Kiss the Sky: Tipping point on the axis of a virtual world

2008 has already been a landmark year for art in virtual worlds. It is the year that Brooklyn is Watching gently dipped its toes in Second Life® and found itself nearly crushed by a multitude of artists and artwork. Babelswarm, the winner of the Australia Council for the Arts' Second Life arts residency, came to life. Blackthorn Hare got his Masters degree in Second Life sculpture. This year also marked the launch of Arthole, which I will write about soon, and the opening of the Kirsti Aho Museum, and one week ago, we celebrated the unveiling of our Garden, simply the largest collection - ever - of content creation that is not possible in Real Life.

Meanwhile, another show just debuted that is critical to our understanding of the unique possibilities in a 3D virtual medium, and the list of participants reads like a Who's Who of virtual abstract art. I welcome guest blogger Bjorlyn Loon, and her insightful piece on this collection.


by Bjorlyn Loon



DanCoyote Antonelli’s (aka DC Spensley) new exhibit, Kiss the Sky, is an historical document in recognition of a community of artists in Second Life. Like most of us, artists and critics are searching for new words and constructs to define their virtual experience. Says Antonelli: “Since virtual worlds are a change of venue – a drastic change of venue – the former critical language is not enough.”

Dancoyote Antonelli: "The people in this show are each like a Picasso, or like the abstract expressionists of our time. They have embraced virtual world conditions, and are representing an avant-garde within an avant-garde that is nearly incomprehensible in material-world art. Feel the history, we are living in it!

One of the reasons that Hyperformalism has not mainstreamed until now is that there are a lot of practitioners that are not communicating with each other. In Second Life Hyperformalism has found a home in that it is an indigenous art form. Hyperformal work has always existed uncomfortably in the material sphere.

While space in virtual worlds is a simulation, place can be real. In fact, art experiences are the only thing that can be real in both the virtual and material worlds at the same time.” Kiss the Sky is tiered in the air above New Media Consortium’s NMC Arts Lab (teleport directly from here), and visitors are encouraged to interact with the works, and to experience them on many levels, including sight, sound and play.

Not all of this work is brand spanking new: it is not intended to be. What is new about it is that it is all together. This is a survey, a critical milestone to mark this time in history and present the shared histories of these artists in one concentrated punch.”

In addition to work from DanCoyote Antonelli, Kiss the Sky artists include Chance Abattoir, Vlad Bjornson, nand Nerd, Selavy Oh, Adam Ramona, Nebulosus Severine, AngryBeth Shortbread, Sasun Steinbeck, Sabine Stonebender, Seifert Surface, elros Tuominen, Juria Yoshikawa, and i7o Zhu.

Antonelli has developed a new native architecture for experiencing this exhibit, which might otherwise be difficult to maneuver as a result of its massive scale. Strategically placed purple seats call up a menu where you can select from among the 35 works in the exhibit, and the seat will gently transport you to your choice. Says Antonelli, “What is important is that there is no remediated architecture here: Interface serves content. The seats take you to all the exhibits, near the sign that only opens when you are near enough to read. The signs and seats are in the same place in each exhibit, so once you get it, you have it.”

Hyperformalism is non-figurative abstraction in a hyper-medium, including abstract objects arranged in simulated space, navigable on a network, as well as expressions of reactive and interactive artwork behaviors and geometric or algorithmic pattern play in 2, 3, and 4 dimensions. Because Hyperformalist works are unique created entities that are not representational, viewer relationships are less fettered by pre-existing symbolic weight and the artworks encourage fascination with form and pure relationships. The virtual world provides the ability to liberate the work from scale constraints and provides a perfect context for this post-conceptualist movement.


Juria Yoshikawa’s creation embraces Kiss the Sky in sheer physical dimensions. "In all three of my works, as the name of the show Kiss the Sky suggested,” says Yoshikawa, “I tried to create forms to pull people in and draw them skyward. In the large piece Infinite Pixel Loop most of all, I was aiming at a reaction of immersive upward motion."


