Thursday, October 9, 2014

Transcending Borders: 8. Shenn, Peli, kjs, Charles

We continue to have a steady flow of new entries for UWA 3D Art & Machinima Challenge: Transcending Borders, with a total so far to 24. Entries are being accepted until October 31.

Anyone who saw Shenn Coleman's 200 meter "Neuron Sphere" last year knows that he likes to work in big scale. His new entry for Transcending Borders (we are still waiting for a title) is no exception: A 150 meter cube with 6 areas of focus traversed by way of TP doors. It's a phenomenal experience and astounding that he was able to do it in under 150 land impact.
 

Peli Dieterle presents "Zoom in/Zoom out," a juxtaposition of macro and micro, with a giant microscope orbited by planets and a tiny space shuttle. There is quite a lot more to this piece than meets the eye. Be sure to read the accompanying notecard.

kjs Yip has given us an enormous box titled "Following Oskar," a reference and homage to the Bauhaus artist Oskar Schlemmer.



Charles Hera gave us some interesting minimalist entries in the 2012 Artists' Choice series. His "Maelstrom" for the WATER theme show was one of my favorites. For Transcending Borders, Charles has given us "Adaption - Relationships," an elegant abstract form that seems to be an apple and its shadow, or perhaps a pair of lovers in embrace.



Tuesday, October 7, 2014

MachinimUWA VII: Erythro Asimov's 'Night of the Johnstown Flood'



NIGHT OF THE JOHNSTOWN FLOOD by Erythro Asimov of Tours, France  which bridges history, the real world and SL is the  latest entry to the L$545,000++ MachinimUWA VII: Transcending Borders, the 7th UWA Short Animated Film Challenge. The 'Transcending Borders' theme was selected by Professor Ted Snell, Director of the Cultural Precinct, UWA and who inspired the very first of the UWA art challenges in 2009. This theme is in honour of the 'Transcending Borders' exhibition at UWA's Lawrence Wilson Art Gallery in 2014CLOSING DATE FOR SUBMISSIONS IS 31st OCTOBER 2014.

You may interpret the theme as you see fit, however the average viewer would need to be able to appreciate how you fit this theme (alternatively, please indicate in the notes how it fits in the film notes on the web). Your machinima must be made specifically for this challenge, and this should be indicated in the opening credits 'For The University of Western Australia's MachinimUWA VII: Transcending Borders'. You do not have to film on the UWA sims, however this of course will be appreciated, and there is a Special UWA Prize which will be made available to a film which includes either Winthrop Clock Tower, The Somerville Auditorium or The Sunken Gardens.
 
ALSO, public viewing for TRANSCENDING BORDERS: The 5th UWA Grand 3D Art Challenge is now open (though the closing date for entries is the same as the Machinima - 31st October)

Special prizes are also offered for machinima that best portray one or a few of the artworks entered to TRANSCENDING BORDERS: The 5th UWA Grand 3D Art Challenge.

Do visit the UWA Challenge Gallery HERE to view the submissions so far

List of Submitted Machinima for MachinimUWA VII: Transcending Borders:
(In Reverse Klingon Alphabetical Order)

Erythro Asimov (Tours, France) - Night of the Johnstown Flood

Sophia Yates (Boston,  Massachusetts, USA) - Transcending Borders 

Valentina Tremont (Milan, Italy) - Imagination

NicoleX Moonwall (New Orleans, USA) - Transformation, The Long Journey Home

Misio2 (Melbourne, Australia) - Virtual Toy Island Plankton 

jjccc Coronet (Talygarn, South Wales) - What a Wonderful World

Valentina Tremont (Milan, Italy) - Dreaming

Trascending Borders: 7. Slatan, Swann, Myhns, Wizard

We continue to have a steady flow of new entries for UWA 3D Art & Machinima Challenge: Transcending Borders. Entries are being accepted until October 31.

Slatan Dryke gives us "Quantum Shift: A journey into Perpetual Motion and Organized Chaos." It expresses the mystery of how chemical and electrical brain processes become .... us.
 


A few years ago Swann Jie started the "HuaKui Cube Wall" for the "Adopt a cube" project from the Virtual World to the Real World. The project allowed people to purchase a physical block with images on it and a QR code to a website of your choosing. The blocks would be assembled into a real world wall or house. Swann is showing a wall segment in this show.

Myhns Mayo presents a dramatic cyan colored expressionist bullfight scene titled "Fix TIme and Dissolve The Space."

Wizard Gynoid gives us "The 5 Elements," another of her wonderful geometric constructions.




