Theory of Everything - Or my grandma can crochet better than your grandma

A few weeks ago, artist and creator Gaynor Gritzi caught an article in The Times of London about Antony Garrett Lisi, a 39 year old surfer and physicist who has linked the Theory of Everything, or ToE, to a complex 248-dimensional shape known as E8.



Update: Gaynor had rezzed an E8 in Second Life, but it is no longer there. You might contact Gaynor directly for an opportunity to view this.

Photography in virtual worlds: More production elements than Real Life shoots

The work of photographers Arahan Claveau and Luna Zolnir - two gifted Not Possible IRL Flickrites - has been featured recently in Hamlet Au's New World Notes, the online zine that serves as a main artery and chronicle of just about every aspect of Second Life.

This has caused me to reflect on the additional complexities behind the creation of great photography in virtual worlds. While the best pics in real life also involve studio work or location scouting, model and prop selection, art direction, styling, and post production, other factors come into play when that shot is taken in a virtual environment.

Luna Zolnir is making her own animations, for instance. Another NPIRL Flickrite, ColeMarie Soleil, often uses particles, thereby introducing the special effects within the environment that is being photographed. Arahan Claveau is a pioneer in creating narrative photography in the metaverse, that doesn't depend on text or other aids to relate a story. He also brings several special effects inworld. All are now working within the Windlight First Look viewer whenever possible and appropriate, which enables them to specify the time of day, as well as some weather visuals.

In fact, since creating the Not Possible in Real Life Flickr groups: Not Possible in Real Life - Content Creation, Avatars - Not Possible in Real Life, and Situations Not Possible in Real Life, I've had the good fortune to discover several really exceptional photographers. One such artist is Stephen Venkman. His work has already graced the pages of this blog, and I have taken to actively tracking his creations. Yesterday, I happened upon this photograph and have been going back to look at it again and again. I believe Magritte himself would have enjoyed it.


"Floating with nothing but..." by S-Venkman © All rights reserved

I asked Stephen what was involved in producing this work.

Stephen Venkman: I had taken a bunch of shots while in a suspended animation of sorts (within a build called) "The Afterlife" (by NPIRLer Toran Cult)...and the first part of the experience was floating around in darkness while everyone joined you. All was black for me 'cept some sparkles of light... so when I pulled it into Photoshop, I removed the black backgrounds first. As soon as I had seen the series of shots, I knew I wanted them somehow all on one piece. I created a new file and dragged each one in scaling and sizing...added a cloud layer with some brushed and there you go... Oh, some lens flares, too.

Now THAT's a dress!

Eshi Otawara, founder and host of Open Art Critique, just created this lovely... I gotta get me one. *swoons*

Concept Art that's fun, or intellectual - you decide: Gazira Babeli's "Collateral Damage"

The day that code performer Gazira Babeli (rezzed March 31, 2006), joined the Not Possible IRL group, I became so excited that I informed my Real Life friends and family. It's just that no other content creator in Second Life has managed to encapsulate, illustrate and celebrate the core concept of our group better than Gaz. Plus, she's got one wicked sense of humor.

Gazira's "Collateral Damage" show at her Locusolus sim is simply the most sumptuously diabolical and hilarious venue in Second Life. If you haven't experienced it, then allow me to nudge you as politely but as firmly as is necessary: on your feet, go, go, go, get a move on right over there quick quick. You can thank me later :P Oh, and your experience will be greatly enhanced if you take a friend or two along. Really.

Until today, I had held back from revealing much about "Collateral Damage" other than to gently but enthusiastically urge you to go, largely because the element of surprise is a bonus... but alas, some people won't take a friendly hint. ;) Fact is, I am always astonished when I learn that someone hasn't been there.

Art critic and curator Domenico Quaranta has already done a brilliant job of analyzing the show, and numerous other fascinating write-ups exist, such as this one by Esther DeCuir, so I will limit myself to sharing a pop/superficial - though blissful - review, and here it is: Gazira amuses herself and you by taking liberties with your head and your avatar.

Earlier this week, I had the distinct pleasure of introducing three charming individuals to some elements of the show, on the pretext of snapping some pics for this very blog post...

There are two very tall towers near the sim's entry point marked with a plaque that reads: "Unbroken Eggs: Monument to Luciano Fabro, July 2007." Chance Abattoir and I watched as Jurin Juran walked between them.



Within seconds, the buildings collapsed atop Jurin.




This being a virtual environment, the buildings promptly reassembled themselves and Jurin rejoined us, along with SuezanneC Baskerville, who had just arrived.

SuezanneC got into the spirit of things right away, and began trampling the pizzas, which responded by melodically bouncing her off, all the while bleating riffs from that Neapolitan tune "O Sole Mio," and emitting generous clouds of particles.



Meanwhile, Jurin had been caught inside a can of Campbell's soup and was getting a peppy shake. Chance was mid-air, having disobeyed instructions that read "don't say new media," and being subsequently possessed by a mini-tornado that didn't let go until some precise words were uttered.



Then, SuezanneC and Jurin discovered some large slabs of concrete that simulate a rather vigorous earthquake when stepped on.



They proved to be brave souls and forged on. We all reconvened at a platform surrounded by poseballs, and hopped on. "Come together" - as it is called - would be putting what happened next, lightly. Each avatar is taken through a series of fun and silly animations separately, but all participating avatars are merged together.




There are several other remarkable pieces within the installation, but probably the most controversial is "Avatar on Canvas," where Gaz has set up three Francis Bacon paintings with chairs that - once used - deform the avatar. Most of us treat our avatars with the same degree of narcissism and reverence that we do our Real Life bodies, so participating in this exploit requires a bit of open-minded loosening up. Speaking for myself, I can't recommend this enough. No matter how many times I've done it, it invariably cracks me up all over again.





