New World Notes

Cajsa's Choices: Amazing High Contrast Second Life Avatar Screenshots Modeled After Real Life Black & White Portraits

Cajsa Lilliehook covers the best in virtual world screenshot art and digital painting

So I was browsing Flickr the other day and saw Panteleimon’s “Rising Son” with a hashtag that said #PryceBodyLanguageChallenge. I clicked and did not come up for hours. It is, I think, the finest collection of Second Life photos I have ever found in one spot. It all came about when Lawrence D. Pryce, who deserves his own profile one of these days, invited several people to participate in a challenge back in February -- create Second Life photos modeled after stylized RL black and white portraits.  This is what he wrote to them:

I will provide you with an image. You may use it for reference or deviate a bit from it. The image will be tasteful and must be in black and white. However,  if you want to use an accent color to highlight the body, please feel free to do so. Just be sure to keep the integrity of the body with no weird skin color. I want you to capture the contours of the body. Lure the viewer in but leave much to the imagination. You have 10 days!!! Once you have completed the image please tag me on Flickr and Facebook. Place the #Pryce Body Language Challenge. I can't wait to see your image! As always, be expressive and have fun.

Pryce sent everyone a different image from this collection, but they were united by their stark black and white emotional power, the light traversing body contours, the shadows evoking mystery, every photo telling a story. Here's some of my very favorites from the challenge:

“Silhouette” from Callie Hamelin is kind of emblematic of the collection, sensual exaltation of the human form in chiaroscuro–using light and shadow to outline the curves and lines of the body, setting a mood of contemplative reverie. The little trail of smoke is a great detail. The striking boldly diagonal line of her leg is amazing.

Angelika Corral’s submission is a beautiful example of how Second Life photos can come to the uncanny valley and rush across into that place where virtuality and reality coalesce.

“Solitude” from ChimKami Resident is in sepia rather than black and white and is just stunning. The sepia gives the sense of history like a Victorian cameo.

Many more below!

Cajsa's Choices: Five Great Stories Told Through Second Life Screenshots

Cajsa Lilliehook covers the best in virtual world screenshot art and digital painting

We are storytellers. Edward O. Wilson believes human society originated in storytelling, sitting around the campfire sharing stories of the day, defined what society was. No wonder, then, that even pictures created in virtual communities like Second Life tell stories which draw our attention so powerfully:

The first photo (above) “We Are the Change We Seek” is from Alicia Chenaux. Alicia’s stream is full of stories from her SL family life. Often you will see her wicked sense of humor in her pictures, but more than anything, I enjoy her stream for her enthusiastic sense of joy.

Here in Calico Meta’s “Every Night We Waited for My Father” the story is told with the wan lighting and desaturated photo, the slumped pose of the mother, and the empty chair. This is one of her set telling a story, not yet complete, of a private investigator, P.I. Kent. You can follow the story in the album, PI  Kent. 

“Life Is Like a Song” by Spartin Parx succeeds in expressing the longing, desire, and dreams this woman is feeling with a touch of her hand. Her hand stretches out and touches the dress and there is just so much emotion in that simple gesture.

Two more below the break!

 

Cajsa's Choices: The Surrealist, Kahlo-esque Second Life Images of Halfwraith

Cajsa Lilliehook covers the best in virtual world screenshot art and digital painting

The poet André Breton, the founder of surrealism, described it as a “fusion of elements of fantasy with elements of the modern world to form a kind of superior reality.” To see where fantasy and surrealism intersect, you only need to take a look at Halfwraith’s photostream. You can also see the influence Mexican surrealists Remedio Varas and Frida Kahlo in the rich colors and the way she surrounds her subject with evocative objects that create a story. It was no surprise to learn that both Varas and Kahlo were among her favorite artists when I interviewed her.

How do you describe your style of photos?

