Grand Finale Artwork features on Scruplz Magazine

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Open publication - Free publishing - More 3d

One of the Grand Finale artworks (99% by Harter Fall) features in the November issue of Scruplz Magazine. Beautifully written. PAGE 27 Onwards.

Or click here
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Launch of a UWA Treasure: The Somerville Auditorium

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On the morning of the 23rd of November 2011, UWA's Somerville Auditorium was officially launched in virtual space by Jay Jay Jegathesan, Manager of the School of Physics (Jayjay Zifanwe in SL). Created by Sharni Azalee (of Western Australia) with assistance from Marcus Inkpen, this makes it the 12th of the 100 Treasures from UWA to now be present on UWA land in Second Life.

The Somerville Auditorium plays host every year to the Lotterywest Festival Films as part of the Perth International Arts Festival, as such, the launch of the Somerville in Second Life was christened by the screening of a selection of machinima that have formed part of the growth and development of UWA in virtual space. The very first Machinima shown at the Somerville (SL) was Bert Jedburgh's October Round Winners Machinima of the UWA 3D Open Art Challenge. Ironically, it will be the last of the monthly winners machinima that have been created over the past 2 years for the UWA 3D Art Challenges (as the monthly challenges evolves to something else).

Those attending the launch were also treated to a most incredible show of light and magic amongst the Norfolk Bay Pines, by the wizard behind the wonders of Catharsis, Tyrehl Byk.

Other machinima playes included Cisko Vandeverre's SEEK (winner of MachinimUWA), Bradley Dorchester's Art of the Artists (joint-winner of MachinimUWA II), Tutsy Navarathna's Journey Into the Metaverse (joint-winner of machinimUWA III) and Kobuk Farshore's Requiem (MachinimUWA III Award Winner).

2011, 2012 & 2013 are  centenary years for the University of Western Australia, and MachinimUWA V, which will be held in 2012 will be in honour of UWA Centenary. A theme will be selected loosely corresponding to the centenary, with a rule being that at least one of the 100 Treasures of UWA has to feature in the Machinima.

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UWA 3D Art Challenge on Metaverse TV Live!

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Metaverse Live #3 from Metaverse TV on Vimeo.

On the 22nd of November, Jayjay Zifanwe (Jay Jay Jegathesan, Manager, School of Physics UWA) was invited to a panel discussion on Metaverse TV live, hosted by Mal Burns & Dousa Dragonash where the conversation ranged from Facebook to Holodecks to Linden Endowment for the Arts and the UWA Art and Machinima challenges.

The 35 minute mark onwards is where the focus shifts to the upcoming Grand Finale of the UWA 3D Open Art Challenge and the winners announcements for MachinimUWA IV: Art of the Artists.
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Please vote for your top 10 for UWA's 3d Open Art Challenge Finalists!

Hey all! I just got done voting . Call me crazy, but I looked at every single one of them on the notecard FreeWee and Jayjay are handing out tonight. There are 59 3d Open Art Finalist pieces and 24 Non-scripted pieces. I'm fairly certain I saw them all! :-)

Details and Links Here

I'm a little tired but very proud of myself. I love art and all the works I saw tonight were very well rendered. I was biting my nails and tapping my forehead  trying to decide which ones to put in my top 10. It was hardest for  the Open Art category, the one with 59 pieces! The Non-scripted was slightly easier, but I've probably said this before....I like them all! And I'm not just saying that!

The artists in SL are truly amazing. I've had the great pleasure of talking to some of you and seeing your galleries and I really enjoy it. It brightens my SL experience. I really want to thank you for that. Since joining SL, I have always been a great admirer of the art in SL. It is so very remarkable.

I urge you all to vote!

You'll see art from Cherry Manga, Miso Susanowa, Soror Nishi, Nish Mip, Dusty Canning, Wizard Gynnoid, RazorZ, Josiane Sorciere, Aristide Despres, RazorZ, Haveit Neox, and many more!

Let's all come vote and show our support for these fabulous artists and persons in SL! Most of all, thanks Jayjay, FreeWee, and quadrop for making all of this possible and so organized. It is terrific what they do.

And don't forget to catch some of Tyrehl Byk's performances! This man is amazing....his shows are like nothing you've ever seen. He blends color, light, and pictures in a masterful way. You have to see it!

