Tag: Cica Ghost

Cica Ghost dropped me an invite to visit her latest build, which opened to the public on Thursday, November 5th. Given I’m a long-standing fan of her work, I had to hop over and see it right away.

Bridge is another whimsical build – but also one that has a potential message for the world at large; a message encompassed in the quote Cica has selected to go with the installation:

It takes both sides to build a bridge.

Fredrik Nael

For those who may not be familiar with him, Fredrik Nael, is an Indonesian writer of science fiction / fantasy short stories as well as a reviewer of books. In the west, he is perhaps noted for a series of inspirational quotes, of which the one Cica has selected might be his most famous.

With this build, Cica offers a pair of rocky tables sitting above the rest of the landscape, and on which sit two little towns – or perhaps the two halves of the same town, depending on your perspective. They are linked by a single bridge which – given both are walled on their own summits – appears the only way of moving from one to the other (although steps do descend from one to the valley below).

Watching over all of this is a gigantic dragon. He doesn’t appear to be any threat to either part of the town (or the towns, depending on how you prefer to see them), but whether he is just visiting or a guardian is up to you to decide. He does, however, offer a nice link to Nael’s fantasy writing.

Walking around the tall, slender houses and the neatly set lawns and flower beds will reveal places to sit, places to dance and – across the bridge – pram-like cars (which can be purchased with a rezzing system) for those who want to try motoring around. Exploring will also reveal many of Cica’s cats, who very much have the run of the place – although they are likely not responsible for the little drawings from Cica that are on a number of the walls, and which bring further life to the setting.

And the message? While Cica keeps her art largely apolitical, it’s hard to miss: at a time when we we tend to be defined by what divides us more than what can unite us, building bridges can do much to bring us back together.

Bridge will remain open through November 2020.

SLurl Details

• Bridge (Elle Island, rated Moderate)

Cica is back with her October 2020 build, and given the time of year, she’s presenting Halloween. However, rather than going all dark and gloomy with things that go bump in the night and nasty things hiding in the shadows, she offers something very different: a homage to the the genius of a film-maker known for his unique style of fantasy / horror storytelling that’s mixed with Cica’s trademark lightness and whimsy.

That focus  of the homage is given away by the quote Cica offer with the installation:

Every day is Halloween isn’t it? For some of us.

– Tim Burton

And indeed, set out across the region is a series of little vignettes, many of which feature characters that may have popped out of the consciousness of Mr. Burton. They are all going about their business in this landscape of graveyards, pumpkin patches and strange little houses that appear to have grown, rather than having been built.

Round-eyed and slender, these are characters who carry on their skull-like faces grins that appear genuinely happy as they go about their business, be it stroking a cat, pulling a pumpkin-filled cart, riding a swing, playing a piano or some other endeavour. Like many of Burton’s characters, while their appearance may be drawn from the ideas of horror, they carry a natural attractiveness that encourages us to wander among them.

However, they are not the only attraction here. There are lots of little touches that add depth to the setting: flowers that will cause you to consider the term “spider plant” in a new way, crows that watch over everything with mischievous look in their eyes, and footprints that magically creep across the ground whilst eyes stare out of some windows, suggesting menace whilst none appears.  And do keep watch for the rooftops that occasionally hinge upwards – they have a little surprise of their own.

There’s also interactive elements throughout the region waiting to be found as well, one of which carries a little touch of the macabre as it brings a whole new meaning to the words “dancing on a grave”, while for those who are taken by the folk occupying the region, a little shop offers the chance to purchase them, together with several of the other characters to be found at various points. And if the pumpkins in the patch take your fancy, they can be purchased directly from there.

Finished in a semi-monochrome environment, Halloween is another Cica delight. So, if you fancy something a little more whimsical for your Halloween, be sure to pop over – it’ll be there for the rest of the month!

SLurl Details

• Halloween by Cica Ghost (Elle Island, rated Moderate)

Monsters are real, ghosts are real too. They live inside us, and sometimes they win.

– Stephen King

This is the quote Cica Ghost uses to introduce her August 2020 build, Monsters. Occupying a Homestead region, this is another build that encompasses whimsy whilst also – perhaps – carrying a more pointed message.

Scattered across a strangely undulating landscape stand four large structures, each with two walls apiece. Were they all to be brought together, they might form a house of sorts. But as it is, they each offer a scene in a room of a dwelling: a lounge, two bedrooms and spare room devoid of furnishings on the same scale as found in the others.

