LEA FULL SIM ART SERIES (DEC): Haveit Neox's 'Second Libations'

THE LEA FULL SIM ART SERIES moves on to December, following two truly stunning months, with Rebeca Bashly in October and Tyrehl Byk with quadrapop Lane in November. The baton passes to Haveit Neox and 'Second Libations' which has already provided us a stunning preview! Luna Metamorphia's 'Interactive Zoo of Endangered Species' will showcase the associated UWA SKY SIM Series following on from RazorZ and jjccc Coronet.

LATEST INFORMATION
THE END IS NIGH!! DESTRUCTION OF THE SIM (Dec 31st 2011)
The month long exhibit, Second Libations, comes to an EXPLOSIVE end on Saturday, Dec 31. If you haven't seen it yet, please hop on over for a last look before the collapse. 

There will be a dramatic end to Second Libations on New Year's Eve, Dec 31. As the year 2012 issues in, will it really be the end of the world? Come see for yourself. The show begins at 2 pm, SLT. (SL time is Pacific Standard Time). You may want to be there, and bring your camera :)

Reported Here (Temi Sirbu Blog)
Location for Destruction HERE

Normal Location: LEA6 - CLICK HERE

On Linden Labs Destination Guide Featured Events
jjccc Coronet Machinima
Quan Lavendar Blog
Apmel Goosson Blog
Virtual Outworlding Blog
ACC ALpha Blog
More from ACC Alpha Blog
Temi Sirbu Blog (1st)
Temi Sirbu Blog (2nd)
On MouseDragon Designs Flickr
Toxx News
The Lionheart Times
PJ Trenton's Flickr
Rowan Derryth on Prim Perfect
Honour McMillan Blog
Victoria Lennoire's Look at Second Libations
Spiral Silverstar Machinima Part 1
Spiral Silverstar Machinima Part 2
Temi Sirbu 3rd review
FashionFeed of SL
Virtual Real Blog
More on Temi Sirbu Blog

In Haveit's Words:

THE STORY

The great cosmic storm swept up the last of Earth’s water molecules. On the lifeless planet, the only remaining intelligence flickers on computer screens. In the absence of human maintenance, bot scipters, bot artists, and bot teachers scramble to rescue their resources before the impending threat of blackout.

Like the sorcerer’s apprentice, they begin flooding their world by rezzing buckets of virtual water, in the hope of rehydrating their users. Their strategy needs assistance. Not having been programmed for an unforeseen event of this magnitude,  the bots plea for your solution in securing their virtual world.

The Second Libations await your offering. Will you be the one to rescue the world of the bots?


A PREVIEW OF SECOND LIBATIONS




CHIC AEON'S 'CHAINED' - ON SECOND LIBATIONS





EXHIBIT TOUR

1. The Colossus

You arrive to Second Libations by way of the ‘real world’... an Earth become desert. Walking through the computer screen doorway of a pyramid, you enter the virtual world: a place where only bots have survived the desiccation. The interior ramps of the pyramid relate the story in floating short texts. Suddenly you fall through a phantom floor from the austere colorless pyramid,  to a welcoming stage saturated in rich hues. Bots line up to welcome you into their electronically generated culture.

As you pass down the stairwell, vending posters offer complementary temple garb to wear if you choose. Have you noticed that you have been walking and tumbling inside a colossus? From the pyramid in the sky to the seabed below, his charge is to deliver you to the Temple of the Bots.

With yet another drop to speed your journey, you find yourself at the bottom of the sea. Houses flooded in the virtual sea were once homes to users. Follow the arrows to the grand marble staircase. It leads you to shore.

2. The Temple of the Bots

Sea level brings you to the inner sanctum: the Temple of the Bots. Here, the bot scripters, bot artists, and bot teachers compose their ideas in an effort to preserve their internet existence. You face three doorways on entering the building. Each takes you via a short labyrinth to reach the main rooms. The signs over the doorways are clearly marked with pictures to show what lies beyond. The three rooms are:

a) Banquet of the Artists. An accumulation of artworks are arranged around the room. The map for the Banquet (included in the free vendors inside the colossus statue) gives more detailed information about the artworks. On the way to the Banquet, you will pass a very colorful installation which has a copy of one of my real life palettes as part of the composition.

b) Librarynth. After you negotiate the bookcase maze, you reach the study area of the teachers where a collection of texts by Second Life residents are displayed. The statements answer the question ‘how will the bots survive without human maintenance’. Do you have an idea to contribute? Please click on the cube in teacher's book and follow the instructions to submit your idea.

c) Scripters’ Web Tower. A mirrored floor captures the magic of the scripters. The bullet shaped dome, rising high into the sky is composed of spiders and their communal web... the very web that makes up the internet. Giant entropic inducing creatures feed upon the spiders, thereby threatening the virtual world’s network. Along the way to the tower, you will also pass the Frogs’ Stage with yet another proposition for bot survival, and the DaVinci cell, where bots attempt to script the Creation of Man to life.

Tour the rooms in any order you wish. Along the way, there are surprises to keep your labyrinth promenade varied.

THE FINALE

On Dec 31 2011, the last day of Second Libations, there will be a dramatic end to the exhibit. If you like seeing big things come apart, this may be something you will want to catch. I will be posting the time for the event on the ACCalpha blog when I have the schedule set up. Please check by late December. See the address below.

Further information:

Updates about the exhibit will appear on the ACC Alpha blog at: http://accalpha.blogspot.com/

A film trailer about the exhibit is posted on YouTube at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dMJd2zBCUgg&hd=1

Welcome to Second Libations. As explained above, you may be a part of the exhibit by submitting a text for display.

Haveit Neox

A Book On International Education Includes Second Life Photos

A book released on the 22nd of Nov 2011 by Senator Chris Evans, Australian Minister for Tertiary Education entitled 'Making A Difference: Australian Tertiary Education', carries 2 images from Second Life, taken by UWA's Jay Jay Jegathesan (Jayjay Zifanwe).

Galea Yates with Winthrop Clock Tower

This book on the history and development of international education in Australia, edited by Bruce Mackintosh & Dorothy Davis shows an image depicting the avatar of Galea Yates (USA), in the iconic photo that saw the launch of the first of the UWA Machinima challenges. This image leads Chapter 12 (written by Bob Goddard) of the book, entitled 'Future Perspectives: Horizon 2025'.

Renee Michel, Angharad Catteneo & Jay Jay Jegathesan @ Winthrop Clock Tower

The 2nd image on page 411, also features UWA's Winthrop Clock Tower, this time with the avatars of Renée Michel of Sacramento, California, Angharad Catteneo of Gower, Wales, and Jay Jay Jegathesan of Perth, Australia.

CLICK HERE for more information on the book.

* Pages reproduced here with permission from Bruce Mackintosh

Victoria Lenoirre's Look at LunaMetamorphia's Endangered Species Zoo of Metamorphia

Entrace to the Zoo

http://slurl.com/secondlife/WASP%20Land/92/7/1302

Come check out Luna Metamorphia's "Endangered Species Zoo of Metamorphia". You only have a few more days left to see it! It is mesh, so you will need to be logged in a viewer that is mesh-compatible.

The way into the maze is  the mouth of the tiger. I love how Luna built the habitats. They looks realistic and comfortable. I took a picture of the maned wolf.

The Maned Wolf

At the landing point you should find a bluish purple teleporter. Click to get a menu of target locations. The locations are: Douc Langur, Cafe, Quetzal, Marine Tank, Geo Tortoise, Fountain, Golden Toad, Maned Wolf, Balkan Lynx, Karner, and Numbat. You'll find a teleporter near every exhibit as well.

It's a lovely, fun place to visit with your friends and just all by yourself. I liked  the maze concept. I'd love to build one myself. :-)

The textures and the design was well done. The use of color was brilliant and natural-looking.

I recently sent some questions to Luna Metamorphia and below is our exchange:

VL: What did you use to build this installation?
LM: The installation is a bit of a collage.  The animals and their enclosures (as well as the tiger head, and a few other items such as the benches) are meshes that I built.  The other items within the enclosures are the creations of other Second Life residents.  This was not my original intent, but I did not allow enough time to create everything myself.  The programs I used for my original work are Maya and Photoshop.

VL: Why did you choose a tiger's mouth as the entrance?
LM: For some reason, I like the concept of walking through a mouth shaped cave (I think it's the implied danger and mystery of it).  This is the third time that I've used the concept.  It is, however, the first time I have chosen a tiger.  The other times I used a jaguar and a dragon.  This is the first time I've used a more detailed texture on the entrance (the others were granite and steel, respectively).

VL: Why is it a maze?
LM: I chose the maze because I wanted to offer fun, along with the learning experience that the zoo has to offer.  I added the multiporters for those who did not want to participate in the maze.