Conversely, the pulsating rock specatacle of i7o’s Zhu Name Unknown contrasts with the aerial setting of Kiss the Sky, suggesting a literal and conceptual grounding.


According to the artist, Adam Ramona’s works in Kiss The Sky “explore the audiovisual relationship between the avatar and virtual space. Sound and vision are created and modified dynamically by the avatar's movement through space, creating a real-time composition unique to that user and time.” Seen here: A Rose Heard At Dusk


Seifert Surface is directly concerned with the mathematics of 3D, which Antonelli describes as “one genre of hyperformalism.” For example, Surface’s Spore, created in 2006, “is based on a process that turns up in nature a lot: 'growing' new objects around some axis at an angle of 2pi/Phi from the previous one, where Phi is the golden ratio, (1+sqrt(5))/2.” Siefert’s Meandering Hypercube “is a projection of the hypercube from 4d to the 3d of Second Life, just as the 3d of Second Life projects to the 2d of a computer screen.”


Veteran artist Sabine Stonebender describes her KissTS – MoreAndLess as “Positive space vs. Negative space in an endless cycle,” and it is mesmerizing.


Of his Plant Deco installation, artist Vlad Bjornson says “The changing, geometric shapes of each piece are fractal and self-similar in nature, somewhat like the structure of Real Life plants. The colors of each piece were inspired by some of my favorite artists, borrowing color pallets from their works. Each piece changes to a unique configuration each time it is touched, with billions of possible combinations.”


AngryBeth Shortbread extends her Real Life art into Second Life with a strong emphasis on sound, play, and interactivity. Her Pusher-Tron is no exception.


Nand Nerd, who refers to himself as an… “Artist? I'm no artist. What would I know about art? I'm an Engineer, damnit,” has always been intrigued by Antonelli’s art. “The flexi-hedra started off as a whimsical use of the new flexible path feature,” says Nerd, “Once I'd seen the outcome I was hooked and developed a range of polyhedra to be given the same treatment.” Nerd’s Square Antiprism Tower at Kiss the Sky responds to touch in unexpected ways, which defy gravity.


Nebulosus Severine, who has been working in Second Life since 2005, produces works which she describes as “Chromotive [Chroma (color) + Emotive (drawing out or evoking emotion)].” Her Pulse Points (I, II, III) is a crystalline structure which surrounds the avatar in pulsating light.


Chance Abattoir is interested in interactivity, and brings skills in texturing, building, 3d modeling, and scripting to the artistic task. His 5.3.5(2) juxtaposes dissimilar shapes which evolve according to the angle of view, and change further, and more dramatically, upon touch. Chance elaborates, “It's not meant to convey anything other than self-reflexivity. Each part of the art refers to another part of the art.”


In the year and a half that elros Tuominen has been in Second Life, he says that he has “never stopped learning about building, scripting, textures... I feel like a child, playing with everything I find, and expressing myself freely.” Tuominen is a prolific artist, treating his friends to new poetry or sculpture every single day. For elros, Underconstruction City v.06 is a massive work, demonstrating his increasing mastery of the medium, and communicating his expanding reach towards impossibilities.


Sasun Steinbeck has been working on her Morphing Sculpture for years, perfecting it. It scintillates against a starry night sky or cloudless blue with equal impact. Like many of the works within Kiss the Sky, Steinbeck’s is configurable by the visitor, in this case via choices of texture.


Selavy Oh describes her Soft Structure as “part of a series of conceptual works exploring and utilizing inherent properties of the simulated world of Second Life. Motion of the structure is created by virtual wind, the color reflects cloud density, and the cloud-like fragility of the installation is emphasized by temporarily dispersing the elements upon avatar intrusion.”

In sum, for all their differences, the works of art in Kiss the Sky achieve Antonelli’s goal of creating a historical node. People will look back at this exhibition, with the experience of years, and see a tipping point, where, according to Antonelli, “Hyperformalists on Second Life have more in common with each other than we do with the material or conceptual art worlds.”