The two bedrooms are occupied by dwellers of the would-be house; one appears to be fast asleep, and other perched on the edge of her bed, feet tucked carefully up as she reads one of a number of books piled in her room. However, these people are not the focus of the build; that is reserved for the plethora of creatures to be found within and without the different rooms, and who lend their name to the installation’s title.

Bipeds, quadrupeds, tall, short, with arms (some times more than the accepted pair!) without arms, some with tails, others sans ears and one with an interesting collection of mouths, Cica’s monsters are waiting to greet and amuse those who visit.

And yes, I do mean amuse. Such are their looks and expressions, these monsters are hardly the stuff of nightmare – a fact some of them appear to be only too aware, given their glum faces. Rather, they all like like the type of monster unlikely to bring home the screams for a certain famous corporation of Disney lore, but that would all too quickly become a play friend to any youngster they happen upon.

Those in the “living room” of the “house” seem particularly cognizant of their lack of scare factor as they form a group and drink coffee, one idly fishing off the side of the platform, all of them ignoring the entreaties of a four-footed fiend on the grass below to come play. It’s in these glum looks that it is possible to perceive that deeper element embodied in the use of the Stephen King quote: given that often the worse monsters are the ones inside of the humans they are meant to scare, is there any need for the ones we might fear as being under out beds to ever come out?

Some, however are trying to make the best of things, playing outside and waiting to offer a smile and wave to visitors. For this reason, as much as any other, whether you choose to follow the interpretation given above or not, you should hop along to Monsters and see it for yourself. And if you take a liking to one of Cica’s little chaps, be sure to find your way to the Monster Shop in the region’s south-east corner, where you can pick one up at take it home! And when exploring, be sure to mouse-over things: as always, Cica has included assorted perches and animations for people to enjoy!

SLurl Details

• Monsters (Zvi, rated Moderate)

For July, Cica Ghost has offered her latest installation for people to enjoy. Summertime is a reminder that summer days can be, for all of us, “the best of what might be”, as her quote from Charles Bowden, the late American journalist, essayist and author, reminds us. It’s also a reminder that despite all the shadows cast by the current SARS-CoV-2 situation, happier, brighter, days will come along.

This is another quirky, light and fun installation with more to see than might initially meet the eye. At its core, it offers what might be a giant’s overgrown yard garden. Much of the ground forms a tiled surface that undulates slight, giving the impression of an aged, uneven terrace. Set upon this, and the grass beyond it, lay a series of planters of assorted shapes and sizes, from which sprout a variety of plants.

Tall willow-like trees watch over this landscape, whilst scattered flowers and grass grow free of the pots and planters – perhaps grazing for the cows that are also present here.

Standing or sitting alone or in pairs or small groups, the cattle are curious souls, their large eyes constantly roving over the land around them, seeing all that goes on. The set to the brows of some suggest they might not entirely welcome avatars traipsing over their grass and flowers, while others look more interested in one another than in any visitors passing by. All of them offer opportunities for photos to be taken in their company, that can be hard to ignore.  Nor are the only occupants of this land; representative of Cica’s cats and crows are also waiting to be found, while a unique coop provides a stacked home for snow-white chickens.

There’s more to see throughout the setting, as well. Some of the planters have the distinct look of houses or buildings about them – with one even the home of a little cinema – while others have the feel of being little hideaways. As with all of Cica’s installations, there are multiple places to sit, although one or two might require a little careful seeking – so be sure to carefully mouse-over planters and plants as well as simply looking for the chairs and garden benches. And if you’re not in the mood to walk, hop on to one of the seed carriers that are fluttering around the landscape and be scooted around.

A heart-lifting setting caught in the light of a late afternoon Sun, Summertime is another delightful visit, while those so taken by them, can obtain Cica’s cows from  the little store in the north-west corner of the region.

  SLurl Details

• Summertime by Cica Ghost (Sunshine Keys, rated Moderate)

Cica Ghost opened her latest installation on Sunday, May 31st, and it is another delight. Entitled Elephants, it offers visitors the opportunity to go on a night-time photo safari to film elephants.

Set on a grassy, somewhat humpy landscape and among trees, these elephants wander, stand or sit individually or in little groups. Whether they are African or Indian is up to personal choice – but the setting does perhaps suggest Africa more than India, particularly given the little huts scattered around the landscape.

Static they may be, but through the simple means of animating their eyes, Cica has imbued them with a remarkable depth of life and emotion that really captivates in the degree of expressiveness offered.