VL: Do you create your own textures?
LM: The textures on the mesh objects that I created, are my own.  With the exception of the ground and the hedges, all non-mesh objects of my creation also have my own textures.

VL: What is your favorite animal?
LM: I don't really have a favorite right now. I admire the qualities each animal has to offer (although I have trouble with things such as mosquitos, ticks, black widows, and scorpions).  I love cats and my pug.  In the past I have felt akin to hawks and butterflies.  The fantasy creatures I like best are unicorns and dragons, and these show up alot in my work.

VL: If you could be any animal, which would you be?
LM: Ideally, I would be a fantasy creature with the ability to shapeshift into other creatures.  If I must choose a specific animal, I choose the hawk.  I would love to experience flight, as they do.

Please come see LunaMetamorphia's Zoo! It is awesome!
http://slurl.com/secondlife/WASP%20Land/92/7/1302

Happy Christmas all and a wonderful New Year!

UWA Artists’ Choice: 3D Self Portraits

Following the extraordinary success of the UWA 3D Open Art Challenges, curator FreeWee Ling is now running a scaled-back series of theme challenges in the UWA gallery. “The unprecedented creative energy that was focused on the UWA challenges has been an inspiration to many artists. As long as UWA is willing to support the gallery infrastructure, I feel a responsibility to continue serving the artists of SL and their work,” says FreeWee.

At the 3D Open Grand Finale, FreeWee announced the continuation of art at UWA with a series of theme shows to be called the UWA 3D Artists’ Choice Challenge, beginning with a challenge for January on the topic: “3D Self Portraits.” As always, anyone is encouraged to submit entries. For the theme shows the prim limit is doubled to 210 (300 PE for meshes). Deadline for entries is January 3. Complete details are available on the UWA website.

Important differences between these shows and what we have become accustomed to at UWA include changes in judging and prizes. These challenges will be more cooperative. Cash awards will be relatively trivial, but it’s hoped that the new judging process will come with greater prestige and honor, as the participating artists themselves will chose the winners.

Regarding the theme for the first challenge, 3D Self Portraits, FreeWee says, “Much of my own work in SL has been about identity and how we so fundamentally create a new persona in virtual worlds. The decisions we make and the art we create are all projections of some aspect, whether hidden or overt, of our real life personalities. I thought it would be interesting to ask artists to turn the mirror on themselves and show us in a more direct way how they perceive themselves (or want us to perceive them, which also says something). Many artists are accustomed to using themselves as models in photographic work. But one does not often see a personal expression in a 3D work. I look forward to seeing who does literal representational art and who chooses to be more conceptual or abstract.”

Entries may be submitted at the UWA gallery. SLURL. All questions should be directed to FreeWee Ling.

UWA GRAND FINALE CHAMPS: MISPRINT & TUTSY WALK AWAY WITH IT ALL

Tutsy Navarathna @ Misprint Thursday's Digital Glove

More than a year in the making, Misprint Thursday's "Digital Glove' soared above an amazing array of 858 artworks sent in across the year to the UWA 3D Open Art Challenge to clinch the title of Grand Champion, and the L$100,000 prize in a nail biting climax where the 35 strong judging panel could only seperate this work from Blue Tsuki's "In Dreams" (seen in this Sophia Yates machinima) by a single point. Oberon Onmura's 'The Chasm' was similarly a one point winner for 3rd place over Claudia222 Jewell's 'Strange Plant... Uglyness & Beauty'. As to MachinimUWA IV: Art of the Artists, Tutsy Navarathna, a Frenchman based in Pondicherry, India, created history by becoming the first person to defend his crown at the UWA Machinima Challenges. His 'Welcome to the Other Side', with its nod to Marshall McLuhan proving too strong for Friday Siamendes gut busting 'Artwashers'. 'Shattered' by Ginger Alsop, pipped paleIllusion's 'You Can't Touch Heaven' in the juried non-scripted category. With the People Choice Awards, Gleman Jun's 'Matter of Ideas' took top spot with a 2 point gap over the joint 2nd prize winners, Blue Tsuki's work & Claudia Jewell's 'Venustrap'.

Chair of the UWA judging panel, Professor Ted Snell, Director of the Cultural Precinct, explained, "

It's been an extraordinary period of creative energy and innovation over
the past two years with an amazingly diverse group of works constantly on
show each month.  The challenge of selecting winners has become
progressively harder as the standard of the entries rose consistently.
The level of technical sophistication and conceptual rigour in the grand
final was a testament to all those artists who have made this such an
exciting project."

3D Artworks can be seen HERE (overall) and HERE (non-scripted)

Major sponsors Open This End provided 25 Awards of Excellence for MachinimUWA IV (full list below). Much thanks to Aino Baar and the Open This End team for being such great supporters of the art.

During the announcements, challenge curator FreeWee Ling offered the following Machinima by way of thanking the artists for their inspiration, as well as to make a surprise announcement on the future of art at UWA


UWA Grand Finale: FreeWee from FreeWee Ling on Vimeo.

BLOGS & NEWS ON THE GRAND FINALE WINNERS ANNOUNCEMENTS

FULL MACHINIMA LIST ON AVIEW TV
Temi Sirbu Blog
Magnum: The Machinima Review
MachinimUWA IV Awards Video by Emmo Wei & Petlove Petshop
I Derryth Blog
Division Street / Divided Path Blog
Kara's Korner
Phi Designs
Pixie Rain Blog
Prof Lori Landay Blog
Apmel Goosson Blog
Second-Lie Blog
Prim Perfect 
Hazlo Real Blog (Spanish)
Nordan Blog
SL Newser
SL Newser on Friday Siamendes
Quan's Travelogues
Spotlight Radio MachinimUWA Review Day 1 Hour 4, Hour 3, Hour 2, Hour 1


FULL RESULTS FOLLOW AND THE TEXT OF THE WINNERS ANNOUNCEMENT IS REPRODUCED BELOW IN ITS ENTIRETY

UWA 3D OPEN ART CHALLENGE (OVERALL)

1st Prize (L$100,000): DIGITAL GLOVE by Misprint Thursday - 70 points
"I am so honored to have 2 spots in the top 10 of the year...I am amazed at the potential of the medium and look forward to seeing it progress. I am very thankful for the work that Jay Jay, FreeWee and the judges put into this-it is no small task. We have a world of people and possibilities here and it continues to move me. So, thank you." Misprint Thursday

2nd Prize (L$75,000): IN DREAMS by Blue Tsuki - 69 points

"I give many thanks to all the people who voted for me in both the People's Choice and the main judging. There were so many spectacular and deserving works this year, it was an honor to share the same stage. I want especially to thank Jajay and FreeWee for all their hard work and comitment to the arts here in Second Life. I can not understate the positive effect the UWA has had. I believe that virtual art is a unique and valid new art form deserving of our attention. It is in its infancy and even in these few short years I have watched it grow to become more varied and sophisticated. I look forward to seeing it evolve, to see more wonderful work from all of you; to see work both reverent and irreverent, sacred and profane:). I also wanted to thank someone who can not be with us, Sabrinna Nightfire, for giving me so many opportunities to show and develop my work. Because of the generosity of people like Sabrinna and the UWA, we have an art scene in Second Life. So to all of you who support the arts in Second Life, a heartfelt thank you." Blue Tsuki

3rd Prize (L$40,000): THE CHASM by Oberon Onmura - 44 points


"Artists live to show their work to people. When people respond, especially when the response is positive, all the hard work and headaches fade away and it seems, for that moment, that he or she has made a real - if maybe small - difference in the world. Winning this award at the culmination of the UWA 3D Art competitions is a great honor, and it gives me a real sense that artmaking here in SL actually touches people, affecting their virtual lives in a good way. And that makes me very happy! Thanks to JayJay, FreeWee, and everyone else at UWA for their tremendous efforts over the years. I hope all this good work continues and grows for the benefit of the entire SL community." Oberon Onmura

4th Prize (L$30,000): STRANGE PLANT...UGLYNESS & BEAUTY by Claudia222 Jewel - 43 points

"It is hard to express the  honour to be even mentioned to be  in the end round in uwa grand  finals .. this moment in january when i came here and  was entering my strange plant . never i would have imagined the impact it has to me later .. thank you all so much for the great support you given me to go on and learn . Thank you for all the opportunitys created for people that like to experiment with more non comercial ways in sl > without events like UWA  we maybe soon would  become content creators and never see the freedom we can get by just work with passion in new mediums like 3d , and share it with others . a big thanks to all creation supporters in sl  <3" Claudia222 Jewell