I think my style attempts to tell stories - with varying degrees of success. I wasn’t a natural at SL photography, when I started off in 2011 I was pretty terrible and did not know Photoshop. I am a blogger in SL that definitely has improved over time.

Who do you think may have most influenced your aesthetic?

I studied printmaking in RL both as an apprentice and at art school. It had a lot of influence on how I use form and compose images.

Who are some of your favorite artists in SL and/or RL?

My favourite RL artists are Dürer, Goya, Hogarth, Chagall, Kathe Kollwitz, Remedios Varo, and of course Frida Kahlo. My favourite SL artists that have influenced me are Duchess Flux and Kynne L. both who have been kind to me and I learned a lot from observation of how they set-up images. Other photographers I love are Loverdag, Nekotto, Rainbow Mubble, Alles Klaar, Awesome Fallen, and many others.

Much more Halfwraith below!

Cajsa's Choices: The Vogue-ish, Art Deco SL Fashion Photos of Wicca Merlin

Cajsa Lilliehook covers the best in virtual world screenshot art and digital painting

Vogue was one of the magazines I continued subscribing to after most of my magazine consumption became digital. I love to page through, enjoying the highly editorial styling, poses, and photos. Wicca Merlin’s fashion photos are like that. There is an edge to her photos, with sometimes outré poses, innovative styling, and high concept fashions. Some of her images evoke Czech Art Nouveau artist Alphonse Mucha; others call to mind the angular poses employed by Vogue photographer Terry Tsiolis.

Since Wicca is also a designer and a photographer, I was curious how she managed to keep all those balls in the air, and what drove her to continue blogging and photography after she began designing. I was even more curious after finding out she does all this in Second Life while touring with a music group in real life.  

This interview has been lightly edited for length and clarity:

Your photos are very editorial. How do you go about putting together your shoot? Do you have a theme you want to express? Do you put together your outfit and then think about your photo or do you have an idea and go about assembling the outfit and background?

I do not have a plan or any structure when I am preparing for pictures. Sometimes I want to express something. Sometimes it is just a challenge to myself. Sometimes an outfit is how I find inspiration. Sometimes it just happens while I am cleaning my inventory and find interesting things that I forgot about. That is the reason why I sometimes post older things as well. I never had the desire to blog new releases only and sometimes it is just a song that inspires my stylings or pictures.

I am a very impulsive and emotional person, and that is usually the "engine" that makes me do what I am doing.

How do you describe your style/aesthetic?

It is hard if you follow your feelings and emotions to describe style or aesthetics. I love expressive poses, poses that show any kind of motion or activity. I love to put opposites together and make them look like they would belong together, anyways if it is clothing, background, furniture or colors. Usually I do not really think much about it and just let happen, what comes to my mind.

I know very well what I do NOT want in my pictures usually. I am not a friend of point-blank nudity without any artistic background...it is the same with dull pornographic themes or any kind of blunt violation against humans or any kind of animals and creatures with a soul...Not saying that all that should not be done, or that I dislike it if others do it, it is just not so much my cup of tea.

To me aesthetic is everything that does not hurt anyone on purpose and something that can be different for everyone.

Much more after the break!

Cajsa's Choices: The Sexy, Neo-Noir Second Life Imagery of Tyler Oysternatz

Cajsa Lilliehook covers the best in virtual world screenshot art and digital painting

There you are, happily scrolling through Flickr photos of lovely landscapes, kawaii fashionistas, and vendor pics and suddenly there is this brooding, enigmatic photo. A man lounges with a cigarette while the candlelight highlights his musculature and reveals the menace in his thoughts. This is not just a picture of a man smoking, this is a story and that is why Tyler Oysternatz’ photostream is so captivating–and sometimes so scary. His pictures make me think of noir films and novels. In my interview with him, I discovered there’s a book by one of my favorite writers, Georges Simenon, that I have not read. It’s going on my list. Oysternatz thinks deeply about his art, and that thought is reflected in his work and in the interview:

In terms of organizing principles or aesthetics, your photos are remarkably consistent. How would you describe your aesthetic?

