Jennifer Lynn Steele Canadian Visual Artist, Sculptor, and Entertainerlogged on 27 January 2007 first time in Second Life.
She is an abstract expressionist or representational painter, but she also do high realism and graphite work as well as sculpture.
Jennifer loves a very busy life – she says that keeps her alive and she never apologizes for it!
Jennifer’s family is full of singers, writers, visual artists, musicians, performers and actors.
She was always encouraged to become an artist from a childhood. Her mother was an amazing opera singer and illustrator. Her father was an incredible musician and a classic bass player.
Driven by the pure raw emotions and inspired with the knowledge that her work touches others, it feeds on these emotions and stays in permanent motion of creativity.
Her art is neither political nor religious, nor does it express social injustice.
With an inner urge to keep creating, keep doing what she has to do, Jennifer is an artist who is constantly work on her skills (her profession). She knows that being an artist does not only mean doing things – but also that is about never giving up.
And it doesn’t matter whether everything is “successful” or not, for Jennifer everything she does has a profound meaning – everything is there because she have to do it. It’s a part of her being that needs to be fed.
As she says in RL she is an INFJ, artist, personal chef, renovation specialist, builder and voice actor.
In SL, Jennifer is a MASTER Builder and Scripter (age 14), a business owner, custom content creator and Resident Award Winning Visual Artist who has many displays and exhibits across SL.
Jennifer´s official business office in Second Life,“Stoneshild & Steele Engineering” provides, Custom Building, Scripting, Texturing, Sounds, Terraforming and Animations.
True to the motto, “Own your actions = own your trip!”, Jennifer believes in snorting belly laughs, directness, trust, privacy, ART, feminism, authenticity, friendliness, honesty, communication, loyalty, manners, class, intelligence, gratitude, professionalism, generosity, fierce fight for her rights, silliness, hugs, respect, and love.
With her statement: “Art … is not a decoration. Art is a statement. It should be bought because it spoke to you, not because it fits your sofa. This piece on your wall tells a story about you and how you are connect in a unique way to the creative spirit. “- Jennifer confirms that this is what she really is, an artist who inspires others, enriches Second Life and impresses us all.
Jennifer: Nothing. A huge void of nothing. Art is everywhere. It’s not just music, writing and dancing, and visual arts. It’s in everything you use and see every single day. That keyboard you’re typing on, that screen you’re looking at, the mouse you’re moving – some creative mind designed that. You can’t escape it. A life without art would be – paint everything white and everything looks like a box. No inspiration. No passion. A huge void of nothing.
Where do you get your inspiration from?
Jennifer: Nature, life experiences, hanging with musicians and other artists. I’m a deep emotional painter even though some of my work may appear just light and carefree. There’s a ways a story behind the work and usually much more of a story than the viewer assumed.
What is your work about?
Jennifer: My work is about my reaction. How did that make me feel? What was I thinking when I saw that? What message do I want to convey? How do I want the viewer to feel?
How is the artistic process like there? Do you see an object / person / landscape first and then the idea comes up? Or is it upside down?
Jennifer: For me it’s things and experiences that cause a rush of emotion. Could be a sock – could be a an argument with a lover, could be a piece of music that moved me to tears, a hug, a rude tourist, could be a best friend that made me snort laugh. That’s where it starts. Then I’ll set up and sketch or paint en plein air. If that’s not possible I’ll take way too many photographs of the subject matter. The work then heads back to the studio with me and sometimes it will be put in a book or hung on a wall and left along for months until I decide what it needs or doesn’t need.
Your mantra?
Jennifer: Own your journey. Until you authentically take responsibility for your reaction to everything that happens in your life you will never move forward.
Jennifer: I’m all over the place… but if I need my silence or centering or to rebuild my energy, my own SL home. If I need inspiration I’ll tour and tour and tour. Some days it’s all about music and people and getting far out of my head. Other days it’s about a singular journey. When I’m painting IRL I actually park myself at my own gallery – The Jennifer Steele Gallery and sometimes I’ll do a YouTube live of the painting I’m creating IRL as I paint in SL. So I guess the best place for me in SL, is where the Wind takes me.
A question that moves you right now …
Jennifer: Why do imperfect people expect perfection from other imperfect people?
Is there a work of art in your life that particularly impressed you?
Jennifer: Ken Danby’s Pancho – when I was very young it was Ken Danby that I followed most closely and tried to imitate. Of course his technique was flawless and I’m just not a photorealistic painter. But I would imagine without his work, I probably would not have pursued art as passionately as I have.
What is art for you – now completely independent of the usual definitions?
Jennifer: A spiritual journey, a seductive lover, an unruly child, a release, an addiction, a constant pulsing vibration throughout my entire being. The very breath I take. And all that said – it changes every single day.
Was there a key experience or has the artist profession always been your dearest wish?
Jennifer: In real life, from a child I’ve always been encouraged to be an Artist. My Mother was an amazing opera singer and sketch artist. My Dad was an incredible musician and a classical bass player for Sarah Vaughan when she toured in Canada. My family is full of singers, writers, visual artists, musicians, performers, and actors. Being an artist is who I am. It’s my blood, my life, the reason I wake up every day.
In SL, it was definitely getting involved in the Lundy Gallery and Museum. I met Lee Olsen through the Burn2 experience. He encouraged me to make it a priority to bring my art into second life by giving me my first real permanent gallery space. His patience, inspiration, and kindness has inspired so many artists to keep moving forward. My dearest wish for Lee and the Lundy Gallery and Museum is that it will always exist in SL and always be representative of authentic visual art in SL.
Jennifer: Emotion. Pure raw emotion. Any artist is lying if they don’t include how wonderful it is to have others appreciate your work as well. It’s very inspiring to know my work is touching others. I feed off their emotions as well and it inspires me to keep moving, keep creating, keep doing what I must do. In the same respect, because I feed off emotions so much, another person’s negativity can shut me down creatively – I have to be very careful who I let into my circle.
Do you feel understood with your art?
Jennifer: Like I said, it’s great when people appreciate your work. I think though appreciation and understanding are two very different realms. I’ve had people just gush over a piece I’ve done and they tell me why and what it means to them and I never have the heart to tell them that wasn’t my intention at all. But when that happens, you learn not to really deeply explain the meaning of your work, stand back, and let the art live in and of itself. Let them see what they need to see. In that, there is an understanding between the creator and the receiver. I’ll give you what you need – just let me create.
Do you think that you can make a difference with your art?