All photos by Bjorlyn Loon, with these exceptions: Overview: Antonelli, Infinite Pixel Loop: Yoshikawa, Morphing Sculpture: Steinbeck, A Rose Heard At Dusk: Ramona, Pulse Points (I, II, III): Severine, and Soft Sculpture: Oh.

During the intermission... some prose from Bjorlyn Loon

So, drats! Still cannot log in, but I did find this nugget in my in-box from Bjorlyn Loon. Thanks for making me smile, Bjorlyn!

Once upon a time, long, long ago, a Linden mistakenly named a 12 foot pine tree a 12 foot palm and placed it in everyone's Library. When planted, resident landscapers saw right away it was a pine, so the diligent among us renamed it "pine" in inventory and went right along planting it. In the last client update, the error was corrected, but rather than changing the name "palm" to "pine," they changed the tree itself from pine to palm, and suddenly palm trees appeared across the land. Where once we had pines named palms, now we have palms named pines, and a tropic breeze blows through the temperate woodlands.

The moral of this parable: If you try to palm off pines as palms, you'll leave people pining away for pines.

Dr. Ruth Ballard: Virtual worlds and their tools can be used for science

On January 27th of this year, the Not Possible in Real Life (NPIRL) group launched an initiative to identify and extend invitations to people we admire and whom we believe would derive pleasure in discovering the creation and communication tools available to them in the 3D virtual world known as Second Life. There is certainly a very appreciative - and growing - audience waiting for them. It is our hope that they will take us up on our shout out and make the pilgrimage to check it out. Today, I welcome this introduction to Dr. Ruth Ballard by guest blogger and NPIRLer Bjorlyn Loon.


by Bjorlyn Loon

When geneticist Ruth Ballard went on vacation to Africa, she had no idea she would come home with a DNA database as a souvenir. On a climb of Mount Kilimanjaro in 2001, Ballard found herself wondering whether the Tanzanian population had been adequately tested for DNA, so she took home samples from the native porters assisting on her journey.

Upon her return to the United States, Ballard contacted the Tanzanian government in Dar es Salaam to request permission to conduct more extensive studies of the many tribes in the nation. To her surprise, the government approved her application to begin testing the Maasai, but with a catch: officials asked that Ballard begin the process of mapping the country's entire population of more than 30 million people, and also that she train Tanzanians in the forensic techniques required to use the database effectively.


Dr. Ruth Ballard in the company of Maasais

While Americans tend to think of forensic genetics in terms of crime scene investigations, the focus in many nations is on establishing paternity. In areas where people transit between remote rural villages and the cities, children and spouses may be left behind. To obtain means of support for dependents, the establishment of a full map of genetic markers for a population and subsequent forensic DNA testing of individuals enables governments to identify a child's natural parents.

This humanitarian goal has provided a focus for Ruth's efforts. She returns to Africa during the summers on "saliva safaris" to collect DNA samples that reflect the great human genetic and cultural diversity of the subcontinent.

But the challenge of training African scientists has proved to be more difficult.

While Ballard has developed a forensic biology concentration for undergraduates at California State University Sacramento (CSUS) (where she serves as an Associate Professor for the Department of Biological Sciences), it is difficult to provide the same kind of experimental experience to people on another continent.

Fortunately, Ballard's efforts have coincided with a proliferation of forensic and genetic science opportunities in Second Life. The CSI:NY programs (teleport directly from here) as well as islands such as Genome (teleport directly from here) in the SciLands archipelago would seem to offer a ready-made training ground for Real Life scientists.


Photograph courtesy of CSUS

A true explorer, Professor Ballard seems like a natural to introduce to our virtual world, and involving her colleagues in Africa to Second Life would be an added joy.