My aesthetic is my inner daemons, my obsessions, and my influences. I would describe my style as mystificated, impressionistic, with slightly visual distortions.

Light (or lack of it) is an important element in your photos? How do you achieve or develop your lighting? How much is deliberate and how much is spontaneous?

Painting with light is the main reason for my photography. For me, light beams are as a brush is to a painter. I use light to create the atmosphere I want in my images. Mostly I use projectors for my pictures, because I can fully control them, I barely use sunlight. And because I want to have full control over my images, there is nothing spontaneous about them. Actually I don't believe that there is anything spontaneous in art at all, every piece of art requires lots of preparation and work. If someone says that he is spontaneous he is either lying or he is just acting randomly. Random is not a word that can describe art.

Much more from Tyler after the break!

Spectacular Second Life Screenshots Inspired by Famous Movies

Oh this is a fun Flickr group for movie lovers who are also virtual world fans -- beautifully composed (and occasionally post-produced) Second Life screenshots inspired by popular and classic films. (Above, of course, an awesome tribute to Mad Max; Fury Road, i.e., best movie of the last decade, by a dude named Noddington Schmooz.) Many of the images are from a 2016 challenge from SL blogger Strawberry Singh, but others have been added since then. Here's ten of my favorites -- see if you can guess the movies they're inspired from (answers at the end):

Above by Samuel Moorsider

Above by Noddington Schmooz

Above by Noddington

Many more below!

Cajsa's Choices: Magnificent Photos from SL's Mermaid Roleplay Community

Cajsa Lilliehook covers the best in virtual world screenshot art and digital painting

Are mermaids cetaceans? They are aquatic mammals. In our first lives, live sightings of mermaids are limited, mainly to myth and art. In Second Life, there are many sightings and even contemporary photographs that prove mermaids exist. I thought it might be informative to take a look at some of the photographic evidence.

From the sirens who sang ancient sailors to their death and the fabled city of Atlantis to the Little Mermaid and Daryl Hannah, mermaids have fascinated. It’s no surprise then that there are vibrant mermaid role-playing communities in Second Life. Destinations highlights many of the underwater sims that host merlife. There’s even an organization to promote the harmony and safety of merfolk called the Safe Waters Foundation. On Flickr, there are several groups including Second Life Merfolk, Mermaids of Second Life, Second Life Mermaids, and Undersea Second Life.

Sugarfairy88 Resident’s No Grave But The Sea (above) caught my eye with the bold red coloring of the mermaid. Most of the time the mermaids we see are in the blue to green spectrum which is odd when the ocean is full of bright and colorful fish. This picture seems to confirm the notorious reputation of mermaids as sirens who lure sailors to their death.

۰˚Yukino ۰ 火の鳥 雪乃˚۰ shared this photo called Fish Dinner 4 that reveals that the peril is bi-directional. This photo is an excellent example of how framing can direct your eye, we see the diner looking at the mermaid, the hands framing the mermaid and all are directed toward the upper right. I love its unique perspective on the mermaid question, eschewing the usual romanticism. It also reverses the usual predator-prey relationship between the air and water breathers.

Many more mermaid roleplay pics after the break!

Cajsa Choices: Alisaundra Andel Photographs the Virtual World in All Its Wild Variety

Cajsa Lilliehook covers the best in virtual world screenshot art and digital painting

Don’t you just love it when someone looks at an ordinary scene, then shifts their focus and the angle of vision and everything is suddenly completely different? That happens a lot with Alisaundra Andel. Look at the photo above, “Run Away With Me Now.” Most people would click on the couple, bring them into focus and let the vases and lights fade, but she reverses the focus, creating an intimate photo of a couple engrossed in each other.

Andel’s photostream is widely varied. There are fashion photos, landscapes, tableaus that tell a story, and everything in between:  

How would you describe your style for your photos?

