Monday, February 28, 2011

MachinimUWA III: Anima Technica's 'The Egg'

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The Egg from Anima Technica on Vimeo.


Anima Technica's 'The Egg', a philosophical exploration of the nature of the afterlife, god and human kind.

Based on a story by Andy Weir, starring Richard Grove and Jorge Campos.

Music composition by Jesse Pringle "That Extreme" by Red Hook Ramblers used under Creative Commons

Entries to MachinimUWA III close on the 1st of May

Sunday, February 27, 2011

People's Choice Vote: February Round - UWA 3D Open Art Challenge

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The People's Choice Vote for the February Round of the UWA 3D Open Art Challenge is underway.

79 artworks in for February from the wonderful world of artists of Second Life.

See them here. Voting takes place directly at each artwork

Vote for as many entries as you like, on a scale of 1 to 3. Note that any vote is a positive vote. If you don't like something, don't vote for it. It's important that you look at all the works and to vote for all the pieces that truly speak to you. You are, of course, welcome to encourage your friends to come see the show and to vote for their favorite pieces. But please don't tell them to just come and vote for yours. It's about the art, not the artist!

Announcements & Party
6am slt Friday 4th March HERE

1 Aletta Woodford No idea...
2 Aneli Abeyante Connexions blanche
3 Anley Piers Dark Earth
4 Artfox Daviau Windy
5 artist Loon A mob
6 Asmita Duranjaya Connections
7 Asmita Duranjaya Sparkling New World
8 Betty Tureaud The lost girls from the Teahouse
9 Cat Boccaccio I don't count
10 ChapTer Kronfeld Sonic Space of Silence
11 Cherry Manga Through the Looking-Glass
12 Cherry Manga Alice's Adventures in Wonderland
13 Cheyenne Palisades Kaboom Teleport Rocket
14 Corcosman Voom Take Peppers, Add Wings
15 Daco Monday mano
16 Daco Monday libro metaverso
17 Eifachfilm Vacirca Colorfall Meditation
18 Fae Varriale Gaia dreams
19 Fae Varriale Steam-Angel
20 Faery Sola Unicorn
21 fiona Blaylock Private Dancer
22 fiona Blaylock Camille Claudel and Rodin
23 Fuschia Nightfire Dirty Fucking Rats
24 Garnet Trilling Thru the Eye's of a Glass Artist
25 Gingered Alsop The Seeds of Change
26 Gingered Alsop Delighted to See You
27 Gleman Jun Memories etched in the sand
28 Gore Suntzu Simurgh
29 Ichtyo Broome [S T R U C T U R E ]
30 Ichtyo Broome [ F O R M ]
31 Jesse Keyes Water wheel house
32 Jimmy Debruyere Seed Totem
33 kyra Roxan Choice
34 L1Aura Loire IceOpal
35 Lea Supermarine and Jarapanda Snook The Rhythm of Mood
36 Loup Erin Looking for Freedom
37 Loup Erin Kiss me, I'm so Horny
38 Luciella Lutrova Dance of Colours
39 Luko Enoch Stand & Deliver the Universe
40 Marcus Inkpen The Observatory
41 mcarp Mavendorf Cuckoo Clock
42 mcarp Mavendorf Clock 3
43 Menubar Memorial Psychedelic Sunshine Fractal
44 Miah Seetan Fadel Dradel
45 Miah Seetan Weather Box
46 Miah Seetan Cube of Confusion
47 Milly Sharple Trip the Light Fantastic
48 Miso Susanowa Ceci n'est pas un Magritte
49 Misprint Thursday Digital Glove
50 Miss Crumb My blinking heart
51 Moeuhane Sandalwood Sunburst - Your Energy Future
52 Nema Galicia Rebirth
53 Nino Vichan Shackling of Pregnant Incarcerated Women
54 patrich Merlin Fractals Dream
55 PatriciaAnne Daviau Tiny cats in bottles
56 PatriciaAnne Daviau Venice boat scene
57 Penumbra Carter IKEA Thought Police
58 Pol Jarvinen Infinite
59 quadrapop Lane White Osteo
60 quadrapop Lane Chaos Flower
61 Scarp Godenot Soundless Fire Vortex Exhales
62 Scottius Polke Jacks in the Box
63 Secret Rage The Transparancy of Thought
64 Secret Rage Choices
65 Sharni Azalee Butterfly Dreams
66 Sharni Azalee "Alone" Sorrow Tree
67 Silene Christen Freedom
68 Silene Christen Planned obsolence
69 soror Nishi Midnight Faerie Grove
70 Takni Miklos Candy necklace
71 Takni Miklos Toki pona
72 typote Beck The Minotaur of carton
73 Winter Ravenheart Abstract Falls
74 Winter Ravenheart Consequences of a Precious Balance
75 Xen Oller SL hamsa amulet
76 Xenophile Neurocam Chaotic Atomic
77 Ynot Fenua Rez Tryptych
78 Yooma Mayo Gecko On the box
79 zephyru Zapedzki Bettie Paige painted

MachinimUWA III: Ed Vespucciano's "The Marine Corps Does Not Want Robots"

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The Marine Corps Does Not Want Robots (SaveMe Oh party part II) from Ed Vespucciano on Vimeo.


