Real Art in an Unreal World

The Bridge, Ars Simularca

Ars Simularca is a part of NMC's SL Artist Showcase Island. The big names in Second Life art can be found here such as Sasun Steinbeck, Lea Supermarine, and Cherry Manga to name a few. This sim is best seen at the midnight settings, which is the sim's default setting!

There are interactive pieces of art that you can touch to change the settings, walk on and when you walk on in them like that big ball, the prims, change colors. There is a solar display where you can change the planets with an interactive HUD.

To say that this sim is big, huge is trite, it is awe inspiring, for example one of Lea Supermarine's sculpture's is a big square that is made from 200 tiny squares and connecting rods, it moves slowly and glows from within. There are not words to describe the majesty in these works of art.

The most amazing work of art is the three spheres that have moving pieces within and set to very calming and relaxing music. It's mesmerizing.

Ars Simularca sets next to NMC's Campus West, which is dedicated to some lovely artists and hosts some huge sculptures in the front of the Museum. The most amazing one is the Seraph, she is truly lovely.

These two sims are two thumbs up and not to be missed!

A True Second Life Treasure

Da Vinci Gardens, Second Life

There are times, when exploring for new Second Life treasures, that you are disappointed, but then there times that one is truly astounded by the creativity and the vision of the artists that put sims and architecture together for the masses to enjoy. There such a sim called, Da Vinci Gardens and there are many treasure then the obvious ones on the surface. Whether viewed during full day, sunrise, sunset, or midnight this beautiful place truly enchants.

The entire sim is a work of art. It's as if Ancient Greece and Rome meets Egypt and the Future all at once. There are 14 destinations to visit here which does not include what you see when you first teleport into the sim. There is Atlantis sunken under the water, which also includes a fish cemetery, which is eerie at best. There is a massive volcano roiling into the waters where the ruins of Atlantis lie.

Gothic Castle

There is an entrance to the volcano, be sure that you do not catch fire as you enter! You can tour the volcano and find the dragon's lair. On the surface, there is a lighthouse, tree house, a Tudor Castle, a Gothic Castle, and beaches to visit.

When you first visit this Isle, you will want to hop onto the bat and take a flying tour of the beautiful region! The tour drops you off in a cave and you can teleport to anywhere else on the Island. You can move around the different areas using dandelions, dragons, boats, bats, and mermaids, to name a few. Be aware of the haunted tomb in the Gothic Castle!

Enter the pyramids of Egypt, this is the best feature of the entire sim, first tour the area with the flying carpet to enjoy the beauty of the region, when you return to the front of the pyramid, you can move through the pyramid on the flying carpet or you can walk through it... I would suggest for those who hate snakes to either fly or use the flying carpet. This pyramid is full of traps to deter the unwary traveler into not finding the Pharaoh's treasure. The textures used in this build are amazing and the best Egyptian artwork ever encountered in Second Life.

Alien Gardens

After surviving the traps in the Pharaoh's tomb, adventure to the future by blasting off into space, dancing  in space, and seeing the stars, or go to Mars, visit the aliens, or take a ride on the galactic slide! This sim will take some time to see and enjoy. This is a very romantic place complete with a piano that one may play and a Roman bath!

There are tip jars all over the sim, please be sure to tip your hosts, as this type of artistic sim is very expensive to maintain and it is truly a Second Life Treasure.

Pandoria the Land of Space

Pandoria

There are many space sims in Second Life, however, Pandoria stands out from the rest. The creators of this sim have combined space with an Otherworldly look. There are big, dark moons and smaller, brighter moons. An  asteroid belt is between the Aurora Borealis and the main space rocks. There are twinkling white and gold stars floating in space.

The use of purples, steel blues, and stark white, tie in the lovely experience that is outer space on Pandoria. The creators use these colors to develop lovely, romantic spots for sitting, dancing, and space diving, which is quite a bit of fun! There are also spots to sit and meditate and enjoy the serenity of space. They have several plateaus where you can dance, soaking in the ambiance that is Pandoria. 

This part of space has been colonized and things grow, there are trees, flowers, grass, and water! There are pavilions where you can have a quite interlude with your SL sweetie! The combination of artistic flare and the romance of outer space, and Otherworldly qualities truly make this a lovely spot to visit! 

Relay for Life Charity Event

My absolute favorite charity event in Second Life is the Relay for Life, which raises Linden's for charity and the money is changed into Real Life money and donated on the behalf of all Second Life residents to the American Cancer Society to help find a cure for cancer.

There are many SL residents that participate and organize fundraisers, some of the most popular are concerts, games, and of course RacerX's Great Snail Races, the racers must pay a fee to race across about 15 sims and it's an absolute blast to watch. RacerX is a wonderful scripter who uses particles quite a bit. He participates in many events, but the year that I met him he made this Tiny Fairy Castle that was one prim, but it looked like many, many prims were used. The particles rotated through different scenes and ends with fireworks.