Jennifer: My art isn’t political or religious or expressing some social injustice – although of those the latter types of work are some of my personal favourites. I suppose when somebody reacts that the work instantly cheered them up, or instantly made them peaceful I am making a difference – one viewer at a time. It’s when somebody comes to me and tells me the work moved them deeply to their core, I know I’m on the right journey.
Do you think that everyone is an artist?
Jennifer: No. I think anyone can create things. But an artist, to be constantly working on your skill (your trade) to truly give into that lifestyle, to sometimes sacrifice your sanity for your work, not everyone is cut out for that. Some days I question if I am. So, I do think everyone has a creative side – but to be an artist isn’t just making things – it’s about knowing many hours will end up in failure and not giving up, the ability to really put your heart and soul into a piece and not care if it sells, if it will have some profound meaning – it’s there because you must do it. It’s a part of you that has to be fed.
Do you have any role models? If yes, which?
Jennifer: Off the top of my head… Colville, Danby, Group of Seven, Kandinsky, Pollock, Wool, Zóbel and Monet. My friends know how obsessed I am with Frida Kahlo and how many times I’ve studied O’Keeffe and Rivera. But then I have writers who inspire me greatly like Fran Lebowitz – can’t get enough of her words and talks. I’ve wept openly at photographs by Annie Leibovitz. I could go on for days listing the various musicians who inspire me greatly. In SL, Seli Blackmore and Mavenn inspire to just GO FOR IT! Finally, comedians inspire me – Lily Tomlin, Kathleen Madigan, Gilda Radner, and yes I love Lewis Black! Make me laugh and I’ll listen to you for days!
Jennifer: I think it’s a generic term for all creative egresses – visual art, dancing, acting, cooking, writing, graphic design, 3D design, virtual creations.. etc.. etc.. it’s all art. We’re surrounded. Even in the most mundane thing like your trash can – it’s art – somebody designed it, somebody chose the colour, somebody manufactured it and there you have it in your home – why? Not just because of price or function – something about it appealed to you. It’s all art.
Are there any topics that you are particularly interested in implementing?
Jennifer: Yes. After my Life In Wine Country tour, I have a second one planned called Urban Life. I think many people who are enjoying the new wine country tour will be sort of shocked with this new work coming out in the fall/winter. It’s filled with brutal honesty and it’s taking everything I have emotionally to create.
What is your strength?
Jennifer: My sense of humour. If I’m hurt and I laugh, I heal. If I’m stressed or anxious and I laugh, I can breathe. My fondest memories of my Mom where the number of times we laughed – not giggle – belly churning snorting tears rolling down our faces laughter. We were so poor growing up and didn’t have much except one another… My Mom instilled in me that the ability to laugh at yourself and the situations you find yourself in can get you through the darkest moments.
What was the best advice you have ever received in SL?
Jennifer: I’ve have two that always ring in my ears: “Never expand beyond your means” and “Everyone in SL thinks they’re more important than they are”. They’re about being humble. They’re about staying kind. They remind you that no matter the fashion, the size of your house in SL, the fame or infamy you achieve, nothing matters – at the end of the day people will remember you for how you treated them and nothing more.
Your next projects, exhibitions. Where your art can be seen?
Jennifer: My latest collection, Life In Wine Country is currently on tour and I’m accepting Gallery Show Inquiries for the tour. It will be at Lundy Gallery for May then back again in August at the BOSL Main Gallery. In the fall I have two more rotating tours coming.
“All my life I’ve been an artist, I formally studied Fine Art and Fine Art History at Wilfrid Laurier University in Waterloo Ontario Canada, under the mentorship of the late award winning Canadian Painter Michal Manson, and was featured in the Robert Langden Art Gallery in the late 1980s. I’ve studied Art all over the world from the California Coast to various locations in Europe.
Initially a realist painter, I modeled my work after Alex Colville and Ken Danby. Yet, my painting style kept pulling me back to images from the Group of Seven, Kandinsky, Pollock, Wool, Zóbel and Monet. After years of honing my style I learned that capturing the emotion of the scene, or the experience of it, was a much more satisfying journey. I paint in both acrylic and oil and prefer to combine the two, oil over acrylic.
I now reside in Niagara Wine Country, in Ontario Canada. Beyond the obvious influences of the Canadian horseshoe falls and the great whirlpool, it is the world’s largest naturally occurring biosphere. The vistas that include vineyards as far as you can see, gorgeous hiking trails, the shores of both lake Ontario and lake Erie and the breath-taking Niagara Escarpment are now the daily influences that seep their way into my work.
My work is hanging in the TAG Art Gallery in St. Catharines Ontario Canada and has been recently featured in Lynn Lawler’s Art Blog, at The Hub On Queen in Niagara Falls and at Niagara Night of Art. I’m also a member of the Federation of Canadian Artists, a sculptor, graphic artist and 3D modelist.”
SHOWINGS: Art Galleries of SL – Main Gallery (Invited Artist) Art In The Park BOSL Christmas Show (Invited Artist) BOSL Main Gallery BOSL – Cafe Du Art (Invited Artist) Burn2 Octoburn Burn2 VRC Crystal Cove – Official Tour Gallery (Invited Artist) Crystal Cove – Feed A Smile Event Fall for Art Hunt (Invited Artist) Featured in Designing Worlds Featured on Lab Gab 02-2021 Firestorm Anniversary Hathian Carnival Heart of Dragons (Invited Artist) Hunters Point Jennifer Steele Gallery Linden Endowment For the Arts (Original) One Billion Rising (Invited Artist) Raglan Shire Artfest Rainbow Painters Art Gallery (Resident Artist) RFL Home Garden & Breedable Show (Invited Artist) Rock Your Rack (Invited Artist) Sisi Biedermann Gallery (Invited Artist) SLEA GRANT Region 7 The Janus Gallery (Invited Artist) The Lundy Gallery and Museum(Resident Artist) UASL Gallery UWA Art Show (Invited Artist)
Tia Rungray (Tialer.Mimulus) signed up for Second Life for the first time on June 20, 2008.
Tia’s works are instrumental music with ambient noise, piano, and even noise. This unique style includes ambient, post-classical, noise music, etc. Tia expresses people’s inner world with refined piano and wild noise.
His live performance can drive the audience insane too.
Tia is actively involved as a sound engineer and producer and offers music art exhibitions.
Tia’s sound is entirely his own … his dedication to deep emotions is extraordinary. The sweetness with which this composer plays on the piano cannot be compared with others, whom he ennobles his music with originality, distinction, grace and lightness that cannot be imitated by anyone.
Tia is one of those pianists who are at home no matter what “feeling” and he has the true, lively tone that comes from the deep feeling of his heart.
He always plays with great passion and dedication. In his creative hands, even the most ordinary passage takes on meaningful meaning.