Ed Vespucciano's "The Marine Corps Does Not Want Robots"

A journey into the intricate mind of SaveMe Oh and her inspired band of brothers and sisters while they create, from chaos, what can only be imagined as Third Life.

Entries to MachinimUWA III close on the 1st of May

Friday, February 25, 2011

Yesikita Coppola presents: January Winners of the UWA 3D Open Art Challenge

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Thanks to Yesikita Coppola (Official Machinimatographer - UWA 3D Open Art Challenge) we have once more a presentation of the winners of the January Round of the challenge.

UWA 3D Open Art Challenge - January 2011 Winners

1st Prize
CHOOSE YOUR BLOSSOM by Suzanne Graves

2nd Prize
SYMPHONY IN THE BARREL OF A GUN by Arrow Inglewood

3rd Prize
STRANGE PLANT...UGLYNESS & BEAUTY by Claudia222 Jewel

3rd Prize
PLANET CENSORED by Anley Piers

Best Non-Scripted
DAUGHTER OF THE WIND by Fae Varriale

Curator's Choice Award
FLUCHTPUNKTE by Harter Fall

S&S Gallery Prize
TELEVISION RULES THE NATION by Loup Erin

Pirats Prize
SURVEILLANCE by Nino Vichan

Nordan Art Prize
SYMPHONY IN THE BARREL OF A GUN by Arrow Inglewood

BOSL Prize
XMAS DAISY TREE by soror Nishi

Show & Tell @ Avaria Prize
STRANGE PLANT...UGLYNESS & BEAUTY by Claudia222 Jewel

Odyssey Prize
HARPY OF GLUTTONY by Cherry Manga

Workhouse & Art Place d-o-o-b Prize
SHIVERING ROCK by Moeuhane Sandalwood

CARP Prize
CHOOSE YOUR BLOSSOM by Suzanne Graves
X-RAY by Betty Tureaud

UTSA Prize
ANGELOVE by Fiona Blaylock

SL Art Prize
CHROMA (LOOM) by Oberon Onmura

PEOPLE'S CHOICE AWARD,
STRANGE PLANT...UGLYNESS & BEAUTY, also by Claudia222 Jewel
SERPENT CHAIR VEHICLE by Claudia222 Jewel

MACHINIMA
Filmed and Edited by Yesikita Coppola

SPECIAL THANKS TO:
Claudia222 Jewel
ColeMarie Soleil
Suzanne Graves

Music:
Licensed under Creative Commons

- Black Rainbow By Pitx (feat. ERH, acclivity)
- Recommencer BY DoKashiteru

MachinimUWA III: YT Recreant's 'Straight to the Light'

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'Straight to the Light', YT Recreant's journey into the light!

Entries to MachinimUWA III close on the 1st of May

Wednesday, February 23, 2011

MachinimUWA III: Ed Vespucciano's 'Peyote, It Was Sweet'

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PEYOTE IT WAS SWEET from Ed Vespucciano on Vimeo.


In Ed Vespucciano's 'Peyote, It Was Sweet', Leonard Crow Dog, Sicangu Lakota medicine man and spiritual leader, takes a virtual journey to bring us his message of the peyote road and the long standing cultural oppression of his people.

Entries to MachinimUWA III close on the 1st of May

MachinimUWA III: Pia Klaar's 'The Red Shoes'

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Pia Klaar's 'The Red Shoes' is a story about a girl's journey to find her dream; a journey that many take. It is also about the difficulties that one may have in order to achieve that dream.

It is inspired by the Hans Christian Andersen fairy tale "The Red Shoes" , in which a girl could not stop dancing in her enchanted red shoes. But it is also inspired by the song "The Red Shoes" by Kate Bush and the 1948 film of the same name.

Entries to MachinimUWA III close on the 1st of May

MachinimUWA III: Kobuk Farshore's 'Requiem'

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Kobuk Farshore's entry to MachinimUWA III, REQUIEM. A journey of love, jealousy and the death of things thought immortal.

A thrilling journey created by a new Machinimatographer!

Monday, February 21, 2011

MachinimUWA III: Ginger Alsop's 'The Clock Tower'

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The 3rd entry to MachinimUWA III: Journeys takes one on a journey that does not travel very far physically, but does travel far through the sands of time across generations of people who have graduated at Winthrop Hall / Clocktower.
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Friday, February 18, 2011

100 Treasures From UWA

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A book of 100 Treasures of UWA has been released as part of celebrating 100 years since the act of parliament that caused the creation of UWA was signed in 1911. The 100 treasures were selected by the Centenary Planning Committee Chaired by Dr Sue Boyd. Along with the book, the 100 treasures are all up on the web as well. This post will display scans from the book as well as provide direct links to the relevant sections online.



100 Treasures from UWA Book Cover

What is amazing and thrilling to those involved in the UWA Second Life presence is that 'UWA in Second Life' has been selected as one of the 100 treasures! The feeling cannot be described. How the presence that was nothing before the 1st of June 2009 is now one of the 100 treasures spanning a century of history at UWA!