A scene for Tyrehl's Particle Phantasmagoria

Take care all! And to those in the United States (like me), Happy Thanksgiving!

Bert Jedburgh's Machinima of October Winners: UWA 3D Open Art Challenge

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The brilliant Bert Jedburgh, brings us the last of the official monthly machinima of winners for the UWA 3D Open Art Challenge!

Do participate in the Audience participation event for machinimUWA IV, and the People's Choice Vote for the Grand Finale of the UWA 3D Open Art Challenge. Both of these close on the 30th of November, with the Grand Finale event taking place from 6am slt on Sundat, 11th December.

In Bert's words:
Artworks in order of appeareance:

- "Black Shirt" by Misprint Thursday
- "In Dreams" by Blue Tsuki
- "99%" by Harter Fall
- "The Revolt of the Mannequins" by Silene Christen
- "Used Pieces" by Secret Rage
- "Small Piece if Hell, The Suicide Forest Infested by Harpias" by Rebeca Bashly
- "Second Libations Preview" by Haveit Neox
- "AERO1" by Simotron Aquila
- "Two of Three Uneasy Pieces (PT II)" by Eliza Wierwight
- "History of Falls" by Anley Piers
- "Within the Waves" by Nish Mip
- "HL'ADANIE" by Corcosman Voom
- "The Wild Wild World of Illusion" by RazorZ & Olga Soulstar
- "Big Winter by Miso Susanowa

Special thanks to Martin Schweiger for Orbiter
http://orbit.medphys.ucl.ac.uk/

To David413 for the Shuttle Fleet V. 4.3.
http://www.orbithangar.com/searchid.php?ID=3730

And to the National Aeronautic Space Administration (NASA) of the United States of America
http://www.nasa.gov/
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Victoria Lenoirre Explores ~(Not a Knot) and The Forest

Hi there! Have you seen Tyrehl Byk's ~Not a Knot exhibit at the LEA full sim and RazorZ's Forest at the UWA Sky Sim? If you haven't, you definitely should! These are the showcase 3d galleries this month only!



The Entrance to ~(Not A Knot)

Here I am standing in the foyer in front of the Transport Curtain. There are arrows on the floor pointing to it, for easy finding. And next to the curtain you should see a bulletin that says "touch" as you can see in the snapshot I took. Click on that for a performance calendar. And to the right of the calendar is a Transport Curtain to the Horizon Theatre where you can view Catharsis, a spectacular performance of particles, light, and more. You don't want to miss it!

Once you click to transport, you should find yourself on a stone terrace. To your right you should see a knot, a brown knot...called a rope knot. Click the knot for viewing instructions. You will get a notecard that explains what settings are best to use when exploring the body of work by Tyrehl. For example, you should turn off ambience and turn sounds to the max. Tyrehl has some animals sounds and voice clips.


Outward Look



Fire Extinguisher Area

This area which I captured above was one of my favorite spots. The sound of the fire in the torch sounded so  real and so loud, especially since I changed my settings as Tyrehl instructed in the notecard I got as I landed on the  terrace.

Here's the interview I sent him:

Why is this called ~(Not a Knot)?
I recognized those symbols from logic, Formal Logic.
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The name serves to highlight the idea that symbolic communication (primarily language based communication) is a landscape trapped and then sealed by the chains of people's assumptions and expectations.  When communication is unclear, all falls to confusion, anger, and/or frustration.  A common myth is that words hold power.  Words can only point at places where the meaning (power) resides.  If that destination is absent, the words themselves are signposts pointing nowhere.
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Why did you choose to build a forest?
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Is it really a forest that exists floating in unsupported space, ungrounded, and without roots?  Are you consciously aware of this characteristic while wandering the space?  If not, why not?
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Water and fire seem  to be fundamental for this work. Are you referencing the elements: earth, wind, water, and fire?
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The ~(Not-A-Knot) construct is non-corporeal in nature.  The elementals that you mention are referenced from your memory  and the words point at things that are corporeal at their most fundamental level.  Why do flammable and  inflammable point at the same thing, while finite and infinite do not?
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Interesting choice of sound bytes, especially the one about Elvis. It seems to emphasize the feeling of isolation and separateness. Is that the feel you were going for?
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Actually those choices (Elvis has entered/left the building) were nothing more complicated than humorous signals indicating that the artist has entered, or has left  the environment at the start and finish of a performance period.  I do have an obscure sense of hurmor sometimes.  :)
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Why do you have the Vietnames food takeout box in the sim? It seems incongruous to the surroundings.
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If that was the only thing you found to be incongruous, then I’m almost certain you did not see everything in the space.  This is not a build which is likely to reveal all of its substance in a single brief visit, nor is it something that will unfold the same for a person wandering along, vs. traveling with a group of people, or experiencing it during the times I am installed at the piece performing.  It is easy to assume that it is mostly just a lot of pretty landscape, but that is just the surface. Many things can be touched / sat upon to reveal layers that are not apparent at first glance.  Truth is rarely superficial, and many times it is quite elusive and often times people are quite simply too pressed for time, or too impatient to look beyond surfaces.  If you like, I could set aside some time to guide you around in more depth.  Unfortunately, this is not an easy piece to apprehend, and it is quite likely that only a small fraction of people will uncover all of its subtle nuance.
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I love how the terrain is rough. One has to walk up and down. And sometimes, you have to turn around because you can't walk any further. What's the message there?
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How many people do you know who “escape” into Second Life as if it is some sort of refuge that they believe should be “easy” and “comfortable” all the time?  Why do people refer to their off-world experience as “real life”, with the implicit expectation that what occurs in Second Life is somehow NOT real?  Why don’t those people see the lack of truth in that belief?  Why would a person be surprised to discover that in-world experience has its own set of challenges and that not all things are easy and inconsequential?
If you'd like me to guide you around a bit, let me know when and I'll make arrangements to meet you.
Thanks for your interesting questions.  I'm sure I've probably raised as many new ones as I've answered.

Thanks for answering my questions, Tyrehl. Give it up for Tyrehl Byk! Fantastic creation!
Additionally, the UWA Sky Sim features RazorZ's Forest. You should see it. RazorZ gave me a personal tour. I liked the scenery, the sound effects, and of course....the animations.

View from Above

This was taken with regular windlight settings. RazorZ has a notecard with recommended windlight settings so the scene will look very different and more amazing!

Flying back and forth over a "Real Water Pond"

Above, I have included a snapshot of my favorite aspect of the sim, I loved the flying animation as well as the sounds I heard around me. Listen carefully. What does it sound like to you?

Below is an interview I had with RazorZ:

So where is this forest that you based your exhibition off of?

There is no particular forest in real life that my work is based on.  My real life work is wood sculpture, tree surgery & landscaping.  And I pass by, & work in & around forests, glens, rivers & meadows all the time & I feel that this does inspire & connect me to the natural world, perhaps more than others.  I joined second life to further my study of sculpture & take it into 3D modeling, so I approached everything from this background.  After a few months of exploring in Second life & going to classes, learning.  I built my 1st large build, which was a fractal garden set in a 20x20x20 box.  I was exploring the link between Fractals & there equations in a digital form & how they relate to the real natural world.   That piece, (The Order of Fractals in a Digital World) went on to win a Peoples Choice award, and is currently displayed in galleries now.  There have been various updates & expansions on this project since then, & I entered another Mega Prim version (Mega Fractal Jungle)of this to UWA in August 40x40x40, which was more of a blend of real life pieces & virtual fractal abstraction. 
On the strength of all that work, Jayjay asked me to do the Sky SIM at UWA, with this 'Forest Theme'.  And now that I am working on it, it is taking a new direction.  You will have to come see it finished to understand what that is.

What are some techniques that you like to use to add depth or contrast to your work?

I have learnt about using shadow prims over the last few months & showing light & shadows is the best way to highlight the best parts & add depth & contrast.  But ever since I started building in SL, I have tested my builds by walking through them in 'Mouselook'.  This gives great view to explore how immersive a piece is, and allows me to adjust things to make it ideal & aesthetically  & ergonomically suitable for the environment.  I also like to use a lot of colour in my SL Art as I find others with more 1, 2 tone spectrum a little drab & depressing.

What do you love most about forests?  Did you try to instill that feeling in this body of work?

I adore the magical enchantment of forests in general.  Being in a place & feeling that connection to nature makes us realize that the world around us is more vast & powerful than anything we can create ourselves.  Connecting to this natural environment makes us all feel better & more relaxed & is something deeply embedded in the human psyche'.  So yes,  I do try to instill that feeling in my work & communicate it through this virtual world.
Did you use any experimental methods you haven't used before in previous builds?