For me it is an honor and a privilege to promote a unique pianist and composer as Tia.
Tia: It might be correct to say that a life without art would have been a boring life for me, but I think that is because I am currently immersed in a sea of art.
Where do you get your inspiration from?
Tia: Before 2020, I often found inspiration in purely personal matters, such as the difficulties of relationships I experienced in urban life in Japan. Furthermore, I admit that the Great East Japan Earthquake of 2011 had a huge impact on me. I was a student at the time and wondered if there was anything I could do within the framework of art to help the Japanese society that had suffered so much.
Recently, I have gone one step further and focused on how music can be my medium of expression for the social problems that still plague Japanese society like a disease a decade later.
What is your work about?
Tia: My work is a fusion of piano and noise, but I try not to be necessarily confined to that style. This is because there is a big gap between what I choose to do and what I adhere to.
My use of noise is also influenced by the ideas of traditional Japanese music. In traditional Japanese music, mainly shakuhachi and shamisen, performance noise, which is discarded as noise in classical European music, is deliberately incorporated into the expression.
How is the artistic process like there? Do you see an object / person / landscape first and then the idea comes up? Or is it upside down?
Tia: It varies. Sometimes the idea comes to me when I’m playing with the piano, other times it’s based on environmental sounds or news I heard.
Your mantra?
Tia: “One sound becomes a Buddha.”
This is a phrase that is part of the philosophy of the shakuhachi, a traditional Japanese musical instrument. It means that within a single sound there is a complexity like that of the universe. This is what I want to create in the sound I play.
Tia: I can’t narrow it down to one place. I go to places listed in the Destination Guide and to places recommended by friends.
A question that moves you right now…
Tia: Where do I keep going?
Is there a work of art in your life that particularly impressed you?
Tia: Vladimir Horowitz’s 1986 recording of Alexander Scriabin’s 12 Etudes, Op.8 No.12, is the piece that left the greatest impression on me.
I didn’t get to see it live, but its subtlety and boldness of expression were enough to influence my style of playing.
What is art for you – now completely independent of the usual definitions?
Tia: For me, “art” is neither sacred nor noble. It is an “extension of every day”, a way of expanding values and perceptions, both for me and society. But it is not “every day” itself. It is not necessarily something that the viewer “understands”.
I believe that the value and role of art are to make the viewer think.
Was there a key experience or has the artist profession always been your dearest wish?
Tia: The sounds and vibrations I felt when I first touched the piano were probably the most important experiences for me.
I started learning to play the piano in my early teens. At that time I was being taught by a piano teacher in a flat and we were using an electronic piano.
One day, the teacher took me to her parent’s house and told me to play the grand piano. My fingers were not yet ready to play the piano fluently, but it was a chance to put the piano at the centre of my expression until now.
I have since parted company with her as I have taken up a place with another teacher who has a grand piano in her classroom, but I am grateful to her for allowing me to get into the piano.
Tia: Passion and love, but also sadness and anger, drive me. I think it is necessary to express them carefully.
I was once asked by you (Violet Boa) why I give negative and shocking titles. Probably because of “Soft Strings Kill Me”, “Cremation” and so on.
I don’t think that being ‘cheerful’ is the only role of music and art. It is also necessary to absorb and express negative emotions. The result can be empathy and healing for those who appreciate it. But that is not the whole of the role of music and art.
Do you feel understood with your art?
Tia: If I feel that my work is not understood, it probably shouldn’t be a problem for me. I don’t think I should impose a ‘right’ answer on what each listener feels.
However, I do improvise with the help of “keywords”, the titles of which I publish after the performance. So it would be good if listeners could use them as a hint to expand their imagination.
Do you think that you can make a difference with your art?
Tia: If my music makes the listener feel that, then I think it’s the right thing to do.
I don’t think that what I make will bring any change to people or society. But I shouldn’t cut corners when I create or perform my work. I have to show my work as a result of my best efforts.
Do you think that everyone is an artist?
Tia: It’s not up to me to judge. But I think that “art” must contain strong feelings and thoughts of people.
Accordingly, my friends describe me as eccentric, but I would not call natural creatures and landscapes “art”.
Do you have any role models? If yes, which?
Tia: I don’t have role models, but some people have influenced the way I live my life. Of course, they also include Erik Satie and John Cage.
Are there any topics that you are particularly interested in implementing?
Tia: I am interested in the effective integration of ‘words’ within my musical work.
I’m also interested in creating installations in SecondLife, using one sim with enough processing power. For various reasons, this is not yet possible, but I hope it will be in the future.
What is your strength?
Tia: What I have experienced has not been all happiness. That is why I have the means and the motivation to express it.
What was the best advice you have ever received in SL?
Tia: “You should take care of those who take care of you and your work.”
Your next projects, exhibitions. Where your art can be seen?
“Spiralo” since Feb. 2021 “Spiralo” is a virtual cultural complex produced by the noise-classical music project ‘Tia Rungray’. The space includes a sound installation hall, a gallery, a café and a shopping floor.
The name “Spiralo” means “spiral” in Esperanto, and the name comes from the fact that the floors are arranged in a spiral pattern, inspired by the image of everyday life and art blending together in virtual life.
The idea is to make it easier to enjoy high quality art activities in Second Life and to make visitors more aware of their close relationship to life.
It functions to make everyday activities such as watching, listening, dressing, talking and photography more artistic.
We offer you a way to enjoy the time and space in which you can relax in everyday life. As a cultural hub for contemporary art in Second Life, “Spiralo” hopes to continue to create a cultural scene.
Takayuki Noami’s self-produced electroacoustic music project, which advocates noise classical music.
After releasing his first album ‘Foresta’ in 2013, he has been working mainly in the Tokyo metropolitan area and the virtual space ‘Second Life’.
Since 2015, he has produced the sound installation ‘STRUKTURO’ in Second Life.
In 2016, he participated in Senju LAB #1, a screening of his video works organized by composer Akira Senju, with video director Kenji Agata.
In March 2019, the music video ‘Dancing Fly in My Head’ (directed by Kenji Agata) was released with the cooperation of Akira Senju’s office, Tokyo University of the Arts COI and YAMAHA.
In October 2020, his music video “Soft Strings” (directed by Takayuki Noami) won the Best Music Video Director Award at the International Film Festival “1st Monthly Film Festival” (Serbia).
Influenced by the ideas of Eric Satie and John Cage, Tia Rungray’s music is primarily instrumental, using ambient sounds, piano, and even noise. He creates his worldview with a unique style that incorporates ambient, post-classical and noise music. The fusion of sophisticated piano and violent and ferocious noise depicts the inner world of human beings, and the rough and raw live performance where stillness and motion coexist is not only soothing to the audience but also makes them feel even madness.