The UWA Second Life Presence

Depicted in the photo is Galea Yates with the image being the main one used for the original UWA Machinima Challenge which spectacularly broke down the barriers between 'Real Life' and 'Second Life' at UWA.

While the overall UWA presence is listed, another exciting development is that 11 of the 100 UWA treasures listed can actually be found at UWA in Second Life.



The Whitfeld Memorial Seat and the Sunken Gardens
The Whitfeld Memorial Seat (#8) and the Sunken Gardens (#9) are seen above. The Second Life (SL) version of the seat was created by quadrapop Lane, original founding curator of Art at UWA (SL). Meanwhile, the Sunken Gardens in SL was amazingly put together by UWA graduate, Minh Tran as the first thing she ever built in the virtual world, under the tutelage of Gryff Richard.

The Rose Window (Winthrop Building)
The Rose Window (#35) modelled on a window from the Basilica of Saint Francis of Asisi in Italy, can be seen here at the UWA SL presence. This was created by co-founder of the UWA presence, Dr Chris Thorne (SL: Dragonmage Bogan) with images taken and enhanced by UWA Computer Science graduate, Wong Tzu Yen.
The Reid Library Walkway
The Reid Library Walkway (#66), while not fully reconstructed in SL, was the inspiration used by quadrapop Lane, UWA Arts Alumni, in creating the main landing point for the UWA presence in Second Life. The sounds you hear at the location, replicate the songs of birds you would hear at the physical site.
Peacocks @ UWA
I believe the Peacocks at UWA (#22) was the most popular response when UWA staff were asked to provide suggestions for consideration by the committee in the selection of the 100 works. UWA's Second Life peacocks were created and donated to the UWA presence by the magical Ninka Darkstone. There is also a white peacock at UWA, which the author has not seen anywhere else in his lifetime.
Mosaic Marble Floor @ Winthrop
The Mosaic Marble Floor (#41) in the foyer of Winthrop Hall was built by Italian stonemasons, the De Marco brothers in the 1930's. Dr Chris Thorne recreated the Second Life space.
The Moreton Bay Fig
The Moreton Bay Fig (#68) at UWA is the authors favourite tree in all the world, and I desperately wanted this to be part of the Second Life presence. And because of this, we have not one, but 2 versions of this grand piece of nature created by two stalwarts of the UWA Challenges. The first by Nyx Breen multi-award winner and many time champion of the UWA Flagship Challenges, the second version by Machinima-maker extraordinnaire, Bradley Curnow (SL: Bradley Dorchester), current reigning champion of the Machinima challenges. Both stepping out of their comfort zones in recreating the Moreton Bay Fig.
Rodney Alsop Memorial Seat & Reflection Pond
The amazing Reflection Pond (#56) in front of the Rodney Alsop Memorial Seat is a favourite haunt of staff and students at UWA, filled with ducklings in the spring, and birds throughout the year, the serenity created by the reflection of Winthrop Hall is unmatched. Recreated in Second Life by quadrapop Lane, this is the start location normally used by Jay Jay Jegathesan, Manager of the School of Physics, when conducting tours of the SL presence.
Winthrop Clock Tower & Balconette
The Winthrop Clock Tower (#38) was the inspiration for the founding of the UWA Second Life presence, the tower, the flora and the fauna. Graduation ceremonies, exams and enrollments are all held inside. We are grateful to Dr Chris Thorne and Dusty Canning for recreating the maginificence that is Winthrop Clock Tower in Second Life.
The Business School
The UWA Business School (#63) building is modern and innovative and creatively uses copper, steel, aluminium, terracotta and sandstone in its design, and evokes themes of the Kimberly, the Pilbaraa, the Goldfields and the Wheatbelt, all preides of Western Australia. Australian architect, Lilli Field, recreated this magnificent architectural structure in Second Life so that it can be used by students of the School of Business under the tutelage of Professor Wade Halvorson.
A listing of some of the 100 works (#58 - UWA Second Life)
The above is an image listing some of the 100 treasures. All 100, can be seen here. I am blown away that UWA in Second Life is part of this!

Jay Jay Jegathesan, Manager, School of Physics

Thursday, February 17, 2011

MachinimUWA III: Walk to Eleal - Myth Guyot & Lakshmi Giha

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The 2nd entry to the L$530,000 MachinimUWA III: Journeys (closing date 1st May).

Walk to Elea! [UWA_Version 2011] from 431art on Vimeo.



Myth Guyot & Lakshmi Giha with a composition that rival's current champion, Laurina Hawks offering from MachinimUWA II (in length!)

Tuesday, February 15, 2011

Dialogues With Landscapes - Terra(socio)sonica: A Crossover Project

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At 6pm on the 15th of February 2011 (West Australian Time), Dialogues With Landscapes will be launched, running through the 6th of March 2011 in conjunction with the Perth International Arts Festival, and under the auspices of the Cultural Precinct at UWA, led by Professor Ted Snell. This is to commemorate The University of Western Australia's centenary, with seven artists commissioned to create immersive real and virtual environments across the campus – incorporating sound, sculpture, installation and performance. Julian Stadon's (SL: Julez Rickenbacker) 'Terra(socio)sonica' waves the flag for virtual worlds with his creation that crosses the great divide between the physical and virtual realms.