I heartily recommend jumping back on the "Come Together" platform for some after-merging, and suggest that your little group consider following that up with a shopping or dancing expedition. It's guaranteed to bring down the house, not to mention the distinct probability that you will never feel quite the same about your avatar again...



...and, I believe, that is exactly what Gazira set out to accomplish.

Ready? Teleport directly from here.

Many thanks to Jurin Juran, SuezanneC Baskerville and Chance Abattoir for being such good sports, as well as great fun and top-notch conversationalists all through this comical experience.

Second Life infomercials you actually *want* to see, by Ordinal Malaprop - Yea!

"Technologist, natural philosopher, mathematrix and occasional purchaser of shoes,"
Ordinal Malaprop, has taken marketing in the metaverse several steps up the "professional production" scale." In fact, she has created infomercials for her "Ordinal Galvanic Swordstick," and her "The Ordinal Automatic "Flick"-Knife" that just need to be seen by one and all. Never thought I'd see the day I'd love infomercials, but yea!

Here's one:


The Ordinal Galvanic Swordstick from Ordinal Malaprop on Vimeo.

Bizarre and very NPIRL ways to beef up traffic numbers?

Hobo King Orhalla Zander just TP'ed me to a poorly made, untextured prim skybox. Inside were 9 avatars in various states of Ruth, all members of the Blue Bay Beach Club and all apparently "manufactured" between October 10th and 13th of this year. All of the avatars were facing one direction and all were silent. None were "away." Creepy.



We were above Athena's Mall & Beach Club where, it was advertised alongside the sim name: "Mall Space for Rent."



Want to take a look for yourself? Teleport directly from here.



It was Orhalla who surmised - and I can't imagine that he's wrong about this - that these were traffic generators. What else could this be, and is this camping taken to new and ghastly heights? Traffic numbers for this parcel: 12,766.

Hmmm.

Second Life's CTO on his way out

Word has it through CNet News and Silicon Valley's Tech Gossip Rag, Valleywag, that Cory Ondrejka, Linden Lab's Chief Technology Officer, has been asked to leave. In fact, Linden Lab has confirmed that Ondrejka will be departing "in order to pursue new professional challenges." I'm not going to regurgitate the news (best you read the links), but can't help praying that this doesn't mean a serious period of instability on the grid.

Addendum: Best coverage I've found so far is Tateru Nino's publication of Cory Ondrejka's internal email, in Massively.

...and now we can only hope for good things that are possible in real life. Many NPIRLers admire and respect Cory, and are sad to see him go. Others are looking forward to a new approach. One thing is certain. Change is on the way.

Addendum II: Go here for Hamlet Au's coverage on New World Notes today.

No red noses here: Madcow Cosmos' sleigh and four skinny reindeer

Real Life architect and publisher KK Jewell allowed me to rez this whopping 1,600 prim wonder by Madcow Cosmos above the Christmas tree at her arcspace Island. Teleport directly from here. Thank you, KK!

Madcow - surely the greatest prim hog on the grid - is a constant source of joy in my Second Life, and I've come to look forward to anything this Real Life chef sends my way, despite the fact that I practically have to ask permission to rez his things even in a sandbox, given their prim load. Many thanks to Jurin Juran and her Blackwater Gallery for introducing me to this good-humored and clever artist.

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas...

Amalthea Blanc dropped me an LM for this unusual take on the season, created by Krius Misfit.



Teleport directly from here.

The Hall of Twisty Smears - Rezzed

One of the problems with being as prolific a builder as Juria Yoshikawa is finding homes for all these creations which are, for the most part, a bit large. After leaving her latest piece, the Hall of Twisty Smears, laying about in sandboxes until it was returned, Juria has finally given it a semi-permanent place at Memespelunk - teleport directly from here. Juria says, "Part architecture, part painterly swirlies, The Smears are in grande size proportions. I imagine a new kind of organic architecture that loops and twists like internal organs or prehistoric fossils growing one on another. But the material is pecular in its smeariness; animation in twisty pretzel fashion."

I like to view them in the Windlight Gelatto setting.




I also like this new ribbony thing that's swirling on the same sim.

Sneak preview: Great balls of fire at Cascade Rezzable

Foolish Frost is a gentleman, and a coder, and a builder and a strategist. He's been in Second Life since March of 2005, and is probably best known for building the humongous Leo Burnett tree, and as team leader for the creation of Toxic Rezzable. He's also very pleasant. He calls me "lass." ^.^



I hadn't spoken with Foolish, who now works full time for Rezzable Productions as technical advisor, for weeks, so I was especially happy to accept his TP offer this morning to see what's been keeping him busy. Seems he's been masterminding some rather spectacular special effects: blowing up volcanoes and touching off avalanches... and unlike Real Life cinema where the one-time production of such an event would cost a sizable portion of a film's budget and could only be produced and shot once, Foolish can - at will - make these things happen over and over again, at no extra cost and, I might add, to my delight.

Cascade Rezzable will be a rather unusual retail area where your shopping experience might be interrupted by volcanic eruptions. Now, any old Second Life traveler has seen his share of volcanoes, as well as pretty particle effects...



...but suddenly the volcanoes are belching fireballs that make a beeline for the snowy mountains just behind you...



The fireballs make impact...




... and the mountain sides begin to collapse before your eyes. Yeehaaa!




Asked to explain how the tricks were accomplished, Foolish said, "Ah, megaprims, sculpties, and a special rebuilt animation system that allows large-scale prim movement... all linked by way of regionsay."

Cascade is slated to open to the public by this weekend, and will carry items for the avatar.