The Eternal Suspense

Opening tomorrow, Friday, May 15 at 1:30 pm slt is The Eternal Suspense, a sim-wide installation by Giovanna Cerise, presented as part of the LEA Artist in Residence program. It's a substantial creation that stretches not only across the sim but also 400 meters into the air, unfolding over several horizontal layers as it ascends, displaying Giovanna's typically fascinating mathematical complexity.

Whenever I talk with Giovanna about her works, her explanations seamlessly weave together the humanities with mathematics. Here, she focuses on the classic Greek dichotomy of Apollo and Dionysus, two gods often contrasted as opposites, as illuminated in the 1871 work by Friedrich Nietzsche, The Birth of Tragedy. As she explains in the notecard, "This concept linked to the interpretation of art can be extended to our daily lives. The man is poised between two or more emotions, he is always in a delicate step, in a hazardous environment. Its location is never easy, he is a tightrope imprisoned in constant tension between his Dionysian side and the Apollonian one. But you have really to choose? Or you have really to find a balance?"

Beginning at the base, we observe figures possibly emerging from the sea (or someplace below, first image above), then ascending on a lattice-like structure (second image) through a giant orb, until they encounter a white figure at the very top, who is either repelling or attracting them (third image). Ethereal columns, only partially visible, float in the space at the build's heights (fourth image). One has the option of flying up (there's an opening on the top platform — turn on the illumination of transparent prims if at first you don't spot it), or you can "teleport with the spinners." Giovanna suggests a simple Sunset windlight setting for the experience, but the linearity of her builds simply invite experimentation, and I often find that Places Wiccan is my all-around preference. The Eternal Suspense will remain on display through the month of June.