I have been experimenting with Rez target scripts & Die on timer scripts over the past month or so & learning how they work.  I used this on my Wagon piece in October to throw the Barrel & Box out the back.  And I wanted to script my Unscripted piece, which was photographs of nature set on Flexi prims, with a gradient stepping on the transparency levels.  To use that script,  would of allowed me to actually make the Pictures, Photos on the Prims, Fall Over!  This occurrence happens in nature, from the leaves falling, branches breaking & falling in the wind & whole trees too.  Even the flow of water falls with gravity!   So I will be continuing my study into this & try to use it in my Forest build at UWA Sky SIM this month, November. 

Thanks, RazorZ for answering my questions! More great work from RazorZ!
So check out these two sims. They are fantastic and simply phenomenal. And don't forget to see Tyrehl's Catharsis and Particle Phantasmagoria. You'll be delighted out of your senses! Umm....well maybe just blown away. You need your senses. :-) Definitely keep an eye out for RazorZ's work. He may be a new artist in SL, but his stuff is quite impressive. Don't just take my word for it!

Enjoy  the art and have fun!

UWA SKY SIM SERIES (NOVEMBER): RazorZ's FOREST 'THE WALKTHROUGH"'

The LEA FULL SIM ART SERIES, and 'little brother' UWA SKY SIM ART SERIES, round out in November with RazorZ's Forest 'The Walkthrough', which lines up alongside the works of Tyrehl Byk & quadrapop Lane at LEA 6. THIS EXHIBIT IS OPEN NOW THROUGH THE END OF NOVEMBER! CLICK HERE TO BE TAKEN TO START LOCATION

RazorZ's Forest Landing Point

Hidden Cottage

Destination Guide Editors Picks
Quan's Traveloges on Forest
On Virtual Outworlding Blog
Caitlin Tobias Blog
Toxx News
Caliburn Susanto Flickr

IN RAZORZ'S WORDS:

UWA SKY SIM - FOREST  "THE WALK THROUGH"

This forest of fractals in the Sky is an abstract & obscure experiment of a mix of real life & digital & virtual shapes, textures & form.   An continuation of my previous 2-3 fractal jungle's & forest's in a box.   Only this time,  it is Sim Wide!  Put together with real life structure, the organic shapes reaching for the sun & sky, the berries falling from the trees with gravity, maybe the only things to keep your bearings by here!  Even though the growing life here is rooted to the ground, it is like nothing you seen before!.

Using various textures from natural real life plants & organic life & matter, I have mixed them up onto abstract forms of growing plant & tree like sculpture's.   As you may notice, at the start there is a canopy, which is enclosing, blocking the view of the Sky, then below all different sizes of growth & vegetation.  Borrowing real life structure's, I show how abstract shapes & forms can create a similar atmosphere in a virtual world.

The yellow brick path is layed out as a guide to walk you around.  It is designed for walking in 'Mouselook' to truly give the most immersed experience.  At the start is very abstract but following the path around everything is set out to gradually blend to real life.  At the end of the path is a beautiful old style cottage all made to real life scale & textures which is where all becomes less abstract & totally normal inside.

Until,  you click on the rug in the middle of the floor!

What it all questions is how in a virtual world the environments are not under the same building & growing constraints as in the real world, and with abstract forms following real life rules we can still create a similar environment which makes the viewer feel the similar in both worlds.  And maybe how all that we see, create & experience is linked in our own dream worlds & the collective unconscious.

Unique fractal textures & abstract sculpties & everything we got, Olga Soulstar & I built a magical & psychedelic digital jungle.  Making the connection between nature, rl & sl, fractals and how they appear in real life nature!  Its filled with beautiful particles, dances & poses & relaxing areas.  Perhaps some strange & obscure growths too.  Come and see it for yourself...   Only until the 30th November, 2011.

Razorz & Olga

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SPECIAL MACHINIMA by Cisko Vandeverre of the MachinimUWA III Winners

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Cisko Vandeverre, inaugural champion of the UWA Machinima Challenges has made a brilliant show reel or 'winnereel' of the Winners of MachinimUWA III: Journeys. Winners were announced in the first half of 2011.

