New art works, and a new(ish) art sim in SL

I haven't been paying close attention to SL's art scene for a while. Chalk it up to feeling the SL art scene was in the doldrums, as I've written earlier, and being busy in RL. One interesting artist has appeared during the past year or so, FionaFei, known for importing Chinese inkbrush techniques into three dimensions. She has a work up at the Hannington Endowment for the Arts called "I Had a Dream, and You Were There," which I recommend. One reason to keep an eye on her is that she's done a full-sim work, Imposter, and not many artists have taken that challenge lately.

FionaFei, "I Had a Dream, and You Were There"

But the larger thing that slipped past me was the sim which hosted Imposter, called Sim Quarterly. Curated by Electric Monday, Sim Quarterly opened in July 2019 to provide a homestead "where SL creators and dreamers share their sim-wide, 3D installations" (to quote the notecard from the sim greeter). It is "quarterly" because Electric brings in a new artist every three months (a model similar to Split Screen's, except she has a whole homestead). I regret overlooking its entry into SL, because gaining a sim dedicated to large 3D installations is A Big Deal, in my view anyway. For the past several years the story has been the steady disappearance of such locations, culminating in the closure of LEA.

The current installation at the Sim Quarterly is JadeYu Fhang's Le Déraciné (The Uprooted). This work has three levels. At the landing point there's a small installation with a door through which you can TP to the second level, and from there walk or fly to the higher section on the side. That's all I'll say since I'm pretty busy these days, but go see it.

JadeYu Fhang's Le Déraciné

SLURL: http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/The%20Sim%20Quarterly/6/10/1404.

More blog posts on JadeYu Fhang and Krystali Rabeni at Split Screen

Catching up a little -- there have been two more blog posts about the works by JadeYu Fhang and Krystali Rabeni at Split Screen:


Kara Trapdoor

Diomita Maurer

My thanks to both!

Blog posts and machinima on JadeYu Fhang and Krystali Rabeni at Split Screen

Some posts have been published discussing the installations by JadeYu Fhang and Krystali Rabeni at Split Screen (in alpha order):

Inara Pey

Kate Bergdorf

Oema

Yoon

In addition, at least two machinima have been made of JadeYu's work. In Oema's, the camera slowly winds through much of JadeYu's installation, aiming to highlight its many sections and facets as a journey.




And Iono Allen brings his own artistic vision in his machinima:




My thanks to all!

Split Screen @ LEA hosts JadeYu Fhang and Krystali Rabeni

Opening on 12 Aug are two installations hosted by Split Screen at its LEA sim. JadeYu Fhang's EveryWhere and NoWhere occupies the ground level. It is an extensive and complex work consisting several scenes and settings. The world JadeYu has created is peopled mainly by women with elongated bodies and insect wings, some with bull-like horns as well. One woman presents another with a small tree; others gather at what might be a seance; a trio launch themselves into the air. There is also a horse and (female) centaur. But at the landing point, the women have no wings, and we hear a plaintive song-cry surrounded by a sonar-like ping. The land itself has been terraformed into curlicues. This installation rewards exploration, as there are many small scenes throughout.

EveryWhere and NoWhere by JadeYu Fhang
(click to enlarge)

Krystali Rabeni's The Games We Play concentrates on a single image: chess. But it is a sort of three-dimensional chess, with some pieces on the wall. And several pawns have sprouted wings and are flying as if to attack -- one wonders if they are actually the most powerful pieces in this game.

The Games We Play by Krystali Rabeni
(click to enlarge)

As they don't provide explanatory notecards, both artists allow the visitor to interpret the installations as they wish.

The installations will be open at LEA15 until the end of September.

SLURL: http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/LEA15/138/128/551