Monday, October 6, 2014

MachinimUWA VII: Valentina Tremont's 'Imagination'


Imagination, for The University of Western Australia's MachinimUWA VII from Valentina Tremont on Vimeo.

IMAGINATION by Valentina Tremont of Milan which spans the border between the dream and real worlds is the  latest entry to the L$545,000++ MachinimUWA VII: Transcending Borders, the 7th UWA Short Animated Film Challenge. The 'Transcending Borders' theme was selected by Professor Ted Snell, Director of the Cultural Precinct, UWA and who inspired the very first of the UWA art challenges in 2009. This theme is in honour of the 'Transcending Borders' exhibition at UWA's Lawrence Wilson Art Gallery in 2014CLOSING DATE FOR SUBMISSIONS IS 31st OCTOBER 2014.

You may interpret the theme as you see fit, however the average viewer would need to be able to appreciate how you fit this theme (alternatively, please indicate in the notes how it fits in the film notes on the web). Your machinima must be made specifically for this challenge, and this should be indicated in the opening credits 'For The University of Western Australia's MachinimUWA VII: Transcending Borders'. You do not have to film on the UWA sims, however this of course will be appreciated, and there is a Special UWA Prize which will be made available to a film which includes either Winthrop Clock Tower, The Somerville Auditorium or The Sunken Gardens.
 
ALSO, public viewing for TRANSCENDING BORDERS: The 5th UWA Grand 3D Art Challenge is now open (though the closing date for entries is the same as the Machinima - 31st October)

Special prizes are also offered for machinima that best portray one or a few of the artworks entered to TRANSCENDING BORDERS: The 5th UWA Grand 3D Art Challenge.

Do visit the UWA Challenge Gallery HERE to view the submissions so far

List of Submitted Machinima for MachinimUWA VII: Transcending Borders:
(In Reverse Klingon Alphabetical Order)

Sophia Yates (Lancaster Massachusetts, USA) - Transcending Borders 

Valentina Tremont (Milan, Italy) - Imagination

NicoleX Moonwall (New Orleans, USA) - Transformation, The Long Journey Home

Misio2 (Melbourne, Australia) - Virtual Toy Island Plankton 


jjccc Coronet (Talygarn, South Wales) - What a Wonderful World
 
Valentina Tremont (Milan, Italy) - Dreaming

Sunday, October 5, 2014

September LEA6 Full sim Eliza Cabassoun's Follow Your Soul review by Victoria Lenoirre

From Sept 17th until the end of October, Eliza Cabassoun is featuring her lovely sim build, Follow Your Soul, at LEA 6.

Everyone has a place where they found their soul.  This is where I found mine.  I found mine in a cabin by a lake where the fog rises in the morning into the mountains like a warm blanket.  I began writing novels here and taking photos here.  Nature can bring forth great inspiration, simply from towering trees or just the midnight sounds of tree frogs and rain hitting a tin roof.   

Wander around the sim and you'll find photography not only from RL but from SL as well.  I've also placed several of my tortured prim sculptures among the trees.  Make sure to click the teleporter in front of the cabin to go to The Poetry Garden and the SL Photography Gallery.  This lake is where I followed my soul to realize I have two gifts--writing and photography--and a part of my soul will always be here.

Eliza Cabassoun


My first impression is of a wide, open space that feels tranquil and uplifting. It feels like a home. There's a cozy cottage on one bank. By the front door is a sign that allows you to teleport to the Poetry Garden and the SL Photography Gallery.

Main landing area @ Follow Your Soul
Look at the texture of the grass, does it look like puzzle pieces to you? On each piece is a phrase. They seem like poetry. The phrases are on one of the easels by the cottage.


On the small easels are colorful photographs.

The leaves have turned into orange and red. You can see the reflections of the trees on the water. It's so calm and soothing to idle away your time here.

View from the main bank


Several docks lead away from the main bank. And one dock leads you to a gazebo. I always love gazebos and how cozy they make me feel. It adds a sweet, intimate touch to any place.


I found time to interview Eliza about her detailed, scenic sim installation.

Eliza says that her depiction is from her memories of time spent at Lake Burton in northeast Georgia.

Is that where you were raised or you had relatives there? or was it just a fall vacation spot?

 My great uncle built the cabin there in 1948, and my mom and her brothers grew up spending vacations there, and then my mom and dad and I went there when I was growing up.

There's a photo of the cabin inside the house...I used it as the rug.

Unfortunately it was destroyed in a tornado back in 2011...an F-4 tore across the lake, and it destroyed a lot of cabins.