5th Prize (L$7,500): PARANORMAL FROTTAGE by Misprint Thursday - 39 points:
5th Prize (L$7,500): EXCERPTS FROM REALITIES by Glyph Graves - 39 points
7th Prize (L$5,000): NOT EVERYTHING IS PLAIN BLACK & WHITE by Fuschia Nightfire - 34 points

"I really didn't expect to rate anywhere in the overall winners, the standard of the work there was so high, so i am really honoured to have placed in the top 10" Fuschia Nightfire

8th Prize (L$5,000): FANTASIA EN LA SOMBRA by Romy Nayar - 29 points
8th Prize (L$5,000): IL PLEUT SUR MON COEUR COMME IL PLEUT SUR LA VILLE ("It's raining in my heart, as it's raining in the town") by Cherry Manga - 29 points
10th Prize JOINT (L$1,000): HARMONIES IN C GREAT(+) by Artistide Despres - 28 points
10th Prize JOINT (L$1,000): TROIS PETITS TOURS ET PUIS S'EN VA (Three little turns and it goes away) by Josiane Sorciere - 28 points

"I'm very happy to have been awarded once again, this is a good new to end the year ! Thank you all ! I take this opportunity to thank all those who appropriated the doll and took care of her with poetry, machinimas and other awesome builds. That's pretty cool to see our build living in others imagination, and it's probably the best reward." Josiane Sorciere

10th Prize JOINT (L$1,000): THE DOCK SPIRIT by Scottius Polke - 28 points
10th Prize JOINT (L$1,000): VENUSTRAP by Claudia222 Jewell - 28 points
10th Prize JOINT (L$1,000): SHATTERED by Ginger Also - 28 points

UWA 3D OPEN ART CHALLENGE (NON-SCRIPTED) 

1st Prize (L$15,000): SHATTERED by Ginger Alsop - 105 points

"I hope my art, creativity and imagination inspires others to do great things.  The UWA Art Challenge has been one of the most mind changing events I have experienced in my lifetime, and I cannot thank UWA enough because through my participation over the past year and half they have opened a window into my soul and allowed me to see with new eyes.  No words can express the gratitude of what this has done for me.  It is a reflection of the power and the beauty of art." Ginger Alsop

2nd Prize (L$10,000): YOU CAN'T TOUCH HEAVEN by paleillusion - 102 points

"It is a great honor ... Thank you so much!!!! *passes out*  ^^" paleIllusion

3rd Prize (L$5,000): 99% by Harter Fall - 82 points

"Recieving this award is such an amazing honor. I never thought i would win this prize, especially with such an political installation. I think even the rich ones of us understand they don´t belong to the 1%. I´d like to thank FreeWee Ling and Jayjay Zifanwe for all they did for art and artists in SL, Ally Aeon for her support and Aeonia Arts, Pennelope Parx , Claudia222 Jewell and Nik Gandt for beeing such great friends, the judges for the votes and all the curators, supporters, friends and my family for their help and support." Harter Fall

4th Prize (L$3,000): THE REVOLT OF THE MANNEQUINS by Silene Christen - 63 points
5th Prize (L$2,000): MARIONETTE by Haveit Neox - 62 points:

"The UWA Art Challenge 2011 comes to an end, but it's left its imprint grid wide for the artists of SL. Jayjay conceived of the challenge, and against all odds in an otherwise scattered SL, he managed to nurture an expansive and stimulating place for artists to congregate, share their work, discover each other, and further their visibility in SL. An impossible task, unless you happen to be Jayjay. I am grateful for this award. My thanks to Jayjay, FreeWee, and all those who made the UWA Art Challenge a reality." Haveit Neox

6th Prize (L$1,000): SMALL PIECE OF HELL: The Suicide Forest Infested by Harpias by Rebeca Bashly - 61 points
7th Prize (L$1,000): SPRING BOX by Cherry Manga - 58 points
8th Prize (L$1,000): DAUGHTER OF THE WIND by Fae Varriale - 51 points
9th Prize (L$1,000): MISS N by Suzanne Graves - 45 points
9th Prize (L$1,000): BIRDSONG by Cherry Manga - 45 points

UWA 3D Art People's Choice Award, (Overall)

1st Prize (L$15,000): THE MATTER OF IDEAS by Gleman Jun - 64 points

" I am very surprised and pleased. My goal is to make people happy with my pixels." Gleman Jun



2nd Prize JOINT (@L$6,500): VENUSTRAP by Claudia222 Jewell - 62 points
 
"Thank you all very much for liking my venustrap. Its a great honour." Claudia222 Jewell

2nd Prize JOINT (@L$6,500): IN DREAMS by Blue Tsuki - 62 points

UWA 3D Art People's Choice Award, (Non-Scripted)

1st Prize (L$8,000): SMALL PIECE OF HELL: The Suicide Forest Infested by Harpias by Rebeca Bashly - 112 points


"Well, the people have spoken:) This was truly a lovely year, thank you very much. This makes me happy" Rebeca Bashly

2nd Prize (L$5,000): SHATTERED by Ginger Alsop - 92 points

3rd Prize JOINT (@L$1,500): YOU CAN'T TOUCH HEAVEN by paleillusion - 67 points


3rd Prize JOINT (@L$1,500): SPRING BOX by Cherry Manga - 67 points

MachinimUWA IV: 1st Prize (L$60,000) - 63 Points

WELCOME TO THE OTHER SIDE by Tutsy Navarathna
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dm4XY49gdzc&feature=player_embedded

"Many thanks to the organisers. UWA competitions are now setting the benchmarks for the creation of Visual 3D and Audio-Visual media in Virtual Worlds. I am very proud to be part of this adventure! UWAMachinima IV is a great achievement in terms of the number of entrants and the high quality of the films being produced. In only three years or so, machinima filmmakers have emerged as an undisputed artistic force in Virtual Worlds...And this is just the beginning! Thank you, all." Tutsy Navarathna

MachinimUWA IV: 2nd Prize (L$40,000) - 47 Points

ARTWASHERS by FRIDAY SIAMENDES of California
http://vimeo.com/28513091

MachinimUWA IV: 3rd Prize (L$30,000) - 42 Points

ART OF THE ARTISTS by Fuschia Nightfire of Dorset, England
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p2Nj5ivMTX8

"Thanks mostly i would like to thank all the artists whose work inspired the machinima and CoMa for allowing me to use her music" Fuschia Nightfire

MACHINIMUWA IV: JOINT 4th Prize (@L$22,500) - 35 Points

QUBIT: COGNITIVE DISTORTION by spyVspy of Lisbon, Portugal
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p9V46Qy5IyE&feature=player_embedded

"My special thanks to the artists involved and a very special to Maya Paris, also included on my work, so far viral acception from the public, and that for me it is all. Based entirely on the size of our perception, not only individualistic dimension, since the Qubit (The smallest unit of information in a computer designed to manipulate or store information through effects, predicted by the quantum physics) Represented by the "LittleBigPlanet" character dimentions, and the character of the individual and the Dimension of our real knowledge of the vastiness of the whole universe (it's like talking ironically about the tiniest of the tiniest thing, thinking about the hugeness), the common desire of Human beying, reach of the untouchable. Not wanting to get out of our sphere entirely, although I plan to put into (out of the box) to compose this poem. Through the art of the artists I've tried a notion to explain the ideas in fluid way. Like affirmation of the universe seen by the human mind in poetic tone "Draw from the graphite, Brilliant and dazzling" (to our knowledge about the chain of carbon-based life and our universe that designed graphite, bright and shiny). This work was assembled in it's a whole." spyVspy Aeon

MACHINIMUWA IV: JOINT 4th Prize (@L$22,500) - 35 Points

VIRTUAL LOVE by Iono Allen, from the land of Amore, France:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iYIL0FZoUCo

"I am very proud to have been part of this excellent competition, and of course I want to thank Josiane Sorciere who has made a fabulous work with this ballerina. I also want to thank UWA team, whom I have followed nearly since the beginning for art competitions and machinma contests as well, and who has made a terrific work since all these years." Iono Allen

MachinimUWA IV Special Award for EMOTION (L$19,000)

YEAH by Hypatia Pickens of the Unites States
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KiC2sYwDuJw&feature=player_embedded

"I'm very happy and gratified that both my films got into the top ten; I want to thank everyone who encouraged me... and especially the artists who inspired these stories in me. And please thank the judges for me as well." Hypatia Pickens

MachinimUWA IV Special Award for BREAKING THE BARRIERS (L$19,000)

TRANSFORMATION VIRTUAL ART ON THE BRINK by L1aura Loire / Dr Lori Landay, from Berklee College of Music, USA
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6mCrjkzzDJk&feature=player_embedded