Cultural Precinct Director and Chair of the Visual Arts Board of the Australia Council, Professor Ted Snell said, "Its an exciting blurring of the boundaries between real life and second life and it will engage audiences attending the Sommerville Auditorium in a second life experience that will rival their first world experience."

Alongside the RL experience, Jay Jay Jegathesan, Manager of the School of Physics, UWA will assist newcomers who register their interest to experience the Second Life portion if this artwork.

Synopsis of Terra(socio)sonica
Terra(socio)sonica explores the notion of unspoken ‘silent dialogues’ under a paradigm of social engagement, through individuals and large clusters of people producing amplified sounds and shadows, based on their oscillating movements within a defined social landscape.

This work uses real-time tracking technologies with a unique pipeline application to create a mixed reality soundscape, that is mediated through interactions between the viewer, the environment and other participants within a hypersurfaced mixed reality feedback loop. As visitors negotiate a traditional public environment: the entrance and surround to the Somerville Auditorium, data regarding their movements and interaction with others present is gathered and translated into sonic outputs, both in the physical and in the virtual. In the physical the output will be present via stereo speakers installed in the space and in the virtual, a three dimensional representation will shadow and echo sonic and visible traces of the real time dialogues that occur, into UWA's Second Life Environment.

The work is inspired by Deleuzian notions of deterritorialisation and reterritorialisation, with particular regards to second level cybernetic feedback systems (within the context of mixed reality social interaction). The work also investigates the relationship between traditional (postcolonial) socio-technic hierarchies, and those developing in current evolving cybercities. This is an attempt to explore Bernard Steigler's historicisation of technical objects and western philosophy in a way that embraces Deleuze's translation of Bergsonism, particularly regarding intuition as method.

Sunday, February 13, 2011

The UWA Pavilion Project and Documentary featuring UWA SL Co-Founder

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Original SL version by Mrs Brandi, based on plans

The University of Western Australia's inaugural Pavilion Project asked graduate architects and early career designers to create an exciting and original structure. It had to be a fusion of art and architecture and employ green technologies and principles to provide economical and environmentally friendly emergency shelter for remote areas and communities at times of disaster or distress(note this was not an SL project).


Gumby Roffo creation, based on actual & Mrs Brandi designs

The independent judging panel - UWA Winthrop Professor Geoffrey London, Singapore-based architect Richard Hassell, Melbourne-based architects Sean Godsell and Peter Corrigan, and UWA graduate and Sydney-based architect Abbie Galvin – selected Elisa Mansutti & Luca Pavarin’s design from the 76 submissions from 24 countries.

The real deal @ UWA

They won the UWA Convocation Prize of US$10,000 and a mentorship with architectural firm Cox Howlett and Bailey Woodland.

Beyond the winning submission, two projects were highly commended: a team of Perth-based UWA graduate architects, including Ken Chun Kit Yeung, Jack Sze-Ho Choi, Tor Johnny Dahl and Vanessa Chiau Wei Chong was commended for its ‘plan blue' design; as was an innovative ‘dandelion shelter' design from Portland, Oregon-based Swedish architect Anders Gustafsson, a graduate of Lund University.

The winning design will be erected in Whitfeld Court at the University and launched on the 14 February as part of the University’s anniversary celebrations.

In the meantime, Evgeni Sergeev (SL: Mrs Brandi) who invented the Sketchlife method of creating objects within Google Sketchup and transferring it into Second Life used the method to bring a model of this onto Whitefield Court within Second Life (as per photo above). As such for the anniversary celebrations, the winning design will be standing on Whitefield Court both in real life and Second Life!

Click here for full information on the Pavilion Project.


In other news, Honourary School of Physics Research Fellow Dr Chris Thorne (SL: Dragonmage Bogan, co-founder of the UWA Second Life presence along with Jay Jay Jegathesan / Zifanwe)is featured in a documentary on the iinet channel. It shows a bit of the history of the development of virtual worlds at UWA including the Google earth project and shows snippets of Bradley Dorchester's prize winning effort from the original UWA Machinima Challenge. Fast forward to around 8:35 onwards.

http://freezone.iinet.net.au/channels/freezone/iinet/geek-speak?player=video/3775

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First Submission to MachinimUWA III: Journeys - Anri Emerald

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We are please to announce that Anri Emerald's "The journey of life and death, Arsenal inc. Desert environment" is the first submission to MachinimUWA III: Journeys.

Do click the link to see the challenge details. Closing date is 1st May 2011

Thursday, February 10, 2011

FreeWee's Thoughts on the January Round

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Some thoughts by FreeWee Ling, Curator of the UWA 3D Open Art Challenge, on her blog as to a selection of works from the January Round.

