Metaverse Artist Bryn Oh Gets Canadian Government Grant to Turn SL Installation into VR-Powered Art Gallery Exhibit

Great news from Bryn Oh, the pseudonym of a Canadian artist who's been creating innovative works in Second Life for at least the last seven years:

I am pleased and excited to announce that I have just been informed that I am one of the 17 who received a new grant from the Canadian government for art projects... The funding for this grant will be to assemble and film "The Singularity of Kumiko", to create a first life exhibit using the Occulus Rift and Stem system, and various other things such as marketing, voice acting, music, travel etc.

"Kumiko" currently exists in Second Life in Bryn's Immersiva sim: Go here to check it out. (Trailer above.) Speaking of which, filmmaker Peter Greenaway (who has a new movie coming out) is among the many SLers whom helped keep Immersiva open

Bryn, whose first medium was painting, also has some thoughts on the art world's resistance to virtual reality:

I have spent a long time working in this area now and have witnessed the resistance of some curators to see outside their comfort zone. Many curators have spent a life learning how to evaluate and understand painting, sculpture, film etc and to be honest, I think some of the resistance is from being intimidated by the prospect of having to learn something completely new and difficult for them. "Virtual what? I have to make an avatar?? install .. I barely know how to turn on my computer!" etc. I am kidding but only partially this time. The truth is that to understand an immersive artwork then one must become immersed, so the simplicity of pictures and text don't apply to the Immersivist artwork and a curator just can't hope to evaluate our artform by looking at pictures or even watching machinima. They have to experience it and it's not easy to do so.

That's all apt, though I think it applies more to Second Life-based art projects, which are difficult for galleries and museums to deploy or even explain, versus a VR-based installation, which just requires someone putting on a headset. Hopefully Bryn gets a good showing of "Kumiko" that way.

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Comments

[Scarp Godenot]

No other SL artists deserves funding more than Bryn Oh in my opinion. A true original.

VR art can only really be experienced in VR. I totally agree. The rest is a poor substitute.

[Jacki Morie]

GREAT NEWS! VR will now move ahead in new ways of storytelling!