In his words:
a small tribute to the films which had won the last MachinimUWA categories.

GRAND PRIZE WINNER of MachinimUWA III (JOINT) (@L$85,000):
1- JOURNEY INTO THE METAVERSE by Tutsy Navarathna
2- JURONEY by Eric Boccara of the Netherlands

Peter Greenaway MachinimUWA III Prize (L$60,000)
3- RUSTED GEARS by Bryn Oh

3rd prize for MachinimUWA III (L$50,000)
4- UNPLUGGED by Al Peretz (Alfonso Kohn) of Miami Florida, originally hailing from Colombia

MachinimUWA III Special Award for JOURNEY AND MACHINIMA ADAPTATION (L$37,150):
5- THE EGG by Animatechnica Umbarundu

MachinimUWA III Special Award for INTERPRETATION AND DELIVERY (L$37,150):
6- WARRIORS OF ALIVENESS by Cecil Hirvi

MachinimUWA III Special Award for ‘FEEL’ & MUSIC (L$37,150) :
7- BAKERMAN’S JOURNEY by Arrow Inglewood

MachinimUWA III Special Award for IMAGERY (L$37,150):
8- BEGINNING OF KNOWLEDGE AND OF SORROW by Laslopantomik Yao

MachinimUWA III Special Award for NARRATION AND HISTORICAL CONTENT (L$37,150):
9- KAPHD by Hypatia Pickens

MachinimUWA III Special Award for MESSAGE AND IMAGINATION (L$37,150):
10- ESCAPE by Veruca Vandyke

MachinimUWA III Honourable Mention Prize JOINT (@L$18,575):
11- REQUIEM by Kobuk Farshore
MachinimUWA III Honourable Mention Prize JOINT (@L$18,575):
12- THE JOURNEY by Soda Lemondrop
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MachinimUWA IV: Ormand Lionheart's 'In Darkness Featuring Mommaluv Skytower'

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'In Darkness Featuring Mommaluv Skytower', by Ormand Lionheart, the final entry to MachinimUWA IV features numerous award winning artworks that have been part of the UWA 3D Open Art Challenge. This machinima is now part of MachinimUWA IV: Art of the Artists, which unites the powerhouses of virtual worlds, Artists and Machinimatographers!

Entries to the L$300,000 MachinimUWA IV close on the 10th of November and looks for the creation of machinima featuring artworks that are part of the UWA 3D Open Art Challenge.

IN ORMAND'S WORDS:
Song: In Darkness
Music - teru http://ccmixter.org/files/teru/12169

Vocals & Lyrics - http://www.mommaluvskytower.com/

Spoken word - spinningmerkaba

Actors:
13Angelsmine Bluebird
Diawa Bellic
Ormand Lionheart
Maiko Yheng

Artists:
Faery Solo - Cautionary Tale: Witches Workplace Health and Safety
Eliza Wierwight - One of Three Uneasy Pieces
Alizarin Goldflake - Merry Go Round
Lucignolo - slaves of the light
Fae Varrial - Mirror Worlds
thoth.jantzen - TooMuchCaffeine1
dudi - unplug
Rebeca Bashly - Minotaur & Centaurus from 7th circle of Hell
Rebeca Bashly - The Suicide Forest Infested by Harpias
Nino Vichan - deus Ex Machina
Oona Eiren - Hopscotch
Cherry Manga - The Machine

Video Editor: FuzOnAcid
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MachinimUWA IV: Contessa Idlemind's 'Fragment of It's Art'

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'Fragment of It's Art', by Contessa Idlemind features numerous award winning artworks that are part of the UWA 3D Open Art Challenge. This machinima is now part of MachinimUWA IV: Art of the Artists, which unites the powerhouses of virtual worlds, Artists and Machinimatographers!

Entries to the L$300,000 MachinimUWA IV close on the 10th of November and looks for the creation of machinima featuring artworks that are part of the UWA 3D Open Art Challenge.

Artworks featured:
Revolt of the Mannequins - Silene Christen
Travel in the Shadow of Technology - Anley Piers
In Dreams - Blue Tsuki
Autumn - Nexuno Thespian
The Chasm - Oberon Onmura
TV Morning Exercises - Dusty Canning
Ultra Violet - quadrapop Lane
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