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Sunday, February 6, 2011

SUZANNE STARES DOWN THE BARREL OF A GUN - JANUARY WINNERS OF THE UWA 3D OPEN ART CHALLENGE

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Suzanne Graves' 'Choose Your Blossom'

'Choose Your Blossom', a work exhibiting a mesmerising array of stylized blooms has won Suzanne Graves 1st prize (L$10,000) for the January round of the UWA 3D Open Art Challenge. Arrow Inglewood's poetic, 'Symphony in the Barrel of a Gun' took 2nd Prize as well as the Nordan Art Prize. There was a tie for 3rd between Anley Piers 'Planet Censored' and 'Strange Plant...Uglyness & Beauty' by Claudia Jewel who created a record by taking home an unprecedented 4 prizes on the day, winning both People's Choice Awards and the Show & Tell @ Avaria Prize as well.

Arrow Inglewood's Symphony in the Barrel of a Gun

Suzanne who also won the CARP Prize (joint with Betty Tureaud's X-Ray) said, "I am really happy, don't know what to say. I did not expect this work to win the 1st prize. It's a variation of something I have been working for months. This work is built from simple geometric rules, and I have been fascinated by the results. I am really happy that others appreciate it too."

One of Claudia222 Jewell's winning works

Claudia who was exhibiting for the first time anywhere, and who took home a lion's share was overwhelmed, "Thank you and all of you very much. This has been maybe the most exiting 2 weeks for me in Second Life ever. How little I knew when I came here to see this, and now 2 weeks later .. so much has happened to me .. meeting all these people and getting offered exposition places and making great new friends. Never before was I able to find my name in Google. This experience gives me wings to bring me to higher planes!"

Nino Vichan, first time entrant to the UWA Challenges and winner of the Pirats Prize said after receiving his award for his work 'Surveilance' said, "Art is the air that our souls breathe, community is the life blood of mankind, artistic communites like this one are essential to the well being of our collective consciousness", while veteran soror Nishi who took home the BOSL prize shared, ""Well, I knew it was a good tree, but with so many great entries it was a pleasant surprise to win something."

Nino Vichan's 'Surveillance'

As mentioned, 'Symphony in the Barrel of a Gun' also took home the Nordan Art Prize, and the panel commented, ""Arrow Inglewood's work consists of a large gun, which one can enter. On the tip of the gun is smoke and a sheer white flag on a pole moving in the wind with songtitles written on it speaking of shooting, murder, including Emily Wells' "Symphony in the Barrel of a Gun". Once one has stepped inside the barrell of the gun, large bullets are falling in one's way. At the end of the barrell is the image of a man, a woman, a goat and a picket fence. The man is sitting on a gun. Entering and standing in the barrel is an experience of emptiness. At the end of the barrel, standing in front of the image, there is a sense of having arrived at the light at the end of the tunnel, perhaps the experience of the fulfillment of a wish. Is it a death wish? The viewer is left with this sense of ambiguity, with a dilemma that is unresolved. Arrow’s piece stands out to the jury of Nordan Art because we feel that he succeeds in presenting work that shows great craftsmanship and thought provoking content."

74 entries were received for the January round of this Challenge wchich represents a grand collaboration between major art houses and groups in Second Life. These include The University of Texas San Antonio (UTSA) led by Dr Carmen Fies, SL Art, led by Gleman Jun & Sunset Quinnel, CARP led by Josina Burgess & Velazquez Bonetto, Pirats Art Network led by Merlina Rokocoko & Newbab Zsigmond, Odyssey led by Fau Ferdinand & Lizsolo Mathilde, Show & Tell @ Avaria led by Florenze Kerensky & Barney Boomslang, BOSL led by Frolic Mills & Giela Delpaso, Nordan Art led by Flora Nordenskiold and Apmel Goosson & UWA with Professor Ted Snell, Chair of the Visual Arts Board of the Australia Council as Chair of the UWA judging panel.

The works were expertly marshalled by curator, FreeWee Ling, who selected FLUCHTPUNKTE by Harter Fall for the Curator's Choice Award. "Harter is interested in exploring the peculiarities of this land without shadows -- a 3D space on a flat screen that distorts perspective and confounds scale. When first confronted, it is impossible to determine how large or how far away his piece is. An intriguing illusion that exploits the limitations of the medium."

In exciting developments over the month of January, 3 new groups joined the fold, offering 2 additional prizes. The S&S Gallery of Fine Art led by TheDove Rhode, with The Workhouse Gallery led by Astarte Haalan joining forces with Art Place d-oo-b led by Eifachfilm Vacirca to collaborate in offering an award. And in a stunning finale to the announcements of the January round winners on the 6th of February, a new monthly L$5,000 award, the Tornado Gallery Prize was offered by Taralyn Gravois moments before the announcement of the 1st Prize winner.

Speaking on behalf of the panel when awarding the panel when awarding the prize, Eifachfilm Vacirca, leader of Art Place d-o-o-b (and DJ extraordinnaire), said "Moeuhane Sandalwood has created a fresh and unique sculpture titled "Shivering Rock." It depicts a large boulder undulating slowly, as if from the cold or from some mysterious interior force. The concept has humor, originality and a certain sense of daring and self-assurance. There is also a tangible uneasiness to it, a sort of unsettling sense of the ominous, like something that just shouldn't be happening. The execution is basic but adequate. It definitely isn't slick or flashy, but it is effective in its ability to captivate and engage the viewer. It is almost monumental in its subtlety, and deceptively simple in appearance. For these reasons, the Art Place and the Workhouse Gallery are please to recommend it for the award."