"Thank you for the special award for Breaking the Barriers. It's particularly meaningful because that's what we all do when we make 3d interactive and immersive art, or create films with machinima that make it possible for people who haven't seen the art in the virtual world to experience it, or when we do what is not possible in real life. My film suggests that virtual art can be seen as a step towards what augmented reality might bring to art experience in the future, but as usual, I explore that idea playfully, with a wink at questions about how imagined, created, and actual realities intertwine, and what it might mean to break the barriers between them. It is a privilege to explore those connections with the artist communities of Second Life, especially as we've been brought together by the UWA. Thanks again to the UWA, JayJay, FreeWee, and all the artists and filmmakers involved." Dr Lori Landay

MachinimUWA IV Special Award for THE SOUL (L$19,000)

DUAL by Veruca Vandyke of Arkansas, USA
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oJdeYql_hNk&feature=youtu.be

MachinimUWA IV ANTON MESMER Special Award (L$19,000)

A PLACID OCEAN OF UNCERTAIN LIBERTIES by Cecil Hirvi, Citizen of the Universe.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mGjkeiX_6tg&feature=youtu.be

MachinimUWA IV Special Award for THE HUMAN HEART (L$19,000)

LOVE PRAYER by Hypatia Pickens
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KHuXudCPtp8

" I'm very happy and gratified that both my films got into the top ten; I want to thank everyone who encouraged me... and especially the artists who inspired these stories in me. And please thank the judges for me as well." Hypatia Pickens

OPEN THIS END AWARD OF EXCELLENCE IN FILM ( in Alphabetical order) (@L$2,400)

FUSCHIA NIGHTFIRE (Dorset, England) - Art of the Artists
HYPATIA PICKENS (Rochester, New York, USA) - Love Prayer
OONA EIREN & SAYZEE ISHTARI (London, UK) - Remote Control (ONE Machinima in 4 Parts)
PART 1 of 4
PART 2 of 4
PART 3 of 4
PART 4 of 4
URBAN STEAMPUNK (Esteio, Brazil) - Sad Robot

OPEN THIS END AWARD OF EXCELLENCE IN FILM DIRECTION  ( in Alphabetical order) (@L$2,400)
HYPATIA PICKENS (Rochester, New York, USA) - Yeah
IONO ALLEN (France) - Virtual Love
SPYVSPY AEON (Lisbon, Portugal) - Qubit: Cognitive Distortion
TUTSY NAVARATHNA (Frenchman in Pondicherry, India) - Welcome to the Other Side

OPEN THIS END AWARD OF EXCELLENCE FOR FILM NARRATIVE ( in Alphabetical order) (@L$2,400)
BRACLO EBER (A  Little Town, South Africa) - Vito
GLASZ DECUIR (San Sebastian, Spain) - Fragile
CECIL HIRVI (Citizen of the Universe) - A Placid Ocean of Uncertain Liberties
MISO SUSANOWA (Ohio, USA) - Daddy, Venomous Constrictor

OPEN THIS END AWARD OF EXCELLENCE FOR INVESTIGATIVE FILMN ( in Alphabetical order)(@L$2,400)
BLEU OLEANDER -  Art of Mind
FRIDAY SIAMENDES - Artwashers
L1AURA LOIRE/ LORI LANDAY (USA) - Transformation: Virtual Art on the Brink
NICOLEX MOONWALL (New Orleans, USA) – BODY OF WORK
ORMAND LIONHEART (Surrey, BC, Canada) - In Darkness Featuring Mommaluv Skytower
PENUMBRA CARTER - A Discreet Infiltration of Thought
SPIRAL SILVERSTAR (New Orleans, LA, USA) - Futurism vs Art of the Future

OPEN THIS END AWARD OF EXCELLENCE FOR DESCRIPTIVE FILM  ( in Alphabetical order) (@L$2,400)
HAVEIT NEOX (California, USA) - Exhibition
HYPATIA PICKENS (Rochester, New York, USA) - To Inhabit A House of Uneasy Chairs
GINGER ALSOP (Calgary, Alberta, Canada) - UWA Favourites for Jan 2011
JJCCC CORONET (London, England) - Aerie
MOANA LITTLEBOOTS (Hamburgh, Germany) - Dante's Inferno
SOPHIA YATES (Lancaster MA, USA) - In Dreams
SPIRAL SILVERSTAR (New Orleans, LA) -  The Aerie

UWA 3D Open Art Challenge - Audience Participation

1st Prize (@L5,000): LILIA ARTIS - 47 points
2nd Prize (@L3,000): ARROW INGLEWOOD - 39 points
3rd Prize JOINT (@L1,000): LOQUACIA LOON - 36 points
3rd Prize JOINT (@L1,000): NUBDIEST RESIDENT - 36 points

MachinimUWA IV - Audience Participation

1st Prize (L$10,000): LALA LARIX - 66 points
2nd Prize (L$6,000): PIXIE RAIN - 58 points
3rd Prize (L$4,000): LALIE SORBET - 54 points

For anyone interested in seeing the full text of the announcement by Jayjay Zifanwe, delivered from 6am slt on SUNDAY, 11th December, it is reproduced as follows:
Greetings everyone, and welcome to the University of Western Australia, or UWA as she is known and also welcome to the OCTOBER round announcement of winners and party for the UWA 3D Open Art Challenge. As is tradition at UWA, I would like to acknowledge that the University is situated on Nyoongar land and that the Nyoongar people remain the spiritual and cultural custodians of their land and continue to uphold their values, languages, beliefs and knowledge.

Today brings to an end the 2 years of monthly art challenges at UWA, with 841 artworks being submitted in year 1 across the Art & Architectural challenges and 858 submitted in year 2, also known as the UWA 3D Open Art Challenge. Today also sees the conclusion of MachinimUWA IV: Art of the Artists and with this, we had 83 machinima submissions where the theme was to film the artworks submitted to the UWA 3D Open Art Challenge.

Its been an absolute pleasure for me to work with all of you over the year, and especially to those who went above an beyond the call of duty to make all of this a success.  Thank you FreeWee Ling, curator of the UWA 3D Open Art Challenge, thank you LaPiscean Liberty co-host for MachinimUWA IV.  Also much thanks to those who have provided support and sponsorship which sees the overall prize pool standing at close to L$2,000,000 across bopth art and machinima. As such I would like to do is to thank and acknowledge the major art houses and groups in Second Life that are part of this Grand Collaboration. These include The University of Texas San Antonio (UTSA) led by Dr Carmen Fies, Open This End, led by Aino Baar, SL Art led by Gleman Jun & Sunset Quinnel, CARP led by Josina Burgess & Velazquez Bonetto, Pirats Art Network led by  Merlina Rokocoko & Newbab Zsigmond, Odyssey led by Fau Ferdinand, Jo Ellsmere & Lizsolo Mathilde,  BOSL led by Frolic Mills and Editorial Clarity, Nordan Art led by Flora Nordanskiold, S&S Gallery of Fine Art led by TheDove Rhode, The Workhouse Gallery led by Astarte Haalan, Art Place d-oo-b led by Eifachfilm Vacirca, The Tornado Gallery led by Taralyn Gravois and project Z led by Zachh Cale. Also thanks to our Grand Finale sponsors, MidnightRain Glas, Philip Vought, Patch Thibaud, Open This End, TheDove Rhode and UWA. Of vital importancs is Professor Ted Snell, Chair of the Visual Arts Board of the Australia Council for the Arts abd the Director oif UWA's Cultural Precinct and Profesor Alan Robson, UWA's illustrious Vice-Chancellor who is retiring on the 31st of this month, without whose support, none of us will be standing here today.

We will start today with the winners announcements for MachinimUWA IV, FreeWee will then take centre stage for the first time, and we will end with the announcements for the UWA 3D Open Art Challenge. However. before I do or say anything else, we have a real cracker to kick off the Grand Finale, and I would like to introduce to you to Laurina Hawks and The Phoenix Embers Showcats, with a special performance that reportedly will knock everyones virtual socks off! I am told that for this performance, it is best to watch with the 'night' settings. Over to you Laurina!

(THE PHOENIX EMBERS SHOWCATS PERFORM)

I want to thank all of you for being here today, bringing the world together. The UWA Art, Architectural & Machinima Challenges, the Teaching & Reearch have seen people from all corners of the globe involved with students, artists, builders and machinimatographers hailing from Greece, India,  Colombia, Poland, Norway, South Africa, Sweden, Ukraine, Taiwan, Hungary, Latvia, Russia, Venezuela,  Belgium, Mexico, Wales, Canada, the USA, the UK, Uruguay, Scotland,England, Spain, Switzerland, Italy, France, Brazil, Argentina, Chile, Denmark,  Holland, Ireland, Northern Ireland, Portugal, Austria, Cuba, Serbia, Tunisia, Germany, Japan, New Zealand,  Australia and parts unknown. More than 40 nations with 6 of the 7 continents of the world represented.