His first nationally distributed album ‘MindgEsso’ was released on 29 April 2018 on the independent label Cat&Bonito. It has led composer Akira Senju to say “I’ve heard the air of the future”.
On 27 July 2020, he released an album with Yorihisa Taura titled ‘Juvenile’ on the independent label ‘Tannukineiri Records’.
The new album “STRUKTURO” was released on 12 February 2021.
Tutsy Navarathna signed up for Second Life for the first time on May 21, 2008
At a very young age, Tutsy understood that he needed a job that would allow him to live a little “outside the system”.
Hungry for adventure, he found himself at home in the world of artists. As he says, it was not so much the art that made his life run, but rather being an artist and living the life of an artist.
In order not to lose the pleasure and the feeling of adventure, he also changes the medium of his interest from painting via the computer to video and photography.
In his work there is a kind of narrative or story that contributes to the development of an image or a project.
Tutsy is influenced by Surrealism, Expressionism and Pop Art and understands art as an encounter where you can suddenly see and think the world differently.
According to his moto: “Enthusiasm is an engine that can do everything” and with the question: “How do I create the next installation photo or the next film?” – he works full of enthusiasm on his projects.
He defines art as the historical continuation of cave paintings, goes on to the birth of conceptual art, and raises essential questions that all artists have asked: Does art have limits? Does a job have to meet certain criteria? And although he refers to the history of art, his art serves to convey the emotions in his own way!
Tutsy is a humorous, advanced thinker.
In his descriptions he chooses words with ease, but in his sentences we recognize the complexity and depth of his thoughts.
Tutsy made me laugh, amused me very much, informed me and not only gave me a deeper insight into his world, and in our encounter I actually suddenly experienced a new and different world.
In Tutsy’s installations he manages to bring a complex storyboard with numerous small elements under one “hat” and playfully frames it.
With his current installation withe Eupalinos at Aneli, I went into discovery with an adventurous feeling, was surprised by a multitude of small elements and experienced a complex topic with an essence of lightness and humor.
He manages to pull us into his path and lets us encounter his kind in a new way.
The fact that I could win him for an interview makes me very proud and I would like to thank him warmly for this wonderful opportunity to get to know him better, also thank you very much for the bilingual translation.
I hope that everyone who reads this interview will feel Tutsy’s enthusiasm and that we will pick up a bit of Tutsy’s humorous adventurous spirit and enjoy sharing it with others.
Please visit Tutsy’s installation “Enivrez vous” at La Maison dÁneli – opening on April 28, 2021 at 12:30 PM (all information can be found in the interview below)
But I’ll tell you a secret! Very young I understood that I didn’t want the life that was offered to me. So I looked for what profession could allow me to live a little outside the system!!! Becoming an artist was ultimately the best possible adventure in life.
It’s not so much art that has ruled my life, but being an artist. This is how I went from painting to the computer to video or photography.
When one medium tires me I switch to another and then I come back to it, so that I never lose the taste for the pursuit of pleasure and adventure!
* Sans doute astro-physicien
Mais je vais vous dire un secret ! Très jeune j’ai compris que je ne voulais pas de la vie que l’on me proposait. J’ai donc recherché quelle profession pourrait me permettre de vivre un peu en dehors du système!!! Devenir un artiste était finalement la meilleure possibilité d’aventure de vie.
Ce n’est pas tant l’art qui a dirigé ma vie mais le fait d’être un artiste. c’est ainsi que je suis passé de la peinture à l’ordinateur la video ou la photo.
Quand un médium me lasse je passe à un autre et puis j’y reviens, pour ne jamais perdre le gout de la recherche du plaisir et de l’aventure!
Where do you get your inspiration from?
Tutsy:
In my DNA most certainly.
let’s say through the multiple flashes that strike my neurons, whether visual, sensitive or abstract at every moment, day or year.
There must come out some kind of narration that will guide my choice when developing an image of a project …
In fact I will say that there is initially a huge jumble of informal things from which little to little meaning emerges. Finally for me!
*Dans mon ADN très certainement.
disons qu’a travers les multiples flash qui viennent percuter mes neurones aussi bien visuels, sensitifs ou abstraits à chaque moments, jours ou années.
Il doit sortir une sorte de narration qui va guider mon choix lors de l’élaboration d’une image d’un projet…
En fait je dirai qu’il y a au départ un énorme fatras de choses informelles d’ou peut à peut émerge du sens. Enfin pour moi !
Tutsy: No doubt the fascination with what has no immediate meaning. This strange phenomenon that manifests itself at a certain point in the making of an image in a film, in writing. An extremely jubilant feeling which is totally outside the final quality of the work but which fills you with joy!
I think of the painter Braque’s words: “The painting is finished when he has erased the idea. “
*Sans doute la fascination de ce qui n’a pas de sens immédiat. Ce phénomène étrange qui se manifeste à un certain moment de la fabrication d’une image d’un film, d’une écriture. Une sensation extrêmement jubilatoire qui est totalement en dehors de la qualité finale de l’oeuvre mais qui vous comble de joie!
Je pense au mot du peintre Braque : « Le tableau est fini quand il a effacé l’idée. »
How is the artistic process like there? Do you see an object / person / landscape first and then the idea comes up? Or is it upside down?
Tutsy: In general I have no preconceived ideas, I am rather looking for a meeting! Find the magic that inhabits us in this globality from which we cannot escape but which is so difficult to perceive and materialize.
The making of a work is ultimately a condensed version of its history. What in fact is the style.
*En général Je n’ai aucune idée préconçue, je cherche plutôt la rencontre ! Trouver la magie qui nous habite cette globalité à laquelle on n’échappe pas mais qu’il est si difficile a percevoir et materialiser.
La réalisation d’une oeuvre est finalement un condensé de son histoire .Ce qui en fait est le style.
Your mantra?
Tutsy: “Enthusiasm is a motor that can do anything” – I think it was Charlie Chaplin who said that!
* « L’enthousiasme est un moteur qui peut tout » je crois que c’est Charlie Chaplin qui disait ça!
Tutsy: When it comes to photos I don’t have any privileged places, I like to take photos fairly quickly, capture an image on the fly and play with the surroundings.
For films, these are locations that fit with the script, but sometimes the script will evolve depending on the places discovered.
For fun it totally depends on the mood of the moment.
What fascinates and inspires me about SL is that on this sea by default given by Linden-Lab, thousands of people let their imaginations, their tastes of games, their fantasies and pleasure, to create universes express themselves. fantastic and in most cases without financial compensation.