The third month of this year long L$1,000,000 challenge, saw an expansion of the countries represented in the various UWA events, spanning 6 of the 7 continents of the world. Artists, Builders & Machinimatographers from across the globe are represented including Russia, Venezuela, Belgium, Mexico, Wales, Canada, the USA, the UK, Uruguay, Scotland,England, Spain, Switzerland, Italy, France, Brazil, Argentina, Chile, Denmark, Holland, Ireland, Portugal, Austria, Cuba, Serbia, Tunisia, Germany, Japan, New Zealand and Australia.

Other winners include CHROMA (LOOM) by Oberon Onmura (SL Art Prize), ANGELOVE by Fiona Blaylock (UTSA Prize), HARPY OF GLUTTONY by Cherry Manga (Odyssey Prize), TELEVISION RULES THE NATION by Loup Erin (S&S Gallery OFA Prize) and DAUGHTER OF THE WIND by Fae Varriale (Best Non-Scripted Artwork Prize).

Numerous Machinima were inspired by the artworks across the December and January rounds. We had Pia Klaar interpreting the December round as well as Yesikita Coppola's official machinima of the December round winners

Asmodea Damiano was inspired by Ginger Alsop's, January work, Liquidity, to create a machinima, with Ginger Alsop herself putting the finishing touches with her much anticipated machinima of her personal favourites that have become somewhat of a tradition for the new challenge:

The month of January also saw a number of media reports in various places relating to the UWA SIMS and activities especially across arts and Education. First in the Artists's Chronicle, with the cover page, editorial and lead story referencing the UWA 3D Open Art Challenge and also in the Science Network of Western Australia.

On the broadcast media front, Honourary School of Physics Research Fellow Dr Chris Thorne (SL: Dragonmage Bogan, co-founder of the UWA Second Life presence) is featured in a documentary. It shows a bit of the history of the development of virtual worlds at UWA including the Google earth project and shows snippets of Bradley Dorchester's prize winning effort from the original UWA Machinima Challenge (Watch from 8:35 onwards).

Also at the fore is the UWA Pavilion Project (an RL Project) which asked graduate architects and early career designers to create an exciting and original structure. It had to be a fusion of art and architecture and employ green technologies and principles to provide economical and environmentally friendly emergency shelter for remote areas and communities at times of disaster or distress. Young Italian architects, Elisa Mansutti & Luca Pavarin’s design was judged the winner from the 76 submissions from 24 countries.

The winning design will be erected in Whitfeld Court at the University of Western Australia and launched on the 14 February 2011 as part of the University’s centenary celebrations. In the meantime, Evgeni Sergeev (SL: Mrs Brandi) who invented the Sketchlife method of creating objects within Google Sketchup and transferring it into Second Life, used the method to bring a model of this onto Whitefield Court within Second Life. For the centenary celebrations, the winning design will be standing on Whitefield Court both in real life and Second Life!

The other major announcement, was the launch of MachinimUWA III: Journeys, with more than a half million Linden prize pool. Organized by White Lebed, Laurina Hawks and Jayjay Zifanwe, what the actual journey is in itself, will be left to the Machinimatographer. A journey through Second Life. A journey of self discovery. A journey within. A journey from SL too RL, or vice-versa. A journey through space, through time, a journey of hope, a journey of despair. One's own journey, or a journey by someone else seen through the eyes of the machinimatographer! The deadline for this is the 1st of May 2011. Full detaills linked on the blog, along with the Eliza Wierwight created official poster.

Finally, UWA's full sim art series moves to Month 2, with Blue Tsuki has taking over the UWA Virlantis for all of February from Betty Tureaud. Blue has created an amazing installation called 'Vessel', terraforming the land, and changing the skyscape! Click this link teleport to the start point of the installation.

The February round of the UWA 3D Open Art Challenge is officially open for receiving. Artwork entry receiver is located here.