Today brings to an end the amazing journey of MachinimUWA IV, the companion of the UWA 3D Open Art Challenge.  It will see the end of the rein of Eric Boccara as reigning champion, and as for Tutsy Navarathna? who knows.... we could well have a new champion taking the mantle from the 83 amazing entries that have come in from all the nations of the earth.

LaPiecean Liberty, who is one of the true unsung heroes of second life, with AviewTV has been instrumental in putting everything together. Also Kinte Trill, Petlove Petshop & Emo Wei who organized an amazing MachinimUWA IV Review across the 8th - 10th of December and also to Taralyn Gravois for all her work in the lead up to the ceremony, as I am sure she has been speaking to many of you. Sponsored by Open This End, AviewTV & UWA, the MachinimUWA IV Prize pool is sitting at L$350,000, with a 1st prize of L$60,000.

I want to thank our judging panel for their sterling work in looking through the incredible array of 83 entries. It was unbelievably hard to seperate things, and the panel was put to a great deal of work and this was an amazing 18 member panel made up of people from all around the world involved in a diverse array of related areas.

Professor Ted Snell (RL) - Director, Cultural Precinct, The University of Western Australia
Yesikita Coppola (SL) - Official Machinimatographer for UWA 2011
FreeWee Ling (SL) - Curator, UWA 3D Open Art Challenge
Cisko Vandeverre(SL)  - Winner of the Original MachinimUWA
Laurina Hawks (SL) - Winner of MachinimUWA II
Kim Flintoff (RL) - eLearning Advisor, Centre for eLearning, Curtin University, Western Australia
Wagner James Au (RL) / Hamlet Au (SL) - Editor in Chief of New World Notes
Nazz Lane (SL) - Journalist and Author
Dr. Phylis Johnson (RL) - Media Professor, Southern Illinois University, Author - Machinima: Aesthetics and Practice (a.k.a, Sonicity Fitzroy, SL Virtual Journalist)
Mal Burns (SL), Metaverse News Aggregator and Broadcaster
C.Steele (RL) - Lecturer, Humanities and Culture, "In Other Worlds: Art and Artists in 3D Multi-User Environments", York University, Toronto, Canada
Chestnut Rau (SL) - Journalist
Thirza Ember (SL) - Art Blog Writer
Pia Klaar (SL) - Machinimatographer and Winner of MachinimUWA III Viewer Event
K. DaVette See (RL)//Suzy Q. Yue (SL), film diretcor, CEO Running Lady Studios
Naya Pinazo - Open This End Group Leader for  SL and Facebook
Lapiscean Liberty -  CEO of AView TV
Jay  Jay Jegathesan (RL) / Jayjay Zifanwe (SL) - Manager School of Physics/ Lead of UWA Virtual World Projects

Before announcing the winners, I just want to remind everyone, that just because the monthly art challenges are ending, this DOES NOT MEAN its the end of art at UWA. Its merely a format change. In 2012, there will be a single major round art challenge with a prize pool of L$500,000. It will have a theme and the theme will be very loosely related the UWA's Centenary. At the same time, we will also have MachinimUWA V, which will also have a theme loosely related to UWA's Centenary and which will also carry a prize pool of at least L$500,000, likely taking place betwen March - June 2012.

Now for the Audience Participation Prize, which has a prize pool of L$20,000, in which anyone in the world who was not on the official judging panel was invited to provide what they thought the top 10 would be as decided by the actual panel. This was no mean task, as the viewer had to watch all 83 machinima and then rank them, and if you ask them they will be able to tell you the enormity of the task. Aside from the Lindens, the winners will receive in the mail a special RL pack that includes a copy of the 2012 UWA Friends of the Grounds calendar that includes 2 photographs taken in Second Life. One by Silene Christen of Spain's Balears Islands, the other a lucky shot by a rank amateur who may be among us today. The first prize winner will also be invited to be on the official judging panel for MachinimUWA V.

There was a maximum of 100 points that any viewer could get, and this is if they were spot on with every single selection and matched the exact order as well. For example, if you listed a machinima in 1st place, and it actually won first, you would receive 10 points (there is a difference of ZERO between your selection and the actual). If you listed a Machinima as 1st, and it got 10th, then you would get one point (difference of 9 between your selection and actual). Now the average score achieved by entrants for this was 27 out of 100, with 66 being the top score, and 2 entries who had zero, with not a single one of their top 10 matching the actual top 10.

Anyway, we had a great response, and finishing in 3rd on 54 points, in the Audience Participation Prize with 7 of their top 10 selections being in the actual top 10 and winning L$4,000 and a special RL pack is...  someone who incredibly also won 3rd Prize in the Audience participation event in MachinimUWA III ...

LALIE SORBET !

The 2nd Prize Winner for the Audience Participation Prize, had 58 points, very close between 2nd and 3rd. 8 of this persons selections turned out to be in the actual top 10. And so, the winner of the L$6,000 2nd Prize for the Audience Participation Event is:

PIXIE RAIN

And now the winner of the Audience Participation Prize, on 66 points, and also picking out 8 of the top 10. And so the winner of the L$10,000 First prize for the Audience Participation Event is:

LALA LARIX  of Gdansk, Poland!

Congrats Lala. Well, Lala will now be invited onto the official panel for MachinimUWA V, though I am secretly wishing she declines and submits another one of her wonderful machinima for the event instead. Anyway, that will be left to Lala to decide.

Now on to the winners of the competition proper. When the winners are announced, it will be done in 1 minute intervals. We do invite everyone to comment and congratulate the winners and for the winners to respond before the next announcement (and if they could please use the SHOUT function). Hopefully we can get pictures of you attending the event. Anyone taking good pictures of today, please email them to me at jayjayaustralia@hotmail.com

Now to explain  how the judging was done. Each judge listed their top 10 in order of preference. 8 points was allocated for a 1st place vote, 6 points for a 2nd place vote, 4 points for 3rd, 3 for 4th, 2 for 5th, and 1 point each for 6th – 10th. Straight aggregates were then used for the top 5, with the special awards going to the other works that finished in the top 10. The judging was extremely diverse with 52 of the 83 works receiving at least 1 top 10 vote. The top 2 machinima however featured in 16 of the 18 judges top 10's respectively. The Special Award winners all finished with between 12 and 26 points.

AND SO.... the MachinimUWA IV Special Award for  EMOTION (L$19,000) goes to:

YEAH by Hypatia Pickens of the Unites States

The touching story about how art is the only way a man who has been deprived of speech or understanding it can express the vivid images he has in his head

Next, the MachinimUWA IV Special Award for BREAKING THE BARRIERS (L$19,000) goes to:

TRANSFORMATIONL VIRTUAL ART ON THE BRINK by L1aura Loire / Dr Lori Landay, from the College of Music, Berkelee, USA

Here Dr Landay gets transported into the virtual world and plots her escape!

And now, the MachinimUWA IV Special Award for THE SOUL (L$19,000) goes to:

DUAL by Veruca Vandyke of Arkansas, USA

A chilling machinima exploring the duality of  our soul.

Next, the MachinimUWA IV ANTON MESMER Special Award (L$19,000) goes to:

A PLACID OCEAN OF UNCERTAIN LIBERTIES by Cecil Hirvi, Citizen of the Universe.

A mesmerising work immersing us in the virtual world, and I believe his first work since we saw the conclusion to the Saga of Cecil.

And to cap it off, the MachinimUWA IV Special Award for THE HUMAN HEART (L$19,000) goes to:

LOVE PRAYER by Hypatia Pickens

This work where "Tam Lin" meets Finnish love song produces an amazing double for Hypatia amongst the Special Awards!

Next for 5th Prize with L$20,000. I have nothing much to say about this work. I didn't really like it, but it got 5th anyway... and so, 5th Prize for MachinimUWA IV: Art of the Artists is:

NOBODY

Well there we have it, the first of the famous UWA ties. We have a tie for 4th place, on 35 points. One of these works featured in 12 of 18 judges lists, had THREE 1st place votes, ONE 3rd and ONE 4th place, while the  other featured in 13 of the 18 lists, had one 1st place vote, TWO 2nd's, ONE 3rd and TWO 4ths...  And so, L$22,500 for 4th Prize in MachinimUWA IV: Art of the Artists goes to:

QUBIT: COGNITIVE DISTORTION by spyVspy of Lisbon, Portugal

a longtime favourite for the overall title with more than 7,000 youtube views.