*Quand il s’agit de photos je n’ai pas de places privilégiées, j’aime bien faire des photos assez rapidement, saisir une image au vol et jouer avec le décor présent.
Pour des films il s’agit de repérages qui collent avec le scénario, mais parfois le scénario va évoluer en fonction des lieux découverts.
Pour le fun ça dépent totalement du mood de l’instant.
Ce qui me fascine et m’inspire dans SL c’est que sur cette mer par défaut donnée par Linden-Lab, des milliers de gens laissent s’exprimer leur imaginaire, leurs gouts du jeux, leurs fantasmes leur plaisir, pour créer des univers fantastiques et cela dans la plupart des cas sans contrepartie financière.
A question that moves you right now ..
Tutsy: How will I create the next installation photo or film?
*Comment vais je faire la photo l’installation ou le film suivant?
Is there a work of art in your life that particularly impressed you?
Tutsy: Overall I was more influenced by artistic movements than by a work.
3 great artistic movements have greatly influenced me, Surrealism, Expressionism and Pop Art.
However, there are sometimes encounters among all the works of art that will mark you forever.
For me this shock was my first vision of a painting by Francis Bacon “Study after the Portrait of Pope Innocent X by Velázquez”
*Globalement j’ai plus était influencé par des mouvements artistiques que par une oeuvre.
3 grand mouvements artistiques m’ont énormément influencés, Le Surréalisme, l’Expressionnisme et le Pop Art.
Cela dit il y a parfois des rencontres parmi toutes les oeuvres d’arts qui vous marquent à tout jamais.
Pour moi ce choc fut ma première vision d’une peinture de Francis Bacon « Étude d’après le portrait du pape Innocent X par Velázquez »
What is art for you – now completely independent of the usual definitions?
Tutsy: For me art, is this encounter that will suddenly make you think differently, see the world differently.
That will stir your neurons so much that you will have after another read of the world. This is why I told you that these are the artistics movements that inspire me.
We don’t think the same since surrealism, for example.
Art is also an inner adventure!
*Pour moi l’art c’est cette rencontre qui va vous faire brusquement penser autrement, voir le monde différemment.
Qui va agiter tellement vos neurones que vous aurez après, une autre lecture du monde. C’est pour cela que je vous disais que ce sont les mouvements artistiques qui m’inspirent.
On ne pense plus pareil depuis le surréalisme par exemple.
L’art c’est aussi une aventure intérieure!
Was there a key experience or has the artist profession always been your dearest wish?
Tutsy: I believe that it was definitely the experience of my military service that introduced me to human stupidity and that made me decide to become an artist to escape human nature.
Finally I believed it 🙂
*Je crois que définitivement c’est l’expérience de mon service militaire qui m’a fait côtoyer la bêtise humaine et qui m’a décidé de devenir artiste pour échapper à la nature humaine.
Do you think that you can make a difference with your art?
Tutsy: Obviously at the beginning we believe it of course!
After that we don’t imagine that it would be possible and then in the end it doesn’t matter too much!
Though!
*Forcement au début on le croit bien sur !
Apres on n’imagine que ce serait possible et puis finalement ça n’a pas trop d’importance!
Quoique!
Do you think that everyone is an artist?
Tutsy: Not at all, being an artist requires a lot of renunciation and a particular psychology.
Being an artist is a life of adventure! Not everyone wants to run the risk of adventure, which is understandable.
On the other hand, everyone can be creative. It is a great thing for everyone to come face to face with themselves in an artistic creation. It doesn’t matter which one and its quality.
Having talent in your field is another thing.
*Non pas du tout, être artiste demande pas mal de renoncement et une psychologie particulière.
Etre artiste est une vie d’aventure ! Tout le monde n’a pas envie de courir les risques de l’aventure ce qui peut se comprendre.
Par contre tous le monde peut être créatif. C’est une excellente chose pour chacun de se retrouver face à soi même dans une création artistique. Peut importe laquelle et sa qualité.
Avoir du talent dans son domaine est encore autre chose.
Let’s say that among the many photographers who create images or installations, some of whom are truly original, I am more attracted to those who stray a little from the realism of Second Life.
To quote some artists in the universe particularly touched me in SL there are the installations of Haveit Neox that of Eupalinos Ugajin, Meilo Minotaure and Capcat Ragut, Theda Tammas or in still an installation like “Alter Ego” of Harbor Galaxy. But there are also plenty of excellent photographers who do impressive light work.
*Ouhlala question piège !
Disons que parmi les nombreux photographes créateurs d’images ou d’installations, dont certains ont une vraie originalité, je suis plus attiré par ceux qui s ‘éloignent un peu du réalisme de Second Life.
Pour citer quelques artistes dans l’univers m’a particulièrement touché dans SL il y a les installations de Haveit Neox celle d’Eupalinos Ugajin, Meilo Minotaure et Capcat Ragut, Theda Tammas ou en encore une installation comme « Alter Ego » de Harbor Galaxy . Mais il y a aussi plein d’excellents photographes qui font un travail sur la lumière impressionnant..
Tutsy: It is very difficult to define, Art is a historical continuation from the cave paintings through the white square on a white background by Malevich or, the mythical urinal by Marcel Duchamp whose exhibition in 1917 marked the birth of the conceptual art and the concept of the ready-made. Duchamp and many others after him like Picasso asked an essential question: does art have limits? Does a work have to meet specific criteria? Or is everything a work from the moment it is presented (and therefore viewed) as such?
But without referring to the history of art already transmitting emotion is not so bad!
*C’est très difficile a définir, L’art est une suite historique depuis les peintures rupestres en passant par le carré blanc sur fond blanc de Malevitch ou, le mythique urinoir de Marcel Duchamp dont l’exposition en 1917 a marqué la naissance de l’art conceptuel et le concept du ready-made. Duchamp et bien d’autres après lui comme Picasso ont posé une question essentielle : l’art a-t-il des limites ? Une œuvre doit-elle répondre à des critères précis ? Ou toute chose est-elle œuvre à partir du moment où elle est présentée (et donc regardée) comme telle?
Mais sans ce référer à l’histoire de l’art déjà transmettre de l’’émotion n’est pas si mal!
Are there any topics that you are particularly interested in implementing?
Tutsy: Sometimes in my dreams I see a very beautiful exhibition which I totally fall in love with.
I would like to one day realize it in real life…
*Parfois dans mes rêves je vois une très belle exposition dont je tombe totalement amoureux.
J’aimerai bien un jour arriver à la réaliser en vrai 🙂
What is your strength?
