The Cube Project

Ah, the lowly cube. A simple prim, we rez them and delete them without much thought. But gems in the rough they are, and lovely they can be when treated with care. Right now, twenty of the Linden Endowment for the Arts sims are covered with cubes in a sprawling artwork called The Cube Project, curated by Bryn Oh. It's a short term exhibition, only up until September 1st, so don't delay!

I can't recall a time when a singular work cut across so many regions. There's no beginning or end here—no linearity—and each sim has its own environment settings, so be sure to actually move into them rather than cam around. (And several regions need media turned on as well.)

In addition to Bryn Oh, the featured artists include Cajska Carlsson, Charlotte Bartlett, Dancoyote Antonelli, Haveit Neox, Kicca Igaly, L1Aura Loire, Lapiscean Liberty, London Junkers, Misprint Thursday, Maya Paris, Nessuno Myoo, Oberon Onmura, PatriciaAnne Daviau, Pol Jarvinen, Rag Randt, Rowan Derryth, Sea Mizin, Secret Rage, Remington Aries, Solo Mornington, Tony Resident, Tyrehl Byk, Werner Kurosawa and Xineohp Guisse.

The Great Wall of China

Amiryu Hosoi has announced that she may be forced to close down her four sims—Japan Kansai, Japan Kanto, Japan Chubu and China Sichuan—because of declines in revenue. It's never good to hear such news, especially as her firm, Hosoi Ichiba, uses its funds to keep up these sims. One which many residents have visited over the years—despite the Japanese orientation of the surrounding sims—features the Great Wall of China.

Of course, one can't build the entire Great Wall of China in a single sim, but it's a beautifully rendered place. I'm not sure one could call the sim "state of the art" these days, with the advent of mesh and more advanced builds sprouting up, but it's important to appreciate these older (and often venerated) gems. Visit the adjoining sims to see sites such as Matsumoto Castle, and be sure to visit Amiryu's shop to lend some support.

Jo Ellsmere, Pyewacket Kazyanenko and Giovanna Cerise at Split Screen

Before the month of August winds down, take time to venture over to Split Screen, curated by Dividni Shostakovich, for two exhibitions—Pardon Our Zeitgeist by Jo Ellsmere and Pyewacket Kazyanenko, and Synesthesia by Giovanna Cerise.

Pardon Our Zeitgeist, shown in the top two images, is a remarkable automated performance that repeats every 15 minutes. Using two characters, the work explores online communication and relationships, but what's really amazing to me is the level of detail in the movement that Jo and Pye were able to capture.

Synesthesia is, as one might expect, a powerfully colorful artwork. Giovanna mentions both the work of Kandinsky and Scriabin as central to the piece. Knowing the impact synesthesia had on Scriabin (and other composers, notably Messiaen), I anticipated something where sound and color were on equal footing, and found myself a bit frustrated trying to clearly hear all the local sounds in this installation. Towering above is a Promethean figure—be sure to get up all the way to the very top. If you'd like to read more about both these pieces, head over to Dividni's blog, where you'll find links to excellent reviews by Quan Lavender and arklo.

Dreaming machine #1

I've been terribly neglectful blogging about the many marvelous creations on some of the LEA sims, and now quite a few will close on the 15th to make way for new installations. One of my favorites among them is Yooma Mayo's Dreaming machine #1 on LEA 15. Yooma, who remarks that she was born on May 29th, 2007, and arrived in a sandbox on May 30th, 2007, has created a beautiful space here that towers up above the watery foundation.

As she puts it, these might be machine-like creatures or might be creature-like machines, and they inhabit a dreamy environment of contradictions. Don't miss it, and also head over to the LEA blog for a list of some of the other sim-wide art installations that will end tomorrow, several of which I've written about the past few months.

Crystall Dunes

Neva Crystall sure knows how to create a gorgeous sim, and she's opened her home for all to see, but you need to hurry—Crystall Dunes is open to the public only until August 8th. Wendy Xeno, the creator of HuMaNoiD who worked with Neva on the lovely sim Neva River, contributed the beautiful dune landscaping.

If you love water sims or beaches, this place is going to take your breath away, and it's a superb location for photography. I'll get around to posting some images on my flickr stream soon (and you can click on these to zoom in). Thanks to Neva for opening her doors and allowing us to see this enchanting little world.

Black Kite

Yesterday I stopped by Black Kite for the first time in ages, and fell in love with the place all over again. Designed and owned by black cloud (theblackcloud Oh), it's perfect for photography or wandering (black cloud's home on the northeast corner is no doubt off limits), and I love the new windlight settings here—be sure to at least be in high if not ultra graphics with your draw distance up.

It's a water sim—you can walk about anywhere or just stroll on the boardwalks. The skyline is articulated by a lone black kite flying overhead, a water tower leaning precariously on the southeast corner. Absolutely charming little structures are dotted around the sim—my favorite is the one with the mitarashi dango and tea set out to enjoy. I'll be posting some images on my flickr stream.