And, the L$22,500 for 4th Prize in MachinimUWA IV: Art of the Artists ALSO goes to:

VIRTUAL LOVE by Iono Allen, from the land of Amore, France

A heartbreaking film featuring "The Music box" (or "Three little turns and it goes away") by Josiane Sorciere.

The 3rd prize for MachinimUWA IV is L$30,000. Now across the 18 judges and 83 machinima, only 2 creations received THREE 1st Place votes. Iono's work and this one. The 3rd Prize winner finished with 42 points and featured in 12 of 18 top 10. This was a truly ground breaking piece, and many are in awe of the method to this work. And so, 3rd Prize (L$30,000) for MachinimUWA IV goes to:

ART OF THE ARTISTS by Fuschia Nightfire of Dorset, England

here 3d artworks are deconstructed and reconstructed in some of the most remarkable sequences seen in a machinima.

2nd Prize for MachinimUWA IV is L$40,000. This machinima featured in 16 of the 18 top 10 lists, had ONE 1st place vote and FOUR 2nd place votes, ONE 3rd and ONE 4th, finishing with 47 points., and so, 2nd Prize (L$40,000) for MachinimUWA IV goes to:

ARTWASHERS by FRIDAY SIAMENDES of California

a gut busting look behind the scenes of how virtual art scrubs up.

MachinimUWA II & MachinimUWA III both had Joint-1st Prizes..... well that sequence is broken. We have one winner of the L$60,000 1st Prize. By a margin. On 63 points, with ONE 1st place vote, FIVE 2nd place votes, THREE 3rd place votes and THREE 4th place votes, featuring in 16 of the 18 top 10 lists. And so, the winner of MachinimUWA IV (L$60,000) is:

WELCOME TO THE OTHER SIDE by Tutsy Navarathna, the brilliant Frenchman based in Pondicherry, India

The defending champion holds on to his crown! Unprecedented in the UWA Machinima Challenges! Congrats Tutsy.

We will play the winners machinima at the end of the announcement of winners for the 3D Artworks.

Before I move to the 3D Art, I would like to invite the curator of the UWA 3D Open Art Challenge, FreeWee Ling to say a few words:

(FREEWEE SPEAKS)

And now, we move to the Grand Finale of the UWA 3D Open Art Challenge. Before announcing the winners here, there are a few things I want to share.

First the grand finale & the machinima challenges have been reported in RL media last week, namely in the West Australian newspaper in Perth.
http://uwainsl.blogspot.com/2011/12/uwa-grand-finale-reported-in-west.html

Students from the Universidad Rafel Belloso Chacin, Venezuela had been given a task by their lecturer Dr Doris Molero (Pionia Destiny, SL), as part of the English Language programme, to write a blog post about the UWA 3D Open Art Challenge Grand Finale Artworks. It is very pleasing to those running the challenge that this and other institutions around the world, such as York University have chosen to conduct aspects of their classes at the UWA Art Challenge galleries.
http://uwainsl.blogspot.com/2011/12/venezuelas-universidad-rafel-belloso.html

One of the treasures of UWA, the Somerville Auditorium, with its Norfolk Bay Pines has recently been built by Sharni Azalee & launched. This is where the Perth International Arts Festival Films are shown in RL.
http://uwainsl.blogspot.com/2011/11/launch-of-uwa-treasure-somerville.html

Also some events happening now and coming right after this. If you havent seen it already, do plan to visit Haveit Neox's LEA FULL SIM ART creation, Second Libations which has been critically acclaimed http://uwainsl.blogspot.com/2011/11/lea-full-sim-art-series-haveit-neoxs.html, as well as LunaMetamorphia's UWA SKY SIM SERIES,  "Endangered Species Zoo of Metamorphia"  which kicks off at 6PM slt today http://uwainsl.blogspot.com/2011/12/uwa-grand-finale-reported-in-west.html

I want to acknowledge the 35 strong judging panel for the Art Challenge
Sasun Steinbeck  -  Creator of the Art Galleries of SL list at http://sasun.info/ArtGalleriesofSL.aspx
Tayzia Abattoir (SL) Owner of  The Oldest Virtual World Art Museum in SL, curator of the Aho Museum & Arts Simulacra on the NMC Campus and Relay For LIfe of SL Event Chair
Lumiere Noir (SL) - Creator of the Ivory Tower Library of Primitives
Dr. Phylis Johnson (RL) - Media  Professor, Southern Illinois Uinversity, Author - Machinima: Aesthetics and Practice (a.k.a, Sonicity Fitzroy, SL Virtual Journalist)
Rowan Derryth (SL) - Art & Design Historian; Writer for Prim Perfect Publications
Persia Bravin (SL) -   Journalist and Media Producer (SL newspapers, magazines, radio and television)
Dr Carmen Fies (RL) - Second Life Lead: University of Texas San Antonio & UTSA Artspace
Apollo Manga (SL) - examiner.com Writer & Novelist
Jordan Whitt (SL) - Editor in Chief, ICON Lifestyle Magazine
Mariposa Upshaw (SL) - Curator - Ventura Art & Jardine; Officer, Arts Council of Second Life
Saffia Widdershins - Owner and Editor of Prim Perfect Publications
Ally Aeon - Mixed Media Artist & Designer, founder Aeonia Artist Group, creator/owner of the art region Aeonia
Lowell Cremorne - Metaverse Journal
Apmel Goosson - Scandinavian Author/Publisher
Merlina Rokocoko - Pirats Art Network
Newbab Zsigmond - Pirats Art Network
Velazquez Bonetto - CARP
Flora Nordenskiold - Nordan Art
TheDove Rhode - S&S Gallery OFA
Astarte Haalan - The Workhouse Gallery
Eifachfilm Vacirca - Art place d-oo-b
Chestnut Rau - Journalist
Zachh Cale - project Z
Taralyn Gravois - Tornado Gallery
Bryn Oh - Pioneering 3D Artist of Immersiva Fame
Mal Burns (SL), Metaverse News Aggregator and Broadcaster
Holala Alter - Representing OPEN THIS END, (University Philosopher in RL, writer and collector of virtual art)
Stephen Goddard (RL) / Steveke Wulluf (SL) - Associate Director and Senior Curator, Professor of Art History, Spencer Museum of Art, University of Kansas; Curator of SL projects on the Spencer Museum of Art sim

all of whom joined the UWA main panel:

Professor Ted Snell (SL) - Director, Cultural Precinct, The University of Western Australia (RL)
Vyonne Walker (RL) -  Curator of Public Programmes, Lawrence Wilson Art Gallery
Len Zuks (RL) - Award Winning West Australian Sculpturist
FreeWee Ling (SL) - Curator, UWA 3D Open Art Challenge
Jenna Mead (RL) - Coordinator, Bachelor of Philosophy Degree Programme, UWA
Lyn DiCiero (RL) - Editor, WA Artist's Chronicle.
Will Langa (RL) - Journalist, Trove Interactive Arts Magazine
Jayjay Zifanwe (SL) / Jay Jay Jegathesan (RL)  - Owner of The UWA SL presence; Creator & Host of the UWA 3D Open Art Challenge; Manager School of Physics, UWA

First, there is the People's Choice category. Now for the People's Choice, all of SL was invited to vote. It was also announced that 3 Lucky voters will win for themselves L$5,000, L$3,000 & L$2,000 + Special RL UWA packages posted out as well. I didnt however explain how those 3 winners would be determined. How they are being selected is by how closely their top 10 choices matched with the overall grand finale winners.

As with the Machinima Audience event, there was a maximum of 100 points that any voter could get, and this is if they were spot on with every single selection and matched the exact order as well. For example, if you listed an artwork in 1st place, and it actually won first, you would receive 10 points (there is a difference of ZERO between your selection and the actual). If you listed an artwork as 1st, and it got 10th, then you would get one point (difference of 9 between your selection and actual). It was a lot harder than the Machinima to get 'high' marks on this one, and unlike the Machinima where the TOP 3 scored in the 50's and 60's, here the top score was 47, with everything else 39 and below. What this actually means ... and this is a great thing... is that beauty is in the eyes of the beholder, and a great range of artwork were loved by many.

Anyway, finishing in 3rd on 36 points, surprise, surprise... we have a TIE!  So here they will both receive L$1,000 + an RL pack.  They got 4 and 5 of their top 10's in the actual top 10's respectively, but their matching to the actual for those was very close. And as such 3rd Prize in the Audience participation event for the UWA 3D Open Art Challenge is:

LOQUACIA LOON and NUBDIEST RESIDENT

The 2nd Prize Winner for this category, had 39 points, pretty close between 2nd and Joint-3rd. 5 of this persons selections turned out to be in the actual top 10. And so, the winner of the L$3,000 2nd Prize for the Audience participation event for the UWA 3D Open Art Challenge is:

ARROW INGLEWOOD

And now the winner of the Audience Participation Prize, on 47 points, picking out 7 of the top 10. And so the winner of the L$5,000 First prize for the Audience participation event for the UWA 3D Open Art Challenge is:

LILIA ARTIS

Moving now to the actual top 3 artworks selected for the People's Choice Awards.