Tutsy: Stubbornness in research, obstinacy, enthusiasm, pleasure.
*L’entêtement dans la recherche, l’opiniatreté, l’enthousiasme, le plaisir.
What was the best advice you have ever received in SL?
Tutsy: All the good technical advice gleaned here and there.
*Tous les bon conseils techniques glanés ici et là.
Your next projects, exhibitions. Where your art can be seen?
Tutsy: Installation SL “Enivrez vous”
Enivrez-vous.Charles Baudelaire (1821-1867). Get drunk! One shall always be drunk. This is the key, the only point.
So as not to feel the horrendous burden that breaks your shoulders and bends you toward the ground, you shall get drunk, relentlessly.Now what with? Wine, poetry or virtue, as you please. And if sometime, on the steps of a palace, on the green grass of a ditch, in the sullen loneliness of your room you wake up, drunkenness already ebbing or gone, ask the wind, the wave, the star, the bird, the clock, all that laughs, all that moans, all that flees, all that sings, all that speaks, ask them all what time it is.And the wind, the wave, the bird, the clock will answer: “it is time to get drunk!”
So as not to be the tortured slaves of Time, get drunk; get drunk relentlessly!
*La maison d’ Aneli fin Avril une installation avec Eupalinos Ugajin sur le poème de Charles Baudelaire « Enivrez vous »
Enivrez vousIl faut être toujours ivre, tout est là ; c’est l’unique question. Pour ne pas sentir l’horrible fardeau du temps qui brise vos épaules et vous penche vers la terre, il faut vous enivrer sans trêve. Mais de quoi? De vin, de poésie, ou de vertu à votre guise, mais enivrez-vous! Et si quelquefois, sur les marches d’un palais, sur l’herbe verte d’un fossé, dans la solitude morne de votre chambre, vous vous réveillez, l’ivresse déjà diminuée ou disparue, demandez au vent, à la vague, à l’étoile, à l’oiseau, à l’horloge, à tout ce qui fuit, à tout ce qui gémit, à tout ce qui roule, à tout ce qui chante, à tout ce qui parle, demandez quelle heure il est ; et le vent, la vague, l’étoile, l’oiseau, l’horloge, vous répondront : « Il est l’heure de s’enivrer ! Pour n’être pas les esclaves martyrisés du Temps, enivrez-vous ; enivrez-vous sans cesse !
De vin, de poésie ou de vertu, à votre guise. »Charle Baudelaire (1821 1867, le spleen de Paris XXXIII
Tutsy Navarathna Bio
A new medium for new messages Marshall McLuhan.
Tutsy Navarathna French Multi- Media artist « Video, painting, photos… » At this moment experimenting virtual world, creating photos and machinima in Second Life. His films presented around the world at various festivals have won numerous awards.
Also several exhibitions and installations of photos including : Nitroglobus Gallery, Berg by Nordan, Metales, Itakos Gallery, La Maison d’Anelie, Voir Gallery, Galerie des machines, Vibes Gallery…
On September 28, 2008 Melusina Parkin logged into Second Life for the first time.
Since then her “two lives” are full with any kind of art.
First, inspierd by education in history and history of art and motivated troth many great painters, photographs of the past and of the present.
The minimalist and the landscape photos by Luigi Ghirri, the street photography by Walker Evans, the stunning paintings by Edward Hopper, Charles Sheeler, Andrew Wyeth, Mario Sironi are among her most important references.
One complete list of her mentors we can find in her blog Virtual Exhibit: she dedicated a section of that to the artists she consider more influential on her style and concepts.
Melusina also, made an exhibit titled “Imitations”, (also on her blog Virtual Exhibits), trying to show that imitating great paintings has been a good exercise for improving her skills.
Melusinas main inspiration is minimalism: she love photographing desert landscapes, empty rooms, or isolating details of the places and objects of our daily life.
As lover of retro worlds, she love shooting vintage and retro scenes or objects and she have also an “anthropological” curiosity as she said: for street photography.
In Second Life she found a powerful push toward that: the many series of photos dedicated to the so called “roadside culture” witness these passion (see the Exhibit Americana and the two books she published with the same title).
Melusinas inspirations can be seen in the title of some of her exhibits: Hidden Geometries, City Faces, Closer Looks, Absences, Empty Spaces, Soft Solitudes, Americana, Sensual Sands, Lonely Gazes, Listening to the Silence…
In the ostensible aesthetics of some of the minimalist works presented by Melusina, which are visually appealing, I feel compelled as a viewer to encounter works of art on a material level, and with it to question the conventional relationship between me and the work of art . While such works as “Dobel Tree” and “Sensual Sands” open up the emotional level on a completely different level and create quick connections.
Melusina is a very considerate lady, with deep feelings and strong will. She exudes thoroughness, focus and clarity and willingness to invest as much time as necessary so that things she start to do lead to a positive conclusion.
It is a * magic * in Melusinas, work as well as in her personality and I am very happy to have met Melusina and very grateful that she really took the time and allowed us all a deeper insight into her world.
Melusina belong to those people who have find a sence of her self. She found out who she is in this world, and what she really love.
Strong enought to stand alone, smart enought to know her path and brave enough to share with all of us her deepest passion and love.
I congrats Melusina for an truly exemplary approach and wish her every success with all my heart and thank her very much for the honor and openness that she has shown me and all of us!
Melusina: It would be very poor. This is both if I couldn’t create anything and if I couldn’t enjoy other’s creation.
I realized that in the latest years of my SL my main activity has been photographing, making shows and visiting exhibits by the many great artists who work in this world.
I don’t photograph much in RL, but I spend a lot of time reading books, watching photobooks and movies, visiting exhibitions and listening to my favorite music. My “two lives” are full with any kind of art.
Where do you get your inspiration from?
Melusina: First, from my education in history and history of art. II consider my mentors many great painters, photographs of the past and of the present.
The minimalist and the landscape photos by Luigi Ghirri, the street photography by Walker Evans, the stunning paintings by Edward Hopper, Charles Sheeler, Andrew Wyeth, Mario Sironi are among my most important references. But even less famous artists, like the Danish painter Vilhelm Hammershoi (the “painter of the silence”) are a source of inspiration. You can see a more complete list of my mentors in my blog Virtual Exhibit: I dedicated a section of that to the artists I consider more influential on my style and concepts.
I made an exhibit titled “Imitations”, (it’s now on my blog Virtual Exhibits), trying to show that imitating great paintings has been a good exercise for improving my skills.
What is your work about?
