State Island, rated Adult)

I made a return trip to the GenovArt Galleries, curated by Juna (Junanuj) to continue my promised explorations of the Glass Hall there, after my initial visit to the B&W Hall last month (see: Four artists for June at GenovArt in Second Life).

My visit came just after the opening of the new ensemble exhibition within the hall that features the work of Jamee Thomson (Jamee Sandalwood), Vanessa Jane (VanessaJane66), Deyanira Yalin and Eyes Kirschtaria (varutina).

Both Jamee and Venessa are highly regarded for their landscape images of Second Life, and rightly so. Although neither is constrained to just this form of art, it is the core of the pieces they present on the lower and upper levels respectively of the gallery.

Each of them has a considered eye for their work, perfectly balancing angle, cropping, lighting, post-processing and finishing to produce truly memorable pieces that both reflect the region in which they were captured and offer very individual views of Second Life.

Deyanira Yalin has been active in Second life since 2007, but I believe that this exhibition is the first time I’ve encountered her work; a fact that is to my loss, as her art is simply marvellous.

It is also said that beauty is in the eye of the beholder. I believe that my art is the product of cumulative dreams and visualisation. I get joy if the beholder finds something unique to him or herself that may be hidden or may be an illusion. I do not know if I am an Artist or a dreamer who likes fiction and dreams, but what I believe is inspired by all of the above.

– Deyanira Yalin, describing her art

A graphic designer by training, Deyanira has had her work exhibited in Mexico City, and her involvement in Second Life has enabled her to fully embrace the digital art form – a fact more than demonstrated at GenovArt.

These are truly extraordinary works that fold into them digital collage, suggestions of abstract art, surrealism, pop art and  – notably those images in the rear section of her exhibition – a tremendous depth of narrative.

As such, I would respond to Deyanira’s musing on whether she is an artist or a dreamer by saying there is no either/or – she is both, and she is also a weaver of dreams and teller of tales through her work.

Eyes Kirschtaria is another artist whose work I do not believe I’ve previously encountered.

Hailing from Japan, he presents a magnificent series of male avatar studies at GeovArt, all of them deeply rooted in fantasy and the imagination, and each ready to weave its own tale of heroes and / or villains, warriors and princes, magicians and hunters, and more.

Rich in colour and depth, several of these works beautifully blend what might be seen as western fantasy and oriental tales and influences, whilst others offer more traditional oriental tales in the making or enfold touches of science-fantasy (who cannot see shadows of the Dune series hiding within 15, for example?).

With its rich diversity of talent and content, the June exhibition at GenovArt’s Glass Gallery exhibition should not be missed.

SLURL DETAILS

• GenovArt B&W Gallery (Nabru City, rated; Adult)

Saturday, June 12th saw the opening of Variation, a joint exhibition of art by Eta (etamae) and Imaginary Footprints.

Hosted at the Janus II Gallery at Chuck Clip’s Sinful Retreat, Variation is the second such collaboration by the artists I’ve visited, the first being Memories of a Forgotten Reality (see: A Foreign Reality in Second Life), which I found to be an absorbing exhibit both in style and its collaborative development – and the e same can be said of Variations.

Supplied without exposition by the artists, Variation appears to follow the approach seen with Memories, with each artist starting with a single piece before passing it to the other, the back and forth continuing as the piece gradually evolve in accordance with the perceptions and thoughts of the artists.

However, where there was a central theme to Memories that likely focused each artist’s thinking when working on an image, the lack of stated vision apparent with Variation has offered perhaps far greater freedom,  with each piece becoming entirely framed within the individual thought processes and feelings of each artist as they worked with it. Thus, the focus of the art – and the exhibition as a whole, is the variation that marked the evolution of each piece.

The result is a collection of art that is broad in scope and potential interpretation. In terms of style and / or genre, there are pieces that might be said to have their roots in abstraction, others that lean towards expressionism or surrealism, and still others touching on abstract expressionism or digital etching. Not all are 2D or static;  the added 3D elements presenting a certain depth, particularly those that are placed alongside 2D images they appear to reflect.

In terms of subject matter, the best place to start is to paraphrase a comment by Eta’s SL partner, Jos:

The only perspective that will be objective is your subjectivity.

That is to say, such is the depth to which these pieces speak, the only way to hear what they might say is to witness them for yourself and and let your own eye and emotions frame your perception / understanding of them.

However, with that in mind, I  will say that I found Variation suggestive of a dream state – something enhanced by the overall environment in which Eta and Imaginary have framed the exhibition. A condition wherein the conscious mind is at rest and the subconscious is steady processing all that it has been a party to. Such processing can give rise to bright and dark moments (dreams and nightmares), and similar moments might be found within these piece, tugging and twisting our thinking and emotions into a state of variation.

Superbly produced and presented, Variation is a marvellously absorbing exhibition.

SL Details

• Variation, Janus II Gallery (Sinful Retreat, rated Adult)