Aww that's sad. You must miss it a lot.

 Yes, but I still have good memories, and I'm writing a novel based around the cabin and Lake Burton.  :)

I've created a fictional plot around it, and the main character's grandmother has willed a lodge to her, and the main character has decided to run it.

Is there an effort to rebuild the forest?

I believe they're going to plant more trees, yes.

Ok so I wanted to ask you about the photos on the easels that are strewn along the shore.
Are those photos taken during trips to the Lake?

I have very few photos taken from the lake...I have one other I plan on putting in the cabin tonight.  I didn't have a camera when we went most of the time, and the camera that I had the last time we went was a digital camera that used 3.5" floppy disks and I don't have a computer that can read them.  Most of the photos were taken at a nature preserve near my home outside Atlanta and in New Orleans, Louisiana.  I have a great aunt and an aunt and uncle in New Orleans.

The photos you included are really awesome. :)

Thank you :)  I plan on adding more as the month goes on.

 Eliza Cabassoun: I'm thinking about rezzing a house like I have rezzed for the SL photos up in the sky on the ground and putting more photos in it.

So there are 3 areas to visit at Follow Your Soul?

Yes...there is a teleporter in front of the cabin that leads you to the SL photos I've taken, which includes landscapes and singers and musicians in SL, and there is another area I've dubbed the Poetry Garden and has all of the poems I've put on my RL photos.

Very cool. and the Poetry Garden is also in the sky?

Yes it is :) It's listed in the teleporter.

Poetry Garden


I noticed that the main area has puzzle grass piece with poems?

[18:44] Eliza Cabassoun: It has a poem I've written on it called "Follow Your Soul", which is the name of the sim.

Nice. and the poem is on the easel outside the cottage?

Yes it is :)

The poem goes like this:

Soaring notes flying free
Circling unequivocally round the brain
The guitar twangs, harmony begins
The rhythm pounding in my soul

I close my eyes to hear it
Nodding my heart in time
No reason, no rhyme to all that is
The soaring of the vocals lifting my heart

It grows quiet, then rises again
I listen in pure wonderment
How can someone move the soul
With only a voice and a guitar
And a band behind him

God's gift of music
Touching them from high above
Giving others comfort
Making them feel the love

How can we feel depressed
How can we be lonely
When we hear something
That moves the soul so powerfully


So, what do you do in SL?  You own an art gallery, a shop, and you're a photographer in SL?

Yes. My store is Roots and Wings.  I've separated all the clothing items that I've used my RL photography on into a single vendor and put a sign next to it.

My vendor photos are on flickr.

My SL photos can be found on koinup.

My marketplace is at https://marketplace.secondlife.com/stores/107907 :)

So what are your future plans...any events or showings?

I plan on entering the UWA contest with "Soul of Heart", a tortured prim sculpture.  It's rezzed on the LEA sim.

A big thank you to Eliza for her work at LEA6 this month! And thank you for all who make LEA possible! :)

Come check out Follow Your Soul now until the end of this month!

Have fun and enjoy the art!

- Victoria Lenoirre

Friday, October 3, 2014

MachinimUWA VII: Valentina Tremont's 'Dreaming'


Dreaming, for The University of Western Australia's MachinimUWA VII from Valentina Tremont on Vimeo.

DREAMING by Valentina Tremont of Milan is the  latest entry to the L$545,000++ MachinimUWA VII: Transcending Borders, the 7th UWA Short Animated Film Challenge. The 'Transcending Borders' theme was selected by Professor Ted Snell, Director of the Cultural Precinct, UWA and who inspired the very first of the UWA art challenges in 2009. This theme is in honour of the 'Transcending Borders' exhibition at UWA's Lawrence Wilson Art Gallery in 2014CLOSING DATE FOR SUBMISSIONS IS 31st OCTOBER 2014.

You may interpret the theme as you see fit, however the average viewer would need to be able to appreciate how you fit this theme (alternatively, please indicate in the notes how it fits in the film notes on the web). Your machinima must be made specifically for this challenge, and this should be indicated in the opening credits 'For The University of Western Australia's MachinimUWA VII: Transcending Borders'. You do not have to film on the UWA sims, however this of course will be appreciated, and there is a Special UWA Prize which will be made available to a film which includes either Winthrop Clock Tower, The Somerville Auditorium or The Sunken Gardens.
 
ALSO, public viewing for TRANSCENDING BORDERS: The 5th UWA Grand 3D Art Challenge is now open (though the closing date for entries is the same as the Machinima - 31st October)

Special prizes are also offered for machinima that best portray one or a few of the artworks entered to TRANSCENDING BORDERS: The 5th UWA Grand 3D Art Challenge.