Take the pair who standing close to one another, one with trunk raised. At first they may appear to be going about their own, separate, business and just happen to be in close proximity to one another. Then with a swivel of their eyes, a look passes between them that is hard not to see as a look of of unspoken communication and understanding as might pass between a couple.

Elsewhere, a lone elephant stands before green plants. From one perspective, it appears sorrowful – perhaps feeling lonely or because it is reflecting the plight of elephants in the physical world; but move your position and await a turn of its eyes, and suddenly you have a shy subject in your camera lens, expressing a coy embarrassment at being photographed – as seen top right of this article.

As usual with Cica’s installations, there are interactive aspects to be found here. Mouse over the elephants (and other points in the setting) and you’ll find sit points, some with single poses, others with multiple poses, allowing visitor to join in with the exhibit.

There’s really not too much more to say about Elephants, as it should be seen, not described. I will say that it is a genuine tonic for those needing to escape (for a while at least) all the bad news reverberating around the world, and it really cannot fail to raise a smile. For those who wish, one of the little huts offers all of the elephants for sale at very modest prices, making them fitting additions to any art collection.

Definitely not an installation to miss.

SLurl Details

• Elephants (Egzotica, rated Moderate)

Currently open at Bryn Oh’s Immersiva is Social Distancing, a join installation by Bryn and Cica Ghost. The title should immediately give away the theme of the installation.

I confess that in its current application around the world, I find the term “social distancing” an odd choice. In an era when social media has all but taken over our lives and allow many to say in contact half-way across the globe whilst often remaining distanced from those immediately around them, the idea of “social distancing” is perhaps something of a non-sequitur; as the SARS-CoV-2 virus relies on close physical proximity one to another, it’s seemed to me a more apt term for the phenomena we’ve seen sine February (in the west – earlier in places like the far east) should perhaps be “physical distancing”.

Anyway, semantics aside, this cosy – in terms of size – installation offers a broad take on social / physical distancing and its impact it has had on us. Within a watery, overgrown garden environment surrounded on three sides by great concrete walls (the state of the garden and the high walls themselves possible metaphors).

A rough path winds through the overgrown landscape, offering a path to various vignettes signifying the state and anxieties of people and society. A man sits at the window of his house, the room behind him stacked with toilet rolls and he has a pair of binoculars in hand as he looks towards his mailbox. The flag is up and letters lie within, but he appears too worried to make the trip out to collect them. Further along the zig-zagging path, a couple sit on a boat – but at opposite ends, unable to express themselves more intimately to one another by holding hands or simply sitting side-by side.

Further still long the path is a little village scene where the occupants of the houses all express various reactions to having to remain isolated. Some, more able to adapt, perhaps, use carrier pigeons (an analogy for more modern means of connecting to others?) to pass letters back and forth. Others sit at their windows and worry. One simply hides behind his curtain, peeking in terror at the world from around the edge of it. Should you wish to be a part of this vignette, there are a couple of houses with single poses included.

There’s a certain poignancy to all of these little houses and their occupants that may perhaps touch us in different ways. For many of us, making the transition to the kind of lifestyle social / physical distancing has brought about hasn’t been dramatically hard in the scheme of things. We have our Facebook, our You Tube our WhatsApp – and yes, our Second Life – to maintain contact and engage with family and friends.  But what about those who find being on their own hard – such as the elderly or those psychological issues? Seeing the face crammed into a corner of a house window and peering around the edge of the curtain, I was immediately reminded of an interview with a doctor who has been trying to help those whose psychosis requires physical proximity to others in order to help them avoid giving into their inner demons and voices.

Another subtle element in the installation alludes to the risk countries and people face in pushing to get back to “business as usual” too soon. There is a real risk – as has been seen with past epidemics and pandemics – that trying to relax rules around social / physical distancing, etc., too soon could lead to a second or even third wave of the SARS-CoV-2 / Covid-19 situation striking the world. Within Social Distancing, this risk is seen by the presence of “Corona Monsters” among the bushing and floating in the water. they appear to lying in wait, ready to strike should those in the little houses all decide to come out and start mingling.

A timely and engaging installation, reached via the teleport board at the Immersiva landing point, and complete with gacha machines for those wishing to obtain some of the models used in the exhibit or to support Cica and Bryn.

SLurl Details

• Social Distancing  – via the teleport board (Immersiva, rated Moderate)