Memespelunk

The location of the show:
http://slurl.com/secondlife/Lappet/77/231/99/

If you’re reading this, chances are you may already know about my first solo exhibition in SL “Land of Forgotten Light” which runs from May 4th to June 3rd at The Bluffs Nature Reserve and Center for the Arts. There’s a lot to show and talk about. On this post I will continue adding photos and video of the work, shots from the opening and my reflections. Feel free to leave comments too.

Photos of the work are being continuously added to a special Flickr set at: http://www.flickr.com/photos/lancesh/sets/72157600188415834/

Also, I was fortunate to be interviewed by a couple of people and will post the links here.

Acknowledgements
I was very fortunate to get this chance to exhibit at the Bluffs after only a short time here. I was especially lucky to have the rl and sl musician ZeroOne Paz offer to compose a special soundscape for the Land (he also runs the Bluffs and is one of the kindest people in sl). I’ll write more about my collaboration below. Also thanks to my rl wife Rika and my kids Euan and Aria for giving the support and their voices in the work. I was an art tyrant when recording them. I can’t write all the names of super sl folks who gave me help and kindness during the show. Helping get the word out really proves the magic of sl to me. So to all of you THANKS!

Introductions
For those who didn’t get to the show yet, here’s an introduction I included in the invitation:

“Once upon a time, there was a land where light was forgotten. It would seem a sad thing. But forgotten things can be remembered. Illumination can be found again. In this land there is a magic wood and a mysterious lake. The forgotten light has come to rest and live in these places. I have been in the forest and witnessed the light cones saunter through on their way to parts unknown. I moved through them and they through me. I have met the light orbs in the lake. They shimmer slowly out of the waters beckoning. I hear the sound and words of their rising. I enter the pool and find myself. Other visitors of my breed arrive. We do a strange and contorted choreography over the water. We share a fire and listen to the chimes. Nature sounds mix with our own. Night falls. We are together.”

Juria Yoshikawa effectively juxtaposes her dynamic sculptures of moving light with the natural setting to create sensations of mystery and spirituality. There is a soothing, lifelike presence to the lights that draws you into them and invites interaction. Yoshikawa believes the beauty of the light orbs and cones comes in part by the interaction between the light and the simulated nature of The Bluffs. She further says the work will truly come to life when viewers venture into the work, mixing their shape and motion with that of the installation. With this in mind, she has created sensational animations for viewer’s avatars to propel, twirl and soar through the installation in theatrical fashion.

THE LAND IN TWO PARTS
I’ll briefly write about about my impressions and ideas behind the two parts of the exhibit - Cones and Orbs.

The Light Cones in the Forest
When you arrive at the Bluffs, chances are you start at the Art Walk to view the Light Cones. You are smart enough to read the instructions sign turning on your music and setting your sun to midnight. You also might grab a Light Gown and wear it to be a part of the art work yourself. Then you head down the Art Walk. Immediately, the Cones come out of the trees and wash over you with with their animated polka dots. I was interested in how people using sl can experience light and color in a very immersive way.

The cone shape is loosely connected to the idea of a tree. This connection is not necessary to experience the work but might be interesting to understand my simple logic. People’s sensations and interactions in the space are key to this work. The more people explore the work the more meaningful it is. There is now inherent meaning in the work itself. You bring the meaning.

I wanted to create a piece - through random color and seemingly random motion - you could never experience the work the same. I included recordings of my children talking and singing in Japanese their native language to create another layer of audio sensation. I like how the fantasy like quality they bring the piece, at times seeming to come from within the trees. Last, I wanted to mention that the nature of the forest itself has influenced the outcome and determines a mood of the Light Cones. Site specific is one artsy term to describe this but I like the idea that the forest is a part of the art as are the user.

The Light Orbs in the Lake
The second part of the exhibition are the Light Orbs rising out of the lake. The best word I can think of is that they “shimmer” as the lights animate across the surface of each orb. The build up for the Orbs was clearly the Domes I did in the weeks before this show. A little personal art history for you… the Domes got some attention in a sandbox and the Bluffs curator invited me to do a show at his center. But with the influence of the water they transformed into Orbs.

As you approach the lake after the forest, you see a dozen or so Orbs rising and falling slowly and ambiently from the water. Since it’s midnight, the Orbs cast a glow on the water and the island in the lake. After the Cone piece, the Orbs have a much calmer feel. There is a new voice work playing near the lake - myself and my wife making random statements about the space and the work (I personally liked the previous children’s voices better for their indirectness). The idea of using voices in the work came from an interesting blog post I read in Virtual Artists Alliance about the possibility of creating a presence in sl installation (a must read).

Another important element of the Light Orbs in the Lake is the animations I created to allow people to participate in the art work. By clicking a ball that says “click to be one with art” participants can choose from eight av motions. Since people may be wearing the Light Gowns, they themselves become one of the light pieces as they fly twisting and tumbling through the Orbs. This turned out to be one of the most popular elements of the exhibition with people spending lots of time enjoying the site of their avatars animating whilly nilly. Participatory art is definitely a must in sl is what I’m learning and I hope to do lots more. The idea of the viewing seeing their own image in the work is very interesting to me. In a work I created shortly after called the Light Room I play with this idea of viewers seeing themselves in art a much more immersive way (also worth a look).

The challenge for the Orb part of the show was to get people away from the shore and fly into the Orbs with the animations. With our traditional understanding of art, it’s very easy to stay outside the piece and see it from a far. The Cones (and the original Dome pieces) naturally moved over people’s bodies. So I tried to use the animations to draw people into the Orb piece - only successful sometimes. That said, people seemed to be quite happy to be animated on the beach.