Here again, all voters  listed their top 10 in order of preference. 8 points was allocated for a 1st place vote, 6 points for a 2nd place vote, 4 points for 3rd, 3 for 4th, 2 for 5th, and 1 point each for 6th – 10th. Straight aggregates were then used for the top 3.

First the Non-Scripted category where there were 24 works of art in the Grand Finale. Between 5th and 10th the scores were very very close..... with the work in 10th spot on 54 points and the work in 5th on 61 points. You will notice I didnt mention a 4th place, as we do have a tie for 3rd place on 67 points. And so, sharing L$3,000 in 3rd Place for the People's Choice Vote for the Non-Scripted category of the UWA 3D Open Art Challenge is:

SPRING BOX by Cherry Manga

AND also in 3rd Place for the People's Choice Vote for the Non-Scripted category of the UWA 3D Open Art Challenge on 67 points is:

YOU CAN'T TOUCH HEAVEN by paleillusion

There is a big leap to the battle for top spot in the People's Choice vote for the Non-Scripted. In 2nd place on 92 points, taking home L$5,000 :

SHATTERED by Ginger Alsop

And the winner of the People's Choice Vote for the Non-Scripted on 112 points taking the prize of L$8,000 is:

SMALL PIECE OF HELL: The Suicide Forest Infested by Harpias by Rebeca Bashly

Now to the Overall Category for the People's choice. Here we had 59 artworks in the Grand Finale. The gap between 4th and 10 was a lot bigger here. with the scores ranging from 35 points for 10th to 59 points for 4th. Any one of the voters however could have impacted on the overall top 3...... as there was only a 2 point gap between the joint 2nd prize (yes... no 3rd) which was 62 points and 64 points respectively.

And so, in Joint 2nd for the People's Choice, for the UWA 3D Open Art Challenge on 62 points is:

VENUSTRAP by Claudia222 jewell

and also in Joint 2nd for the People's Choice, for the UWA 3D Open Art Challenge on 62 points is:

IN DREAMS by Blue Tsuki

And by a razor's edge on 64 points, the WINNER for the People's Choice for the UWA 3D Open Art Challenge overall is:

THE MATTER OF IDEAS by Gleman Jun

And now we come to the crunch. The overall juried Grand Prizes for the UWA 3D Open Art Chgallenge. The results are extremely interesting, and again each judge listed their top 10 in order with 8 points for 1st, 6 points for 2nd, 4 points for 3rd, 3 points for 4th, 2 points for 5th and 1 point for 6th - 10th place votes. The winners are taken as a straight aggregate compiling the individual rankings of each member of the judging panel. No one individual had any greater influence than any other. Every single piece in the Non-Scripted had at featured in at least 3 of the 35 judges top 10's, and 57 of the 59 artworks in the overall featured in the top 10 list of at least one judge. However even the winners of the overall and non-scripted were NOT in the top 10 of at least 12 of the 35 judges. Its a bit hard to comprehend. The overall winners didnt feature in at least 12 of the 35 judges top 10 lists. So there was great individual variability acros the judges, however, when put together, I am staggered by how clearly the results come across.

First the Non-Scripted. The pieces finishing 6th - 10th each receive L$1,000.

 In Joint 9th place (@ L$1,000)  on 45 points:

MISS N by Suzanne Graves and
BIRDSONG by Cherry Manga

In 8th place(L$1,000)  for the Non-Scripted on 51 points:
 DAUGHTER OF THE WIND by Fae Varriale

In 7th place (L$1,000)  for the Non-Scripted on 58 points:
SPRING BOX by Cherry Manga

In 6th place (L$1,000)  for the Non-Scripted on 61 points:
SMALL PIECE OF HELL: The Suicide Forest Infested by Harpias by Rebeca Bashly

Was very close in fact between 4th, 5th and 6th, 1 point seperating each.

In 5th place (L$2,000)  for the Non-Scripted on 62 points:
MARIONETTE by Haveit Neox

In 4th place (L$3,000)  for the Non-Scripted on 63 points:
THE REVOLT OF THE MANNEQUINS by Silene Christen

There is a big jump to 3rd place on 82 points. This work received FOUR 1st place votes, ONE 2nd place vote and FOUR 3rd place votes.  So 3rd place (L$5,000)  for the Non-Scripted on  82 points is:

99% by Harter Fall

Big battle for top spot. Split by 3 points.

The work taking 2nd spot, had SIX 1st place votes, THREE 2nd place votes and FOUR 3rd place votes. And so 2nd  place (L$10,000)  for the Non-Scripted on  102 points is:

YOU CAN'T TOUCH HEAVEN by paleillusion

It just missed out on top spot which had 105 points. In 1st place for the UWA 3D Open Art Challenge (L$15,000) for the Non-Scripted category, with FIVE 1st place votes, SEVEN 2nd place votes, and THREE 3rd place votes. The winner is:

SHATTERED by Ginger Alsop

Finally we come to the overall winners of the UWA 3D Open Art Challege. Very close and the judging showed a lot of variability as expected with 57 of the 59 artworks finishing in the top 10 of at least one of the judges.

Some amazing artworks are missing from the top 10. This is only because of the quality of the field, and bearing in mind that these are all award winning artworks from across the year.No single artwork had more than FIVE 1st place votes, and even the artwork finishing in 33rd place received a 1st place vote but appeared in only 3 of the 35 top 10 lists.

Even by UWA standards, we have quite a remarkable result at 10th place. We have an unbelievable 5 artworks tied for 10th at 28 points each, and so each receives a L$1,000 share of the L$5,000 on offer for 10th.

In Joint-10th place (@L$1,000), on 28 points for the UWA 3D Open Art Challenge are:

HARMONIES IN C GREAT(+) by Artistide Despres
TROIS PETITS TOURS ET PUIS S'EN VA (Three little turns and it goes away) by  Josiane Sorciere
THE DOCK SPIRIT by Scottius Polke
VENUSTRAP by Claudia222 Jewell and
SHATTERED by Ginger Alsop (the only non-scripted work to finish in the top 10 overall)

In Joint 8th place(@L$5,000), just one point ahead on 29 points for the Overall UWA 3D Open Art Challenge are:
FANTASIA EN LA SOMBRA by Romy Nayar and
IL PLEUT SUR MON COEUR COMME IL PLEUT SUR LA VILLE ("It's raining in my heart, as it's raining in the town") by Cherry Manga

In 7th place(@L$5,000), on 34 points for the Overall UWA 3D Open Art Challenge is:
NOT EVERYTHING IS PLAIN BLACK & WHITE by Fuschia Nightfire

NOW for the last of the ties. We have no 6th place as there is a tie for 5th, and will receive L$7,500 each.

5th place(@L$7,500), on 39 points for the Overall UWA 3D Open Art Challenge, with TWO 1st place votes and THREE 2nd place votes and being listed on the top 10's of 9 of the 35 judges is:

PARANORMAL FROTTAGE by Misprint Thursday

Joint-5th place(@L$7,500), on 39 points for the Overall UWA 3D Open Art Challenge, with TWO 1st place votes, ONE 2nd and TWO 3rd place votes and being listed on the top 10's of 10 of the 35 judges is:

EXCERPTS FROM REALITIES by Glyph Graves

3rd and 4th are seperated again by a single point (so every single placing made by the judges has been important... whether they put a work in 5th place vs 6th place on their lists have had a bearing on the result.

4th place (L$30,000) on 43 points for the Overall UWA 3D Open Art Challenge, with THREE 1st place votes, ONE 2nd and TWO 3rd place votes, and being listed on the top 10's of 10 of the 35 judges is:

STRANGE PLANT...UGLYNESS & BEAUTY by Claudia222 Jewel

3rd place (L$40,000) on 44 points for the Overall UWA 3D Open Art Challenge, with TWO 1st place votes, TWO 2nd and TWO 3rd place votes and being listed on the top 10's of 13 of the 35 judges  is (and boy will this artist be glad when its over) :

THE CHASM by Oberon Onmura

Those bots can finally go to bed!!!!

I can tell you now... that any differences by any of the judges in terms of where they placed the top 2 would have had a profound impact on the final result.

25 points seperated 3rd place from 2nd, but between #1 & #2, the gap was 1 point. The narrowest margin possible.

