Blueprint City

Visiting Blueprint City, a magnificent creation by Alpha Auer, prompted me to pull from the shelf my dog-eared copy of Invisible Cities by Italo Calvino, thinking that surely, somehow, one of those cities might be this one. It's a city of juxtapositions: modern skyscrapers stand tall over structures that seem to reflect the architecture of times gone by, the impersonal, bold geometric forms of the newer buildings contrasting with the fanciful minarets, pyramids, domes and irregular shapes of the older buildings below.

Or perhaps the buildings all just as new as one another: in fact there's nothing to suggest that the smaller structures, adorned with exquisite textures—elephants, Baroque cityscapes, classical façades, clock towers, and, of course, blueprints—aren't indeed an advancement over the monolithic tall buildings with which they share their space. It could be that their neighborhood is indeed the newer part of town. As we wander the streets, we notice that some of the buildings can be entered, and we gaze out upon the city through their glowing translucent windows.

"It is a multidenominational city," Alpha explained to me, "mosque, church, synagogue..." But then, as we strolled about, she seemed uncertain as to which religion one of the houses of worship belonged, as if she herself was only a visitor, attempting to unravel the mysteries of the city. On the very southwest corner stand three windmills (image immediately below—click to zoom in), and you'll have to get close to see how it is that they are: after all, it's a city made of architectural drawings. Toward the northern side, at 105,152, a concert hall silently awaits its musicians.

If you're not familiar with Alpha Auer's work, she's the creative force behind alpha.tribe, makers of fantastic avatars. In the case of Blueprint City, there's an specific avatar, called Little City, thematically connected to the build, and I'm wearing the outfit in the image below—it's available for sale at the landing point. Many more avatars are available at the alpha.tribe shop and also at their store in Insilico. They're delightful, and I encourage you to purchase them, because of course their sales help pay for remarkable creations such as Blueprint City. Alpha is working to re-develop the rest of the alpha.tribe sim (under Blueprint City), and I'll write about that soon. I'll be posting images on my flickr stream.