Melusina: My main inspiration is minimalism: I love photographing desert landscapes, empty rooms, or isolating details of the places and objects of our daily life. That enhances their roles in the daily theater where we play our lives (it’s a quote from Shakespeare). Simplifying the mess of our reality can make us appreciate that roles better. However, this is just one of my bias: being a lover of retro worlds, I love shooting vintage and retro scenes or objects. Then, I have also an “anthropological” curiosity: so street photography can be considered as a second wide field of interest; observing lifestyles and icons of popular culture has been another path of my work; SL gave me a powerful push toward that: the many series of photos dedicated to the so called “roadside culture” witness these passion (see the Exhibit Americana and the two books I published with the same title). An example of my different inspirations can be seen in the title of some my exhibits: Hidden Geometries, City Faces, Closer Looks, Absences, Empty Spaces, Soft Solitudes, Americana, Sensual Sands, Lonely Gazes, Listening to the Silence…
How is the artistic process like there? Do you see an object / person / landscape first and then the idea comes up? Or is it upside down?
Melusina: Both the ways are part of my workflow: when I wander around or I visit a place I’m caught by a detail or by a scene or even by a special light and I shoot it. Then, I want to build a coherent series of photos about that subject, so I peruse my archive (several thousands of photos) selecting photos of similar subjects or styles; moreover, I go to places I know or I discover through blogs or the Destination Guide, looking for other subjects that can match the photos I have already taken. That’s because I think – according to Luigi Ghirri – that the work of the photographer isn’t to look for a single “great shot”, but to build coherent series around a concept: the meaning of each photo is enhanced by the comparison to the others.
Your mantra?
Melusina: Eh eh, many great quotes from famous photographer could be my mantras, but the best is by the great architect Mies Van Der Rohe. “Less is more”! However, I published a photobook where I paired some my photos to famous artists’ quotes.
Many of them could be also my mantras!
Light by Melusina Parkin
Currently, the best place for you in SL?
Melusina: Difficult to say… The best for a peaceful rest are places like The Trace or Skye Neist Point; for music, the crowded Fogbound Blues or Junkyard Blues with its taste of Southern America, or even Ocho Tango; for retro RP experiences, no doubts: 1920 Berlin; for cultural life Hotel Chelsea… I still admire the old Mont Saint Michel and I miss some great places that disappeared like Primtings Museum, Furillen, Seraph City and the former Arkansas State University with its museums and landmarks or Cecilia Delacroix’ Campus d’Art, with its dozens of art galleries.
But my love for history and retro styles makes Time Portal the place where I spend a lot of time, feeling myself at home. There I keep my Art Deco furniture store and one of my galleries, and there is the wonderful Sonatta Morales‘ store, a true gallery of retro fashion artpieces.
A question that moves you right now …
Melusina: Talking about SL, my biggest concern is about its future: how long will last this world where we have meaningful relationships, huge amounts of goods and where we spend so many hours of happy time, enjoying wonderful places and amazing events? Will it disappear in the future? How long will it be suitable for LL?
As to RL: of course the pandemic. Better, the life after the pandemic. I hope that seeing how weak and lacking of equilibrium is our world in its present shape, governors would change the “model of development” and would adopt a new one, based on the needs of the majority of the people and respectful towards nature.
Is there a work of art in your life that particularly impressed you?
Melusina: It’s difficult to say which one, among the many artworks I love, had impressed me better… but for sure the overall work by Mark Rothko opened me to the reflection on the power of pure colors and pure shapes.
Rothko paintings, considered as masterpieces of abstract expressionism, summarize my bias for minimalism and for simple but meaningful shapes.
What is art for you – now completely independent of the usual definitions?
Melusina: Art is emotion and feelings. I can’t say anything more appropriate.
The observer is the one who decides if she/he is looking at an artpiece.
Was there a key experience or has the artist profession always been your dearest wish?
Melusina: I started my SL working at a great Italian fashion brand, MEB Fashion.
I discovered that store very early, I entered it as a customer and… I never go out from there for years, becoming the manager and then the CEO. Working with the owner and designer MariaElena Barbosa I learned almost all that’s needed for an active and satisfying SL, from building to photography, from advertising to managing events…
Then I had the opportunity to meet clever models and great designers, who become also great friends.
I can’t mention all of them, but I want to remember at least the late Squinternet Larnia, Donna Flora, who unfortunately isn’t among us anymore.
Melusina: Curiosity! In it deepest meaning: understanding the reasons of the things, discovering unexpected sides of the world and of the life.
Do you feel understood with your art?
Melusina: People seem appreciating my work: my Flickr counts more than 5 millions views, clever reviewers say of my photo series exactly what I have in my mind when I take my photographs…
Yes, I think that my photos achieve their goal.
Do you think that you can make a difference with your art?
Melusina: People say that my style is unique and always recognizable… But I think that SL can rely on many great artists, and some of them didn’t achieve the fame they deserve.
Do you think that everyone is an artist?
Melusina: No, I don’t think so.
Artist is someone who is able to turn her/his own emotions to “universal” ones and to communicate that to the public. The great photographer Sebastiao Salgado, asked if he was an artist, replied: “I’m not an artist, I’m a photographer”.
I posted this quote on my profile, because I think that is the observer, the listener, the reader the one who decides if an image or a text or a music is art or not.
I just take photographs, someone can think that they are art pieces.
Do you have any role models? If yes, which?
Melusina: As a photographer, Luigi Ghirri: his lesson about the deepest meaning of the photography, his care of the lights, his “simplicity” and – last but not least – his understatement make him an unavoidable point of reference.
Melusina: Art is any creation that arouses emotions. A text, an image, a music that’s able to move our souls, to evoke memories, to show unseen and unexpected sides of the reality.
Are there any topics that you are particularly interested in implementing?
Melusina: Yes, I think that SL is a mirror of the way people perceive their real world and represent it in the virtual reality; I want to keep working on that, as I did since my beginnings as a photographer.
Urban photography is a field I want to explore even more than I did so far.
My books “City light” and “Talking City” collect some of the themes I was interested to work on. Another subject I’m working on maybe called “Almost alive” (another title of an exhibit): images of statues, fake avatars, mannequins that silently populate SL: they are made of pixels like our avatars, but they don’t act: it’s quite intriguing seeing how a virtual world mixes “fake beings” that in a photo look not different than “living beings” like the avatars. They are perfect subjects both for street and surreal photography in SL.
What is your strength?
Melusina: My best strength is being aware of my weaknesses.
What was the best advice you have ever received in SL?
Melusina: “Avoid dramas”.