2nd Prize (L$75,000) on 69 points for the Overall UWA 3D Open Art Challenge, with FIVE 1st place votes, ONE 2nd place vote, TWO 3rd place votes, THREE 4th place votes and being listed on the top 10's of 17 of the 35 judges, is:

IN DREAMS by Blue Tsuki

amazing. 2nd place in the People's Choice and 2nd place Overall.

This brilliant artwork inspired Sophia Yates to create a machinima about it within 24 hours of it being set up at the UWA Gallery. Love this machinima!
http://uwainsl.blogspot.com/2011/10/machinimuwa-iv-sophia-yates-in-dreams.html

And now we come to what could be the end of the reign of Nish Mip as Overall Grand Champion for the UWA 3D Art Challenges. In the Grand Finale last year, Nish Mip took both 1st and 2nd places. Blue Tsuki has already ensured that Nish 2 pieces in the Grand Finale this year will not repeat a 1-2 like last year.

And so, after seeing 858 art works and across more than a year since this challenge kicked off..... we are left with THE ONE. 1st Prize (L$100,000) on 70 points for the UWA 3D Open Art Challenge, with THREE 1st place votes, THREE 2nd place votes, TWO 3rd place votes, FIVE 4th place votes and being listed on the top 10's of 16 of the 35 judges, is:

DIGITAL GLOVE by Misprint Thursday

A stunning show by Misprint with TWO of the top 5 works out of 858.

Thank you artists of Second Life!

Thank you FreeWee Ling (do check out the 2,000++ images on the gallery she has set up of all the artworks sent in across the year https://picasaweb.google.com/freeweel)

Thank you LaPiscean Liberty. I hand the floor to you to end the Grand Finale by playing the Top 3 Machinima from MachinimUWA IV: Art of the Artists.

Thank you one and all.

Victoria Lenoirre's Look at "Second Libations" by Haveit Neox

This month at the LEA6 Full sim, "Second Libations" by Haveit Neox, is the featured work. Below, I have captured the Tower of the Bots, the main attraction. There is also a high tower structure, the Colossus, where you first land. The SLURL is below.

http://slurl.com/secondlife/LEA6/80/100/237
The landing point is a red and white target.

 I found myself in a wide open area of sand. Then I noticed a portal of white noise and 2 dogmen, men with dog hindquarters, hold up an arrow pointing to the door, "Enter here" they seem to be saying. I enter through a square tunnel and am now in a room full of wood blocks. There's a  open trapdoor, watch your step.

I found myself in a narrow passageway with signs telling of the end of the world and how bots are to blame. And bots are trying to rejuvenate humans with "simulated water." My favorite sign says, "Can you provide them with more effective means? They await your solution."  The next sign then welcomes the visitor to Second Libations.

Then as you turn the corner, you suddenly see bright oranges, instead of the dull brown. Take a few steps and you'll find yourself in a room full of figures...some dogmen and some men with fishtails. These are the "South Welcomers." I called this the "Welcomer room" and it's also where you find a rehydration fountain or pool. A froghead lady in a long gown points the way down the ramp so down I went.



After 2 flights I saw a sign for free Under Garments so I took some and then put them on. Then I got a cape to wear. Then a headdress. And then I got a ceremonial umbrella! Wow! The signs are all numbered. Sign 5 gives you a map.

I walked down several flights before falling and landing underwater. Then you have to climb up marble steps to reach the Temple of the Bots.

Past the lobby you see 3 doors, The Scripter's Web, the Librarynth, and the Banquet of Artists. I went to the Scripter's Web first. It was pretty straightforward and easy  to follow the map. The Librarynth was harder. After a lot of twists and  turns I found the study. Wow! And it was worth it. I saw ivory columns gilded in gold, desks cluttered with scrolls, you must see it for yourself. I  think it looks fascinating!

Then I flew back to the entrance and headed to the Banquet of Artists. The first room I saw was the Artist's Palette. According to the texture map, it is one of Haveit's Real Life palettes. Very nice!

Follow the path and eventually you'll find yourself underwater, this is Rescuscitation of Waters. Here is where you'll find sculptures like Recipe for Water and Body Shop. The underwater textures are very well rendered.

I love the animated cloud background and the texture flicker along the bottom of the Temple. The inside textures were classic and understated. As I looked around inside, I felt overwhelmed by all the books in the shelves. They were all arranged neatly, like they had been left untouched for a long time. Water covers the floor.

I also got a chance to ask the artist some burning questions. :-) He was more than happy to answer them.


After the welcome sign, there's a room or orange with pentacles. Is the orange simulating a fire? Why are the pentacles or dream catchers there?
>>  When the visitor enters the computer screen at the pyramid, they walk into the virtual world. The orange room is the first burst of color the visitor encounters, a gateway to Second Libations. Walking into the room, the avatar suddenly drops through a phantom floor, now having passed the frontier, so to speak. Once fallen into the next level, which is also saturated with color and texture, I was hoping the visitor would experience a slight culture shock, like arriving in a new country.

The South Welcomer room is interesting. What kind of creatures are they?
>> I’m not sure which room you’re referring to. Perhaps you could show me? In general however, I could tell you that there are several types of bots represented. As bots had been created by their human users, they vary in appearance and function. I grouped together certain categories. The centaur bots as an example tend to take the role of content creators. The humanoid bots are most likely to be the workers carrying the buckets of water. The frogs are the least linear in their function. Like humans, they seem to have been programmed to simulate free will. Some of them assist the content creators and even become content creators themselves, while others apply themselves to destruction. The Scripter’s tower is prey to a type of frog fish creature whose aim is to swallow up the internet, thereby bringing an end to the virtual world. These frogs are feasting on the spiders, the very builders of the internet, the web. The frogs are unpredictable, due to their random programming.
    
While the exhibit may appear to have a dark side on the surface, I have planted various indications of light heartedness, and even humor through out the space. In all of my builds, I want the visitor to recognize something that feels familiar, and hopefully even comfortable regardless of the ‘storm’ all around them. I think the contrast is interesting and a mirror of RL.

Do you build your own sculpts and mesh?
>> Only a few of the simpler sculpts are mine. The rest by and large are made by SL sculpt creators, but I  rearrange them. I have found some very fine sculpts, such as the mannequins. They have enough body parts to allow me flexibility in building a pose. Even the toes are separate pieces. You may notice that I combine sculpts in new ways. After arranging a pose I created, I apply my own self made textures to the pieces to finish the composition and give it yet another touch.  I am very influenced by the Mannerist style of the Renaissance. The classical gestures of Balinese dance are just under the surface at times. This is typical of how I enjoy mixing Asian and European influences into my work. I’ve been doing this blending of styles in my real life artwork for some 20 years now.

Do you create your own textures? I love that classic, antiquated look and feel to them.
>> Thank you Victoria. The bulk of the textures are mine. There are a few exceptions, such as the library bookshelves on the pillars which I purchased in SL. The antiqued look I get is from blending together photos and/or drawings and paintings I do in RL, with the tools available on Photoshop. When I travel, I love to take pictures of interesting subjects.

I like the rehydrated animation. Did you create that yourself?
>> Isn’t that great! No, that was from a place called SLC. I’ll post the lm here if you’d like to check out their animations.  They have a great choice of unusual ones.

The only thing I animated in the exhibit is the centaur with the frog on its back in the pool at the Banquet of Artists. I used the Puppeteer tool for that.

Why do visitors need the Under Garments?
>> Ah, the visitors actually don’t need anything. I simply placed the whole outfit at their disposal if they wish to blend into the culture of the bots. It’s another example where I insert something fun into the experience. Some people prefer not, and they are certainly as welcome as those who do wear the costume.
After the Resuscitating Waters room, I ended up back at the Artist's Palette. Do you have time to show me how to get to Recipes for Water? Thanks.
>> Of course:) I have just finished writing the above, so please let me know when you’d like to get together, and I’ll show you how to go there. It’s in the very last room of the Banquet of Artists. Or if you want to try on your own, here are the directions: The Banquet of Artists is in the Temple (the huge building on dry land). After walking in the main entrance of the Temple, you face three doors. The far right one will take you there. Go all the way to the end of that labyrinth. Follow the path into the water. That is the room underwater where the centaur and frog are animated. Recipe for Water is the installation in front of the wall mural of a woman facing a fireplace. Please let me know if you would like some help finding it, or if you have more questions.
Thank you
Haveit Neox

taken by Victoria Lenoirre

Front of Temple of Bots courtesy of RazoRZ

This is a fabulous body of work by Haveit Neox and I told him so last night when I met him and talked to him for a short time. He is currently working on builds at two sims. Details can be found at his Picks, check it out!

Victoria being rehydrated by 2 bots. :-)

Please visit "Second Libations"! It will be on the LEA full sim until December 31st! Visit it inworld here!