My style varies really, I jump from fashion to landscape to candid to portrait to stock. I don't like just slapping them on a background and click click click click done. It has to speak to me... as long as they all tell some sort of story, then I am happy.   

Who are your inspirations?

That's a tough question for me really. Most people would say things like "I look toward XYZ and when I grow up I want to be like them" ....I don't do that. If you look at my flickr favorites section, its rather small for the norm. The people that are in that section are the people that inspired me. And when I say inspire, I mean they had me pause what I was doing to look at their work. But if I must choose someone.. Syn Beresford. That woman is an artist through and through. After that, because I said that I feel things, credit for my inspiration goes to people like Kadaj Yoshikawa, Kilik Lekvoda, Sharni Azalee, Alia Baroque. The creators of SL.   

Cajsa Choices: Meet Anouk A., Minimalist Fashion Photographer in Second Life, Acclaimed Artist & SF Novelist in Real Life

“Global Rose” by Anouk A.

Cajsa Lilliehook covers the best in virtual world screenshot art and digital painting

I was drawn to Anouk A’s art the first time I saw her work, commenting on the photo. She sent me a message telling me she was Kyrie Source in a previous incarnation. Since I was similarly drawn to Kyrie’s work, of course Anouk spoke to me. What I like about her work is how clean and simple it is. Minimal.

There’s this marvelous conundrum with simplicity. Done right, simplicity is more revealing and more emotionally powerful than complexity. It can be like a punch in the gut, simple, powerful, and you feel it. That’s what her artwork is like for me. Some of her work is very challenging for me. I appreciate her ability to find beauty in everything and her exploration of the boundaries of the feminine. Her photostream is challenging, beautiful, and fascinating. The artist behind the pictures is equally challenging, beautiful, and fascinating.

Tell me a bit about yourself. What brought you to SL, how long have you been in SL?

My name IRL is Karoline Georges, I’m a French-Canadian published writer and a professional artist. I’ve published seven books, most are sci-fi novels. I write in the French language, but you can find my third novel, “Under the Stone”, in English. As an artist, I use video, 3D modeling, photography and music to create my artworks. I show my work in art galleries and festivals both in America and in Europe.

I created my first avatar, Kyrie Source, back in 2006. I started to blog in 2009, did over 500 images with Kyrie, then felt the need for a pause. At first, I wanted to explore the literal concept of «femme-image» (I don’t know if you have an English expression to translate the idea?). It was a way to pursue the quest of the sublime of a character from one of my published novels. When I created my second avatar, Anouk A., I was working on a new novel … inspired by my journey in SL! So I wanted to explore, furthermore, photography, but also what it means to create a digital self, what are the new ideals of beauty, what does it mean to be feminine here and now.

 

Cajsa's Choices: Tamary9, Master of Slice of (Virtual) Life Art Photography

Cajsa Lilliehook covers the best in virtual world screenshot art and digital painting

I love photos that feel spontaneous, as though caught in the moment on a whim. While they must be carefully staged, they feel as though none of that happened, but rather the photographer just click-click-clicked and caught a moment. Tamary9 is that kind of photographer, which is why I enjoy her work so much. This opening photo is exactly what I mean. It feels spontaneous and authentic. I love it!

Let’s get real, good spontaneous photos in Second Life are as rare as good photos of people dancing in real life. To take a photo, we generally choose a pose, create a setting or hunt for one, fiddle with the WindLight, move the sun around, adjust a prim here or there, calibrate the hover height, check for intersections, and by then, our slice of life is more like a still life. So how Tamary achieves that mood, that sense of immediacy, fascinates me and was a focus on my interview. (With some assistance of a Japanese-English language software translator.)

She describes her photos as "slice of life" which is how I describe them as well. In her words, “I love the moment of ordinary everyday life, so my photos should not be an elaborate design, moment and facial expressions.”

Much more of her work and world after the break!