Do visit the UWA Challenge Gallery HERE to view the submissions so far

List of Submitted Machinima for MachinimUWA VII: Transcending Borders:
(In Reverse Klingon Alphabetical Order)

Sophia Yates (Lancaster Massachusetts, USA) - Transcending Borders 

NicoleX Moonwall (New Orleans, USA) - Transformation, The Long Journey Home

Misio2 (Melbourne, Australia) - Virtual Toy Island Plankton 

Valentina Tremont (Milan, Italy) - Dreaming

jjccc Coronet (Talygarn, South Wales) - What a Wonderful World

Wednesday, October 1, 2014

MachinimUWA VII: NicoleXMoonwall's 'Transformation, The Long Journey Home'


Transformation,The Long Journey Home,for The University of Western Australia's MachinimUWA VII from NicoleX on Vimeo.

The soulful 'Transformation, The Long Journey Home' by NicoleX Moonwall is the  latest entry to the L$545,000++ MachinimUWA VII: Transcending Borders, the 7th UWA Short Animated Film Challenge. The 'Transcending Borders' theme was selected by Professor Ted Snell, Director of the Cultural Precinct, UWA and who inspired the very first of the UWA art challenges in 2009. This theme is in honour of the 'Transcending Borders' exhibition at UWA's Lawrence Wilson Art Gallery in 2014CLOSING DATE FOR SUBMISSIONS IS 31st OCTOBER 2014.

You may interpret the theme as you see fit, however the average viewer would need to be able to appreciate how you fit this theme (alternatively, please indicate in the notes how it fits in the film notes on the web). Your machinima must be made specifically for this challenge, and this should be indicated in the opening credits 'For The University of Western Australia's MachinimUWA VII: Transcending Borders'. You do not have to film on the UWA sims, however this of course will be appreciated, and there is a Special UWA Prize which will be made available to a film which includes either Winthrop Clock Tower, The Somerville Auditorium or The Sunken Gardens.
 
ALSO, public viewing for TRANSCENDING BORDERS: The 5th UWA Grand 3D Art Challenge is now open (though the closing date for entries is the same as the Machinima - 31st October)

Special prizes are also offered for machinima that best portray one or a few of the artworks entered to TRANSCENDING BORDERS: The 5th UWA Grand 3D Art Challenge.

Do visit the UWA Challenge Gallery HERE to view the submissions so far

List of Submitted Machinima for MachinimUWA VII: Transcending Borders:
(In Reverse Klingon Alphabetical Order)

Sophia Yates (Lancaster Massachusetts, USA) - Transcending Borders 

NicoleX Moonwall (New Orleans, USA) - Transformation, The Long Journey Home

Misio2 (Melbourne, Australia) - Virtual Toy Island Plankton 

jjccc Coronet (Talygarn, South Wales) - What a Wonderful World

MachinimUWA VII: Misio's Toys and Jjccc sees A Wonderful World



 Misio2's "Virtual Toy Island Plankton"

 
Jjccc Coronet's "What a Wonderful World" 

Misio2 & Jjccc Coronet's films are the latest entries to the L$545,000++ MachinimUWA VII: Transcending Borders, the 7th UWA Short Animated Film Challenge. The 'Transcending Borders' theme was selected by Professor Ted Snell, Director of the Cultural Precinct, UWA and who inspired the very first of the UWA art challenges in 2009. This theme is in honour of the 'Transcending Borders' exhibition at UWA's Lawrence Wilson Art Gallery in 2014. CLOSING DATE FOR SUBMISSIONS IS 31st OCTOBER 2014.

You may interpret the theme as you see fit, however the average viewer would need to be able to appreciate how you fit this theme (alternatively, please indicate in the notes how it fits in the film notes on the web). Your machinima must be made specifically for this challenge, and this should be indicated in the opening credits 'For The University of Western Australia's MachinimUWA VII: Transcending Borders'. You do not have to film on the UWA sims, however this of course will be appreciated, and there is a Special UWA Prize which will be made available to a film which includes either Winthrop Clock Tower, The Somerville Auditorium or The Sunken Gardens.

ALSO, public viewing for TRANSCENDING BORDERS: The 5th UWA Grand 3D Art Challenge is now open (though the closing date for entries is the same as the Machinima - 31st October)

Special prizes are also offered for machinima that best portray one or a few of the artworks entered to TRANSCENDING BORDERS: The 5th UWA Grand 3D Art Challenge.

