Abstract Baroque & Merlin Mayo win Scien&Art Physics Prizes!

Merlino Mayo (Italy) & Abstract Baroque (UK) each took home the $L20,000 prizes for winning the inaugural Scien@Art Physics 2010 Competition, challenging all of Second Life to create 3D art objects incorporating Physics principles across a number of categories, Atom, String Theory, Nanotechnology, Big Bang, Electricity and Atom.

This competition headed by Talete Flanagan (Second Physics), Marjorie Fargis (SL Art), Mexi Lane (Experience Italy) and Jayjay Zifanwe (The University of Western Australia), spanned 6 lands hosting each of the catrgories, much thanks to the many collaborators, including Open Science (Noke Yuitza), Alpine Executive Center (Sunset Quinnell), CSW Island (MarkWD Helendale) and USMP (Maximo Eames).



Commenting on Merlino's piece, 'Cosmic Shower', Noke Yuitza observed as to the work, ""Rays transparencies remind us, that every second without pause, our body is crisscrossed by thousands of cosmic rays coming from deep space. Due to this, Merlino invites us to see his Cosmic Shower in a childlike way. The prim-man is irradiated constantly in a gravity ball that, showers it with light, crossing the body, touching our soul."



When asked to describe his work, Abstract Baroque said, "Ambiguity in a piece of work allows the beholder to become a part of the creative process, since they will project into the work and abstract their own interpretation. The art work leads the beholder into the process of re-creation. Some qualities are almost universally understood and interpreted. Eg. Horizontal as passive, diagonal as active, blue colors recessive, warm colors advancing, but beyond this elementary level of experience, subjectivity determines what is seen and felt. I like my work to lead the beholder in this way, and leave them to co-create the result."

These 2 winning pieces, also automatically qualify for the Grand Prize Round of the UWA 3D Art & Design Challenge, which will take place across the month of September 2010.

The Scien&Art Physics competition, also awarded prizes for each of the 6 categories, with a winner selected representing the best scientific interpretation of the theme, as well as the best artistic representation of the theme. Notably, Pol Jarvinen, Jess Oranos & Merlino Mayo won both the best scientific and best artistic interpretation of their categories. The winners of each category are as follows:

BEST SCIENTIFIC INTERPRETATION (L$1,000 each)
Atom - Pol Jarvinen
Electricity - Jess Oranos
Cosmic Rays - Merlino mayo
String Theory - Abstract Baroque
Big Bang - Dixit Writer
Nanotechnology - FreeWee Ling

BEST ARTISTIC INTERPRETATION (L$1,000 each)
Atom - Pol Jarvinen
Electricity - Jess Oranos
Cosmic Rays - Merlino mayo
String Theory - Mila Thatam & Rodriguez Imako
Big Bang - MosMax Hax
Nanotechnology - Kolor Fall