UWA 3D OPEN ART CHALLENGE - January Winners

PEOPLE'S CHOICE AWARD, 2nd Prize (L$1,000) :
SERPENT CHAIR VEHICLE by Claudia222 Jewel
PEOPLE'S CHOICE AWARD, 1st Prize (L$2,500):
STRANGE PLANT...UGLYNESS & BEAUTY, also by Claudia222 Jewel
SL Art Prize (L$5,000):
CHROMA (LOOM) by Oberon Onmura
UTSA Prize (L$5,000):
ANGELOVE by Fiona Blaylock
CARP Prize - 2 Joint 1st Prizes (L$2,500 each):
CHOOSE YOUR BLOSSOM by Suzanne Graves
and
X-RAY by Betty Tureaud
Workhouse & Art Place d-o-o-b Prize (L$5,000):
SHIVERING ROCK by Moeuhane Sandalwood
Odyssey Prize (L$5,000) :
HARPY OF GLUTTONY by Cherry Manga
Show & Tell @ Avaria Prize (L$5,000):
STRANGE PLANT...UGLYNESS & BEAUTY by Claudia222 Jewel
BOSL Prize (L$5,000):
XMAS DAISY TREE by soror Nishi
Nordan Art Prize (L$5,000):
SYMPHONY IN THE BARREL OF A GUN by Arrow Inglewood
Pirats Prize: (L$5,000):
SURVEILLANCE by Nino Vichan
S&S Gallery Prize (L$5,000):
TELEVISION RULES THE NATION by Loup Erin
Curator's Choice Award (L$5,000):
FLUCHTPUNKTE by Harter Fall
Best Non-Scripted ($L5,000):
DAUGHTER OF THE WIND by Fae Varriale
3rd Prize (Joint $L2,5000):
PLANET CENSORED by Anley Piers
3rd Prize (Joint $L2,5000):
STRANGE PLANT...UGLYNESS & BEAUTY by Claudia222 Jewel
2nd Prize (L$7,500):
SYMPHONY IN THE BARREL OF A GUN by Arrow Inglewood
1st Prize (L$10,000):
CHOOSE YOUR BLOSSOM by Suzanne Graves

UWA FULL SIM Art Series @ the UWA Virtlantis SIM presents Blue Tsuki's "Vessel"

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Blue Tsuki's "Vessel" begins with a concentric circular landform of unknown time and process bearing ancient witness to a monumental floating vessel of circular and spiral motifs. A giant artifact, the cavernous vessel moves through 4 levels revealing views, mysteries and memories, culminating in a solitary balancing act. Vessel incorporates forms and motifs from Blue Tsuki's 2D prints: circular forms and visions annotate a central figure, precarious at the nexus. Blue's work often incorporates a dream inspired surreality that courts the collective subconscious.



Click Here to Teleport to start location

Blue Tsuki is both a Second Life artist/ builder and a RL fine artist. He has worked for many years in a variety of mediums. Trained as a painter and print-maker he has a history of experimentation and unique process art-making. He has shown paper pulp paintings, mixed media sculpture installations, unique process photography, interactive electronic music sculpture and traditional graphite drawings. Blue has worked with computers in one form or another for 20 years with a concentration on computer graphics. For the past several years he has focused on high resolution archival digital prints as well as the emerging art forms of virtual worlds.



A true epic by a master craftsman. The site is ppen now till Midnight on the last day of February!

While the SIM is officially open, Blue will organize a little event at the site in a week or so.

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Sayumi's lone comment for January entries


My comments on the January entries have been inhibited by the demands of life in the first world, which have become pressing and unavoidable - not all bad, though I am a perfectionist so it means that, as I don't like to present a mediocre post I've chosen to present none. I would like to acknowledge and thank Jayjay Zifanwe, Yesikita Coppola and Ginger Alsop for their words of encouragement and perspective on what we do here in Second Life. Thank you also, again, to those artists who have contacted me personally - some day I hope to meet some of you and see your wonderful personal galleries and collections, of which I hear snippets from time to time. I'm not doing anything very deep when I do manage to mooch into our second life at present, spending time with friends and, sadly, sometimes seeking hedonism for its own sake. I am usually drained of energy and even clear thought is not often part of my experience when I do manage to slip in-world, and depth of thinking and even the ability to appreciate emotionally is largely absent. Maybe this will improve with time.


However, one night last week Jayjay did draw my attention to one of the January works which he thought I would find interesting, and I caught my limo, as it turned out, right into the centre of this huge piece. Instantly I was surrounded by colour and movement, and I realize on reflection that I was actually privileged to be one of the few who will approach this work in this unique manner - from the inside out, as it were. As I stood there taking in the deluge of visual sensations, I had no concept of where I was, what the whole work looked like from outside. My initial impression from some of the apparently living textures was that I was inside a living organism, and standing on the 'floor' it seemed almost animal-like in appearance. Was I, like the biblical character Jonah, inside the belly of some creature? The lack of stomach secretions suggested that the beast hadn't eaten for a while, so was I about to face a torrent of acid to turn me into a nutritious morsel? Then I noticed an emanation of beautiful bubbles floating above me, and my perception started to change... and I shifted my gaze upward, and following my eyes I started to levitate, quickly drawing level with vast, delicious flowers sprouting from the surface of the mass of tissue I had first taken for stomach lining. My thinking whirled and reorientated, accepting that the organism, for such I am still convinced it is, was at least partly vegetable... though the sense of fleshy tissue remained behind the flowers. I thought momentarily of the 'triffids', malevolent plants from the imagination of another era, but this work portrays no aggression or destruction, but rather a sense of benign peace and being enclosed in a cocoon of voluptuous living wonder. As I allowed my focus to move upward and outward, I discovered that indeed I was inside a beautiful bubble which seemed to throb with the energy of the life within it, and I was left to contemplate what manner of creature it was with which I had experienced such a close encounter. Claudia222 Jewell, thankyou for the engulfing experience of your Strange Plant, for such I discovered it to be after I had enjoyed it.

