Dulcie's Destinations: Art/Museums

Showing posts with label Art/Museums. Show all posts

Tuesday, June 24, 2014

Summer Solstice in SL

While logging in a week or so ago, I received a notecard invitation to a summer solstice celebration and thought it sounded interesting. The events were taking place over the weekend of June 21 and June 22 on the Rocca Sorrentina sim in conjunction with the Feast of St. Giovanni. I later learned that Rocca Sorrentina is a historical Italian sim, and I was pleasantly surprised at the welcoming I received from its friendly residents as well as the lovely town.

To start off my visit, I decided to embark on one of the cruises to France. I boarded one of the last ships out, as I could not get into SL until the evening. I was the only passenger, but the captain was happy to have me aboard and presented me with some background history on our ports.

After my round-trip cruise because I wanted to attend more of the solstice events in Rocca Sorrentina, I headed toward the market square and took a pleasant stroll through the pretty town. I noticed signs for the tarot card reader and found her parlor at the time indicated for the evening readings. I was a bit early, but she was there, and I scheduled an appointment. When my time arrived, I joined her in her tent and requested a 3-card reading. While there was a fee for this service, it was mostly entertaining, although some of her suggestions to me seemed accurate.

After the reading, I strolled the town some more and visited the church which was festooned with flowers and beautiful religious paintings. I also found the library that, as a librarian, I especially enjoyed with its lovely decor. Lastly, I walked among the gardens of the castle and saw the dance area set for the following day's Sunflower Ball.

I returned the following evening and joined the dancers at the Sunflower Ball. The music was enchanting, and I was welcomed by the town residents again.

I look forward to future events in Rocca Sorrentina and am told that there are numerous educational and literary ones.

Sunday, May 5, 2013

Inspiritum Inspires

One of the things I enjoy about Second Life and that I think most residents do, is its immersive environments. I recently visited a sim called Inspiritum that offers sights and sounds that are thoroughly immersive. Composed of several areas, available through teleports at the main landing point and the various locations, this sim (on the web at http://www.inspiritum.org), features art galleries, shops, and activities.

Teleport board outside the Inspiritum Gallery

Machinima inside Inspiritum Gallery

In Nat's Gallery

Behind the curtain of the Gallery is an immersive experience (you might get dizzy)

The Capple Store houses shops and pet-able animals in a Western setting

Terra is another scenic location worthy of exploring on Inspiritum Island

Friday, September 21, 2012

The New Illumination Library

It was with unexpected pleasure that I heard from Xinoxi Han recently and learned that the Illumination Library and Opera House has been reopened and moved to a new sim. There are two library buildings, a main library and a smaller Annex, both containing a highly-detailed collection of world literature and history in a beautiful setting. There is also a teleport map to other locations on the property including the Opera House where events will be scheduled and the new Biblio Shop where books and other library and home decorating items can be purchased. All proceeds from the shop and the donation boards in front of the library, go toward tier costs and programming

The Library's SL group is the Second Life Literary Foundation. Members will receive notices about updates to the collections and events. There is also a library card catalog near the entrance to the Main Library that lists titles included in both buildings. The collection includes several hundred interactive books in audio, full-text, and page-turning formats. An touch giver by the library gives out an information notecard as well as a small gift to visitors.

For questions or suggestions, contact Xinoxi Han, Director or Farzaneh Eel, Librarian & Bookmaker.

Slurl to Illumination Library: http://slurl.com/secondlife/Bloomfield/69/180/55

Wednesday, June 15, 2011

History Meets Art on Museum Island

Originally published in RezLibris Magazine
See Summer 2011 issue for Slideshow

Text by DULCIE MILLS Photos by DULCIE MILLS and CLARK ABISMO

There are so many creative sims in Second Life, but imagine one that is a museum filled with statues, buildings, and other artifacts illustrating historical places and times, all arranged artistically with gardens and other plants, walkways, and paths. Visit ancient Egypt, Rome, Babylon, and Greece by boat or walking tour or just fly through the sim. This is Museum Island, the creation of Carlolello Zapatero, an Italian builder who works with computer graphics in RL.

Zapatero joined Second Life three years ago but didn't begin work on Museum Island until last year after some people saw his builds at a sandbox and pushed him to create something inworld. "I built Museum Island to give people the chance who can't travel the world to have an idea of these beautiful ancient sites," he said. Zapatero says the most popular attractions on Museum Island include Petra, Nefertari's Tomb, Babylonia, and the Library of Ephesus, but he believes all the monuments are interesting, especially the tall ancient sundial in Rome which he says "is built seven metres under the modern city in RL."

His favorite build is the House of the Tragic Poet in Pompeii. "I painted all the walls in watercolor after I scanned them for SL," he said. "Many archeological teachers visit this house. All paints are original. I restored this home. In RL it was destroyed." Other sites to see on Museum Island include Ara Pacis (Alter to Peace); Tholos of Apollo, Delphi (Greece); Arch of Septimius Severus; Arch of Constantine; Ishtar Gate (Babylon); Canopo, Villa Ariana (Tivoli); the Acropolis; Hanging Gardens; Colossus of Rhodes; and even a pet memorial called Memory Gardens. After all the sightseeing through ancient times, you can take a nap on a hammock in the relaxing area.

Regarding what readers of RezLibris should know about Museum Island, Zapetero replied, "I hope your readers like my land. I built an ideal city with archeological monuments representative of the ancient civilizations of the Mediterranean sea." Many signs in both Italian and English describe the various builds on the sim with historical background. Zapetero's next build is the site of Abu-Simbel in Egypt, which is currently under construction.

While no formal events take place on Museum Island, there is a SL group, and art exhibits are displayed there. Zapetero wanted to thank several people who helped him with the Museum Island project: Pille Bikcin, Miky Canning, Alex Sigal, Azyxel, Rigi, Frontrunner, Vonkalbert, Roja, Manuelita, and other friends. For a place to learn about ancient history and art, Museum Island is the place to visit.

Slurl: http://slurl.com/secondlife/Sunny%20Breezes/211/151/22