23rd July 2008

Well thanks to PIPEX internet, who decided to terminate Spacexcape's broadband connection for absolutely no reason, the project ground to a halt on 17th July. Unable to access Second Life and not having made provision for that, the two weeks set aside to move the structure to the new sim and to start work on the next phase were completely wasted.

However, from a distance, Spacex was able to watch the stream of visitors to the installation and to read their comments and feedback. The feedback focused on the intrigue of the structure and the mystery of the space. Created to invite the intrepid explorers of Second Life to absorb themselves in an ever changing environment, Spacex was delighted to find a constant movement of groups returning and bringing new people with them. Some had even set up 'home' at the installation! Monitoring the comments, Spacex set about to work on the changes that the vistors had suggested and realised at this point how much Second Life is about the community that use it. Experiential art is perfect for this environment!

The most developed area of the installation - the 'Communication Spheres' which include the 'Dinner Party' have succeeded on a number of levels. The work to develop the ideas was a true collaboration of ideas from so many disciplines. The synergy of the work created a very unique space using the communications methods of the disciplines as the focal areas. The equations, logics, diagrams, words, quotes, dialogue and video fused together in perfect harmony and at the same time in absolute disarray. It left many visitors questionning the 'truth' of the statements.

Phase 2 will see some major changes to the structure and movement through the installation. The development of the 'Technology' sphere will be the primary focus with development of the work on the 'Inner' experience. Some very exciting script work from the guys who have worked hard at developing their ideas in Second Life, will be demonstrated.

1st July 2008

Spacexcape is open! Phase One. A new sim has been bought and the whole project will move to a new and bigger location on 1st August 2008.

Blog update coming soon.

29th April 2008
Collaborative projects are never without problems! As the team settles down and the vision develops, the problems of 'interdisciplinary' become more accentuated. The complications that arise are the source of the innovation of the project and those who grab hold of those problems are starting to understand the concept of this installation. The most significant problem appears to be the inclination to 'cross discipline' where each draws from the other, yet the experiment is dependent on new spaces being formed between disciplines. It's imperative that those who participate stay within their own discipline. The call for a structure and map for the collaborators to work against, is significant in that it indicates a confusion about the project - evolution can only be mapped after the event. It may be easier for artists to embrace this leap into nothingness, but the determination to invite the scientists and philosophers to jump alongside is stronger than ever. Saddly, the project went a little offcourse and there were victims along the way! But we stand united having learned from that experience and moving forward in a more positive direction.

13th April 2008
As the team grows and the synergy of dialogue develops with the collective minds, the ideas become more and more complex. It's immediately apparent that the script writers on the team have tremendous skills and knowledge that it might be possible to fulfill any of the 'big ideas' and therefore no idea is made obsolete until it has been fully tested and tried. There is great ambition showing here. The idea of mirror use was suggested and after some research we discovered that it is possible to have reflective surfaces in Second Life but that the success of them dependent on the individual settings on the software, thus making it problematic at this stage, but not impossible. Scale is one of the greatly utelised tools in Second Life and the idea of an Alice in Wonderland environment, with some clever scripts to help the movement through the installation, looks probable. In fact, this already exist with one of the script writers and was demonstrated to some of the team. Tunnels and chambers are becoming a very popular idea. However, all of this is so far about the aesthetics and functionality of the project. The most interesting aspect will be when the collaborators begin to seek out problems and attempt to resolve them through their own disciplines using their own languages and own tools.