Claudia222 Jewell - Strange Plant

I had hoped also to write on Ginger Alsop's two works, and indeed I took photographs to support that intent, but my time is already gone and I must turn my attention again to my first world demands. The other works I have not even seen this month, and I know, from past experience, that I am the poorer for it; but such are the threads of our lives sometimes which bind us in our bodies and, most especially, in our minds, that there is so much that must inevitably pass us by.

Friday, February 4, 2011

MachinimUWA III: Journeys - It Begins!! (L$530,000 Prize Pool)

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MachinUWA III: Journeys (3rd UWA Machinima Challenge - 2011)

We are happy to announce the 3rd Machinima Challenge put forth by the University of Western Australia (UWA). The theme is simply 'Journeys'. We hope you are inspired by this to create many wondrous works as you have been through the years!

PRIZE POOL: $L530,000 (at least)
1st Prize $L100,000
2nd Prize $L70,000
3rd Prize $L50,000
+ L$310,000 in other prizes

DEADLINE: Submissions are open between NOW (Feb 2011) till 1st May 2011

THEME : The theme is 'Journeys'. What the journey is, will be left to the Machinimatographer. A journey through Second Life. A journey of self discovery. A journey within. A journey from SL too RL, or vice-versa. A journey through space, through time, a journey of hope, a journey of despair. Your own journey, or a journey by someone else seen through your eyes... or... through Second Life in 80 Days, whatever you can imagine.

MAJOR RULE: The most important rule is that the journey must either start or end at this location. Winthrop Clocktower at the UWA Main SIM. Winthrop Clocktower is the heart of UWA both in RL & SL. Apart from this, feel free to film anything, anywhere. You may use props at the location, or maybe want to change the footage later during the post process, this is up to you, as long as the clocktower is still recognized.

CLICK HERE TO TELEPORT TO WINTHROP CLOCK TOWER @ UWA

LENGTH: 4 - 6 minutes is recommended, but this is not a hard rule. The joint winners of MachinimUWA II were under 2 minutes and over 15 minutes respectively.

All prize winners will receive an exclusive MachinimUWA Trophy. All machinimatographers in the challenge will receive a specially designed medal of honour. Both designed by Laurina Hawks, reigning UWA MachinimUWA Champion.

Shortlisted entries will be displayed here on the University of Western Australia (UWA) Second Life Blog.

Winners will be announced by the 30th of May 2011 at a special gala function.

Method of Entry & Other Info:* Load the Machinima anywhere, preferablly youtube or vimeo, and provide the link to Jayjay Zifanwe, White lebed and Laurina Hawks
* The length of machinima referred to above is only a suggested maximum, and will not be enforced nor cause entries to be disqualified
* Please acknowledge the lands or significant artworks and individuals you feature
* If you need to rezz (blue screen etc) on the UWA SIMS, contact Jayjay Zifanwe, White Lebed, FreeWee Ling or Laurina Hawks

Closing Date:* Midnight 1st May 2011. Allowances on the closing date will only be provided IF the machinimatographer has contacted and explained the reason for the need for additional time prior to the closing date.

JUDGES
1. Professor Ted Snell (RL) - Director, Cultural Precinct, The University of Western Australia
2. White Lebed (SL) - Former Lead of Burning Life Art Department, Director of Special Projects @ UWA
3. Jay Jay Jegathesan (RL) / Jayjay Zifanwe (SL) - Manager School of Physics, The University of Western Australia (SL), Creator, Host and Curator for MachinimUWA III; Creator, Host and Co-Curator of the UWA 3D Open Art Challenge
4. Yesikita Coppola (SL) - Official Machinimatographer for UWA 2011
5. Laurina Hawks (SL) - Reigning UWA MachinimUWA Champion
6. Raphaella Nightfire (SL) - Snr Writer Best of SL Magazine, Owner Sanctorum Gallery (SL)
7. FreeWee Ling (SL) - Curator, UWA 3D Open Art Challenge
8. LaPiscean Liberty (SL) - CEO AviewTV and UWA Media Advisor
9. Nazz Lane (SL) - Journalist and Author
10. Rowan Derryth (SL) - Art & Design Historian; Writer for Prim Perfect Publications
11. Apollo Manga (SL) - examiner.com Writer & Novelist
12. Dr. Phylis Johnson (RL) - Media Professor, Southern Illinois Uinversity, Author - Machinima: Aesthetics and Practice (a.k.a, Sonicity Fitzroy, SL Virtual Journalist)
13. Lowell Cremorne, Owner & Editor-In-Chief, The Metaverse Journal

Some Interesting Locations Across the UWA SIMS(you're welcome to use any part of UWA in the Machinima - this is IF you would like. No advantage will be given for having a lot of content featuring UWA locations)

The UWA Sunken Gardens (replica of RL)

The UWA 3D Open Art Challenge Gallery

Area displaying the works that were shortlisted for the Grand Finale of the UWA 3D Art & Design Challenge

The Square Kilometer Array
(Biggest land based science project in the history of mankind)


UWA Visualisation Research Area

* Special thanks to Eliza Wierwight for creating the wonderful poster for this challenge

* Special thanks to our sponsors, UWA, AView TV and BOSL