Sky Elf among the Sunflowers, Alurel

Many artists donate artwork and sculptures for silent auctions or outright purchase. This year, I had the opportunity to visit the Alurel sim that welcomes all fae characters and as a photographer had an absolutely beautiful time taking lots and lots of pictures. When you arrive, you teleport into their ballroom, which just  by itself is absolutely gorgeous and then exit to explore through the Elven drum circle. The sim although open to the public for exploration, however, it is home to SL residents who have chosen Alurel as their home, if you accidentally stumble across one of their homes while exploring and they are there apologize for disturbing their peace and leave.

This sim is an enchanting sim and the builds there a true works of art! Enjoy exploring Alurel!

Garden of Dreams

When I want a new place to visit, I check out the Destination Guide and sometimes, I can find some really wonderful spots. One such spot is the Garden of Dreams. It is beautiful and is a wonderful place for a romantic getaway.

Old Grandfather Time

The trees on the sim are huge, gargantuan is a better word to describe these golden-leafed trees. This sim is perpetually set in fall. There are little nooks for dancing with your love as well as a dance floor set on a beautiful ocean and the mountains in the distance.

Another truly remarkable piece of art are the huge logs that you see throughout the sim, they are about 10-15 feet in height and they are phantom and when you walk through the side of the trunk, you can see the beautiful background at the other end of the trunk and the sun streaming through the holes adds mystery and romance to your picture.

Tree trunk 

Throughout the sim you will see pink globes and if you "slip in" and sit you can touch the ball and it will give you a menu allowing you to choose where to visit, the realms of hell, cemetery, desert, and the beach to name a few. Once you are at your destination, zoom in on the circle that you are sitting within and suddenly it disappears giving you a great photo opportunity.  The sphere travels to many different places catering to a wide variety of tastes. A word of caution when you are done with the ride, the click "ground" because you want to return to the ground, not fall from the sky and splat on the ground below! And as you can imagine that is exactly what happened to me!

In Hell!

The Garden of Dreams is wonderfully romantic spot to bring your Second Life sweetie and romance him or her with lovely music and scenery. A must see along your SL travels!

Art Fun For Your Blog

I know that I have not blogged in quite a while, however that is due to my computer being fried, but I am working on setting up on my computer and will be back touring Second Life Museums and Art Galleries soon!

However, I have a fun website for you!  http://www.wordle.net/ and here is an example below!

My Wordle based on my last blog entry!

It takes the words from your blog entry, the most repeated word used in your entry will be the largest so now you know that I truly think that Second Life ART GALLERIES ARE indeed BEAUTIFUL! Now you can copy it to your clip board by using snip tool (search for it under the windows icon) and you can put it into PhotoShop and put your pictures from your blog behind your wordle and then save it as a jpeg and upload it to your blog!

Have fun!

Highlight Tour of Second Life Art Galleries, Part 3

Diorama at St@rt Gold Art Sculpture Gallery

I am back on the Tour and have found a gem of an art gallery:  St@rt Gold Art Sculpture Art Gallery.  The sculptures are bold, beautiful and original.  The Guardian Angel sculpture has music that reminds me of the Greek myths of the Siren's Song luring sailors ashore to wreck upon the shoals.

There is a wide variety of artwork including scripted fractals that move, which are beautiful. Following the trend of several other galleries there are matching floor mats and pottery with the artwork on them.  The gold sculptures are shown in a room that has rich red tapestries and carpets.  They range from a drum set to saxophones.

There are beautiful underwater ruins to explore and a walk through art gallery; my favorite presentation is the diorama of the solar system set above a glowing mountain range.

The best way to tour this beautiful gallery is to set your environment to midnight.  I give this gallery two thumbs up!

Gardens as viewed from the Royal Thai Gallery

Traditional Thai Art can be found at the Royal Thai Gallery.  If you enjoy Thai art this is the place to visit!  The Thai Buddha is displayed along with elephants, nagas (snakes), and carvings of Thailand's Epic Story.

Beautiful and peaceful gardens surround the gallery and do turn on your music options at this gallery it features wonderful classical selections to enjoy to further relax.

Greystone Manor is open to the public and is a wonderfully designed and appointed mansion displaying the beautiful Thai artwork as you would see it in Real Life! A definite must see!

This Gallery is virtually lag free and I give it two thumbs up!

Taking a break at the Two Shores Gallery of Fine Art 

Two Shores Gallery of Fine Art features the digital artwork of Mathilde Vhargon.  She designs a sculpture and then takes the patterns of her sculptures and uses a fractal filter and twists and turns them into a designs them into beautiful digital paintings!

Following the "Yellow Brick Road" in Ozland

Darker, digital artwork can be found in Ozland's Visiting Artist Exhibit!  This month's artist is Relay Caedmon.  His artwork is dark and skeletons can be found hiding within. Also featured at this gallery is a monthly piece of art and you are invited to write something about it in the form of a story, poem, or essay utilizing 500-1000 words.  The written art will be read in your own voice on one of the four Wednesday's of the month!  The writing must be PG and can be written in any genre, but must be about the picture that is chosen!

This is an unusual concept and if you are passionate about artwork and writing this is the spot to explore!