SL is made to be the place of our fun and satisfaction, and that depends on the quality of people you deal with. I’ve been lucky: the majority of the people I met in SL follow that advice. I’ve to add that I owe to my best friend Laura18 Streeter advices on almost all practical and technical aspects of SL. Without her I could be still a noobie.
Your next projects, exhibitions. Where your art can be seen?
Melusina: Actual exhibition “Wandering and Watching” at Dixmix Gallery
at The 22 art Space (another collaborative work), at La Maison d’Aneli; I hope also to come back to Nitroglobus Gallery. But another project is to increase my new publishing activity: since a while I produce photobooks that collect my photos according to themes.
It’s a way to develop a more complete “talk” about a subject, going over the limits of an exhibit.
The shelves of my Melubooks shop already show almost 20 titles 🙂
She has been a fashion manager, a journalist, a furniture creator, a builder, a decorator, a teacher and a photographer. At this moment, she owns an Art Deco furniture brand called Melu Deco.
She speaks English, Spanish and Italian (her native language), understands French, a little bit of German and Portuguese. She loves blues, jazz, progressive rock, country and cabaret music.
As a photographer, she exhibited he works in many prominent SL galleries, like Galerie des Machines, The Rose, Hotel Chelsea, Nitroglobus, DixMix, in solo and collective shows. She has won prizes in some photo contest in SL and has been trainer at Visionaire Institute for Photography. Her photos and articles have been published on some SL and RL magazines, like Retropolitan, Bestyle, Esselle, Photography, Renderosity.
Her Flickr shows more than 13000 photographs and has had more than 5 mlns visits.
Extensive collections of her photos can be seen also on her blog Virtual Exhibits and on some slideshows on Youtube. Educated in Art History, Melu takes inspiration from many great painters and photographers of the past and modern times like Whyeth, Hammershoi, Hopper, Sheeler, Evans, Leiter, Ghirri, Wenders.
Her photos tend towards minimalism, which is Melu’s main inclination: simple details from daily life or usual landscapes are the subject of mostly empty scenes, stressing voids, space, geometries, lights; this reveals hidden meanings or pushes the observer to give them her/his own one.
Her favorite subjects are wide landscapes, city views, industrial environments, popular lifestyles and daily objects.
Since 2021, she started the publishing brand Melubooks, who publishes her photo book and opened a personal gallery, named Minimum. Both gallery and Melubook shop, can be reached by TP from the starting point Melu Space.
On January 5th, 2007, Bamboo Barnes logged into Second Life for the first time.
The things that move Bamboo are impatient and scary to miss. Her body is driven by art, and she doesn’t want to miss a chance to create something.
Sometimes music mixes with frustration to create something, but most just roam around in it.
This is Bamboo, her art, all of her.
Bamboo’s work is so personal, she don ‘think how will it looks like when shown to others.
She just wants to create something, no ideas, no plans.
Even when she is satisfied with the product, the feeling of happiness disappears immediately, and there remains the worry about the next job and the impatience and stress of making something a little better.
She’ll fight again in the gray mayhem, questioning what she can do to keep going.
Hoping that one day a small spark will turn into a great light to create something that will still look great a year later.
It is a long time that she avoids contact with people as much as possible, and for sure that this has influenced her art. What Bamboo hears is the nourishing music of her mind and the sounds of her breathing as her consciousness moves back and forth between the present and the past.
Bamboo wishes that the colors and compositions in her work make sense to us too, and she hopes if so that they will remain in our memories.
I am always enthusiastic about Bamboo´s work and her personality, and wish her that may there be success at every turn of life and all her dreams come true.
She manages to express feelings with her work,
to draw us into her world and takes us on a journey to new undiscovered worlds.
“I began making images in Second life in 2011 with avatar screenshots.
Seeing 3D installation works in SL in 2013 changed my art-making path completely, as I fell in love with them.
Since then, I am on my way. After 10 years I am still making images in the metaverse of SL as an artist,
I am learning and developing everyday: Art is never finished, just abandoned. The artworks in this exhibit are about my emotions which aren’t clear to see.
I hope that you will see something in them for you. Life goes on.”
Bamboo Barnes wishes to thank: “Hans Goosson for your constant support. Haveit Neox , Theda Tammas, Livio Korobase, JadeYu Fhang, Cherry Manga, Rebeca Bashly, Giovanna Cerise, Bryn Oh , Mistero Hifeng and all other 3D installation artists. Your artworks make me stay in Secondlife. Thank you to all the gallery owners and curators for your endless patience and support.”
Self–taught artist, creating digital art in virtual worlds (Second life) since 2011
Nils Urqhart joined Second Life on December 3, 2007.
French RL photographer and art collector. Nils Urqhart aka Paul C.Maurice loves to go to the mountains and old villages, always searching for the best location for the shooting.
Looking for the best lights and colors, sometimes staying several hours at the same place,and waiting for the best scenery.Often he would go back a few days later to catch the view with different weather conditions for another season.
The love for what he does, as well as a strong desire to expand contacts, show support and get artists to look for other paths than only given in RL, is omnipresent.
Nils primary goal is to share and support Real live artist in SL,as well as motivate the real life photographers to explore and join Second Life and to use the platform to exhibit their work.
He underpins this with the annual RL Photo Festival in his Second Life Gallery.
During our interview I could imagine how he wandered through the old quiet village streets in autumn or winter.
Looking at the old houses, at the mountains that surround it, enchanted by the landscape.
With his camera in hand, enthusiastic and breathless, magnetically attracted to a “certain place”
and completely in love with the “moment”.
Definitive, Nils enriches Second Life, with his work as artist as well as with his immeasurable support for Artist.
Of course, the RL artists have a lot of space to present their work at normal times, but especially in times like now, when changes are imposing on all of us due to the virus, it shows how platforms like Second Life and people like Nils necessary and hearty needed to open up for new paths and perspectives.
I am very happy to have met Nils, he is a calm and very friendly contemporary, someone who exudes friendliness and love for art with his whole being. Always withdrawn in his world and yet always with us all.
I meet them almost every year at photo festivals in RL.
Their photos are an example of what I want to do.
What is your work about?
Nils: I’m retired. 3 months each year I walk the French mountains. Mainly the Alps, Vosges, Bugey and Jura.
I take photos while hiking.
How is the artistic process like there? Do you see an object / person / landscape first and then the idea comes up? Or is it upside down?
Nils: I first go to places that are likely to interest me.
On the spot I search for the best location for the shooting.
Sometimes I stay several hours in the same place, waiting for the best light to take the picture (often at the end of the day). If the scenery is really interesting I would come back a few days later with different weather conditions, or another season.
Mainly landscapes, but also houses or objects, and sometimes animals and flowers.
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