Do visit the UWA Challenge Gallery HERE to view the submissions so far

List of Submitted Machinima for MachinimUWA VII: Transcending Borders:
(In Reverse Klingon Alphabetical Order)

Sophia Yates (Lancaster Massachusetts, USA) - Transcending Borders

Misio2 (Melbourne, Australia) - Virtual Toy Island Plankton

jjccc Coronet (Talygarn, South Wales) - What a Wonderful World


Tuesday, September 30, 2014

Transcending Borders: 6. Yepar, Takni, Misio2, Ronin1, iSkye, Mistero

We have had several new entries in the last week or so for UWA 3D Art & Machinima Challenge: Transcending Borders. It's interesting to see how people use SL as a medium to create objects that may be very simple or very complicated. And how objects can appear similar, but are really quite different in approach. 

Yepar Saenz impressed a lot of people (like me) with last year's carousel entry for the Reflections show. This time Yepar's imagery is more subdued, but also more interactive. We are presented with a large box space with a wall of blocks. When touched, the blocks rearrange themselves into various configurations that represent different icons of location around the world, including the Eiffel Tower, Australian and British flags, a sitting Buddha, a pyramid, and several other identifiable structures. The wall is a symbol of the struggle for national identity. 


Almost immediately on the heels of Yepar's entry came a collaborative installation called "Offworld" by Takni and Misio2. These two have worked together often in the past, but I think this may be the first entry by Misio2 at UWA. Takni is well known for remarkably complex scripted objects that often have an underlying whimsy and humor about them. Offworld has a train station in the UWA gallery that will rez a train (or perhaps a submarine or a surfboard) which takes you up to a platform. If you stay where you land you can watch a fascinating particle show. Move towards the center and a set of blocks appears that will rearrange themselves into lots of interesting shapes, similar to Yepar's idea, but with a more playful set of objects and executed in a very different scripting technique. 


As one of Takni's biggest fans, Misio2 has also submitted an individual entry that is a sort of homage to Takni. It is a large replica of a real life piece of jewelry made of silver, opal, pearl, and a diamond all depicting a scene with a planet, stars, and a rocket ship. It's called "Google Planet Takni."


Ronin1 Shippe had wonderful 2D entries in the recent Freedom Project show. For this show he gives us a sort of twisted stained-glass image of a lute player.

iSkye Silverweb is well known to us at UWA from previous shows. Her entry this time is about how political borders are an illusion and that the elements that make up the earth and its inhabitants are all the same.


Finally, we have a dramatic mesh sculpture by Mistero Hifeng. Of this piece Mistero says: "Sometimes exceeding the limits means to lose oneself. In the image of the man who dissolves into a thousand pieces, there is all the drama of loneliness and desperation of those who can not go back."
  
Entry deadline for Transcending Borders is October 31 and the show is open to all 3D artists. 



Tuesday, September 23, 2014

First MachinimUWA VII Submission: Sophia Yates' 'Transcending Borders'



Sophia Yates film featuring "These Suffocating Thoughts", a poem by Laura DeWinter is the first submission to the L$545,000++ MachinimUWA VII: Transcending Borders, the 7th UWA Short Animated Film Challenge. The 'Transcending Borders' theme was selected by Professor Ted Snell, Director of the Cultural Precinct, UWA and who inspired the very first of the UWA art challenges in 2009. This theme is in honour of the 'Transcending Borders' exhibition at UWA's Lawrence Wilson Art Gallery in 2014. CLOSING DATE FOR SUBMISSIONS IS 31st OCTOBER 2014.

You may interpret the theme as you see fit, however the average viewer would need to be able to appreciate how you fit this theme (alternatively, please indicate in the notes how it fits in the film notes on the web). Your machinima must be made specifically for this challenge, and this should be indicated in the opening credits 'For The University of Western Australia's MachinimUWA VII: Transcending Borders'. You do not have to film on the UWA sims, however this of course will be appreciated, and there is a Special UWA Prize which will be made available to a film which includes either Winthrop Clock Tower, The Somerville Auditorium or The Sunken Gardens.


ALSO, public viewing for TRANSCENDING BORDERS: The 5th UWA Grand 3D Art Challenge is now open (though the closing date for entries is the same as the Machinima - 31st October)

Special prizes are also offered for machinima that best portray one or a few of the artworks entered to TRANSCENDING BORDERS: The 5th UWA Grand 3D Art Challenge.

Do visit the UWA Challenge Gallery HERE to view the submissions so far