Like artists, scientists are benefiting from the opportunity to use Second Life as a distance-spanning collaborative workspace and educational tool. Just a couple of notable examples:

* Dr. Bob Amme and Jeff Corbin of the Science School islands are constructing a model nuclear reactor to teach students from Denver University how to manage nuclear waste. Via a $200,000 grant from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, the Second Life installation will engage students in virtual nuclear experimentation, sans the real-life risks of radioactive contamination and terrorist exploitation.

* In February, NASA streamed their Next Generation Exploration Conference into Second Life. Over four days, Second Life residents literally sat at the table to offer ideas and expertise as an integral part of conference working groups. The program is designed to give a boost to potential lunar entrepreneurs in anticipation of setting foot on the moon in the coming decade.
But much of science is still in the dark about the value of virtual worlds. I hope that Professor Ballard will be the first of many scientists recruited by NPIRL.

You can hear Ruth Ballard's story on KXPR's Insight, the Sacramento National Public Radio affiliate, here.

Mono highlight: Size limit for scripts up'ed to 64K

Bjorlyn Loon just attended a Mentors-Only Linden Lab preview of Mono, the scripting alternative that is currently in beta, presented by Mia Linden and Periapse Linden. The most significant information that she picked up is this little nugget:

Periapse Linden: With Mono, we up'ed the size limit for scripts to be 64K, so... many LSL scripts that were in pieces in separate objects can now be vastly simplified and put in one object.

Other points made by Periapse include (these are direct quotes):

"Mono is an enhancement to the simulator, specifically that part of the simulator which runs scripts. Currently all your LSL scripts are run by a virtual machine, embedded in the simulator, known as LSL2.

Mono is an alternative virtual machine. It is open sourced, very fast, and very stable. About three years ago Babbage Linden had the idea of using Mono to run scripts in SL. Lots of obstacles had to be overcome. Plus, he had to write a compiler which would take the LSL language we all know and turn it into Mono bytecode.

Basically we're testing scripts side by side in Mono and LSL2. Since it's the same source code, they should behave exactly the same -- at least that's what we're trying to achieve. With Mono, though, comes some extra speed. On some LSL scripts it's only a percentage difference. But on math intensive scripts Mono is hundreds of times faster than LSL2.

I need to point out that we are talking only about a different virtual machine. This is the same LSL language you've been using all along. No new calls. So you can compare the script compiled to LSL2, with a version compiled to Mono side by side in the same place.

We know that there are many other bugs out there, we just couldn't find them, so we figured the best way was to hold an open beta program, and let residents test their own scripts to see if there are differences between LSL2 and Mono.

Mono beta started last week, and so far it's been a great success. In fact a resident found a crasher within minutes of the beta being open. I hadn't even had time to download the viewer! For a full write up on Mono please see the Mono wiki article. If you're curious about the bugs that have been discovered you can look at the JIRA meta issue for Mono: SVC-1276."

**Mono wiki can be read here.
**If you want to submit bugs, please link your issue to the SVC-1276 so that we can see it.
**Beta is running with one host, four regions.

Periapse continued, "We do have some fun long range plans that leverage Mono's ability as a general purpose VM. For example, we could create an interface that allows scripting SL using C#, or some other language, in addition to LSL. But that's for another day...

We are not changing LSL in any way. Our intention at this point is for parity. You can go to one of the beta regions on aditi and take one of your scripts and create a copy. Then you can compile the copy to Mono. By rezzing both the mono and LSL2 version you can actually see them run and compare performance and behavior. It's a simple UI -- basically just a checkbox on the script editor which says "Compile to Mono"

Some scripts need to do various forms of script to script messaging that shouldn't be necessary. They do so because the program is too big for the 16K limit so it gets broken up into pieces that then have to communicate. With Mono we up'ed the size limit for scripts to be 64K, so many LSL scripts that were in pieces in separate objects can now be vastly simplified and put in one object."

It is expected that a full transcript of the meeting will be posted on the Second Life blog. Thanks Bjorlyn!