article courtesy Freelife Magazine

The Cannery

text and photos by Lucien Franciosa

When was the last time you went to a Second Life art gallery? And when was the last time you went dancing in SL? Yeah. Me too. And probably most of Second Life. A year ago Rezzable, Second Life’s greatest content creator both in size and imagination, placed a bet that we would go to the gallery. And by we, I mean a lot larger Second Life than that which still causes servers to buckle. Did Rezzable lose the bet? Or did we all? I invite you closer to hear of two stories in one.

The first story is one of the most elaborate picture frame ever conceived. A frame that first opened a year ago and still continues to revolutionize how we interact with art in a virtual world. Notice I did not say virtual art. The art is real. The world is… well SL. The second story is one that should be of concern to all of us. The heart beat of Second Life. The two of them, gallery and SL future are linked. Rezzable believes in entertainment on the sim scale and at one point had over 30 sims. Sims such as ‘Greenies’, ‘Crimson Shadow’, ‘Carnival of Doom’, and legendary ‘Black Swan.’ All covered in previous issues of FreeLife Magazine. All great sims. All entertaining.

The Cannery Gallery is something different, yet again. It is a venue for revolving art exhibitions featuring the known and unknown great photographers of second life. Earlier I called it a picture frame, and that it is. A sim wide theme of decaying docks, abandoned warehouses, and a rusting cannery that is in stark contrast to the beauty they contain. A sim so detailed, itself is the subject of photography at Flickr including its own group. So detailed that while there are convenient teleport paths to the different galleries when you first teleport in, I recommend wandering about and discovering it for yourself.

Across the street are the requisite brick and stone shops. Toxic, ‘Where fetish meets fashion‘, and just past the 50’s cadillacs is Poison Candy Studio. Dances are also hosted at Toxic, and when the patrons show up wearing the merchandise, definitely worth catching. The one thing I could not find is the gift shop with the art itself. It’s hard to miss the Cannery itself. Big. Cavernous Big. Most doors lead to it. The curators have kept their promise of rotating different shows through it. Currently the work of Andromega Volare can be found there. Andromega chronicles his travels through the virtual world, sharing his impressions with others in bold colors and larger than life images. A celebration of both landscapes and avatarscapes. The world of Andromega is mysterious but inviting.

The second gallery is currently hosted by both Rezzable and Koinup. There is the more conventional framing of pictures even while the roof is falling in. Work of many artists are shown and what they all have in common is quality. You won’t believe what these artists capture in their Second Life. It certainly isn’t just another mall for them. And then there is the Dagger Eye Gallery, named for the trippy entryway where you walk down a much larger than Second Life dagger and into an…. come on, guess… a giant Eye. It has to be seen to be believed. Or walked through even. And into… an amazing show of Melodious Source well worth the 100 Linden admission price. Yes, there is a price of admission. You pay to play. And that is Rezzable’s bet. That we will applaud quality. After all do we need that tenth set of Blonde hair? Second Life’s obituary has already appeared in many magazines, Wired for one, by writers that judge SL by the presence and absence of Big Business. Companies that come and go because they say their exhibits are empty. Exhibits, schmibits, who needs cooperate exhibits?

We need creativity. We need Rezzable. And yet when Rezzable says they need Lindens all the bloggers cry boo hoo. They gripe about 100 Lindens but forget about how Rezzable hosts across 4 sims one charity event after another. In the end it’s about art. The Source Within, photographed by Melodious Source is more than a slogan, the heart you get with price of admission unlocks the flame in empty warehouses to rez incredible environments which contain the art. A frame within a frame. Like the fabled holodeck, virtual worlds materialize around you. One room after another as we explore. Melodious Source is an artist we can all be inspired by. A self-described noob when she first appeared, she began with the same Torley Linden video tutorials available to all of us. From there the trail led to photo editing, and the rest is for us to enjoy.

Fantasy art lightly dancing between glamour photography and erotica. Melodious Source doesn’t break rules, she ignores them in her quest to experience all that Second Life has to give. In her art she encourages all of us to drop stereotypes and embrace the possibilities of playtime. You can see it in every soft curve and inviting pose. Melodious Source, the Dagger Eye Gallery, the Cannery and yes, Rezzable itself is a message Corporate Advertising keeps missing. Don’t let Big Business’s mistake be our epitaph. Take a break from dancing and come explore The Cannery. You can always dance there if you need to. Or skate board. Or shop. But most of all you can be inspired. Oh, and my last tip of the day. During the month of September Rezzalbe presents the Global Music Festival sponsored by Languagelab. I’ll be writing about it in the next issue of FreeLife, but go check it out for yourself. It is being hosted across more than 20 Rezzable virtual world areas… so check out the URL for the latest event. Web http://rezzable.com/special-events/global-musicfestival.

****

Thanks Lucien and Freelife! Cannery was actually our first sim in Second Life. We continue to experiment with how to present photos (=flat art) in the 3D virtual world.

Now Showing at the Cannery: Fairy Fantasy by Laura Oh! A great photography show mixing in virtual and real self-portraits.

Check here for more info about Rezzable Art Show-- some of the best on the grid!