Art in Second Life 2021 (86) “Nero” by Lex Machine

13 Sep 2021 Leave a comment

by diomitamaurer in Art in Second Life Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

I have covered Lex Machine (Archetype11 Nova)’s art installation already several time and just lately I saw the intallation “Numb” (read here). Lex told me that he also just had finished another installation at SLEA and gave me the direct landmark to it. The installation is called “Nero” and shall be open for the public until end of September.

Impressions of “Nero” by Lex Machine – overview / view at the landing point / theather and guitarist

“Nero” is an artfully arranged installation with objects from other artists and builders. Lex’s artful way to arrange the objects, to combine them, place them into different contexts and backgrounds and to build a relation between them is his particular style (which I like a lot). As for as I found out for “Nero” Lex used art and obejcts from: Rena (guraa), Rebeca Bashly, omronAK (anthonymorfy), Brotherchic (xxalexmodelxx), Chunker Chip Cookie (Jamie Rozenberg), Tah (Tahiti Rae), Alir Flow, Ness (donotgivemyself), Gwen von Aurora (Sweetgwendoline Bailey), Ganja Brune, Bryn Oh, Nams (Nama Gearz), Jogi Schultz (yogijo), Wassa (wassaabii) and Arken Soothsayer. Wow, what a long list and I’m not sure if I got them all.

I made a bird eye’s view of “Nero” and gave most objects a name. At the central landing at SLEA you can grab a notecard about “Nero” and about Lex Machine. In this notecard Lex wrote about “Nero“:
“With this arrangement I tried to tell an open ended story of 4 different perspectives: The world with evidence of it’s end standing in front of it and the reaction of being happy to just wiggle the rest of it’s sand to the bottom of the hour glass, it’s dependency upon the virtual realms of sedation and all those oh so cool different masks it lets us all wear, the dichotomy of religion….it’s nurturing nature it’s other dark sides of fear and control, and some sign of hope behind it all. At the center is something more personal…the core of what causes this brain to move in these directions. To know more of those, you will have to ask me personally. I play those truths closer to my own chest.”

Remark: The hour glasses are around the guitarist who plays in front of the theater.

Impressions of “Nero” by Lex Machine (1)

Lex Machine asked to play with the environment settings for getting different impressions of “Nero“. I didn’t do that for this isntallation but you can get quite dark or quite sunny and happy pictures when you do, it’s up to you only – so try it!

In his art installations Lex tries to come to terms with his experiences as a combat soldier, with all the misery and hardship, with the violence and with the pictures that are literally burned into his memory. Art helps him (and maybe others) to express his thoughts and to rebuild his life. I personally am always touched and intrigued by his work.

Impressions of “Nero” by Lex Machine (2)

Thank you Lex Machine (Archetype11 Nova) for another great installation. Thank you to Tansee and all others involved for curating SLEA. I did enjoy my visit.

Direct landmark to “Nero” at SLEA Region 4 NE
http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/SLEA4/131/130/23
Landmark to Second Life Endowment for the Arts SLEA
http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/SLEA7/23/26/55
Lex Machine (archetype11 Nova)’s flickr
https://www.flickr.com/photos/sorrythatnameisinuse/

Art in Second Life 2021 (84) Numb by Lex Machine

09 Sep 2021 Leave a comment

by diomitamaurer in Art in Second Life Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

When I was looking at scoop.it SL Destinations  for a place to visit on Sunday, August 29th, I came across the latest installation of Lex Machine (archetype11 Nova), named “Numb“.
Lex Machine (Archetype11 Nova) was formerly known as Schmexysbuddy Resident and created the Hotel California sims, which I visited in 2019 (read here and here). I saw Lex Machine’s installation “Isolation’s Passengers” last year (read here) and his installation Bermuda Locket earlier this year (read here). The last installation I saw from Lex was “The House that Love Built”, which I saw end of February 2021 (read here).

Lex’ installation Numb is a collection of art objects of different artists. His art is arranging them in his own way and setting them into a context and into an intriguing environment. To get an overview I once set environment to “Midday” to create an overview. But to get the full experience you have to use the shared environment. In this environment the installation is quite dark and bloody.

Impressions of “Numb” by Lex Machine – overview and first pictures

I started my visit with the blood licking heads wearing top heads. The heads as also quite some other objects in the installation “Numb” are from Stabitha (what88 zond). The bloody gears are from Noke Yuitza, an artist who I covered in the blog already. In the center is a nurse distributing pills. Put together the scene is quite depressing. It is best seen from the chess board, where Lex has placed a piano and a cello.

Impressions of “Numb” by Lex Machine (1)

Quite dominant are the flying captured hearts as if someone has ripped them off the bodies. The flying hearts are from Rebeca Bashly. And there are quite some dead bodies hanging on balloons, surrounded by dead trees. There’s also a scene with playing kids. As if they don’t mind all the misery around, open to begin something new, being just curious.

Impressions of “Numb” by Lex Machine (2)

Lex was present during my visit and I had the opportunity to talk with him. “Numb” wasn’t built with happy thoughts, he told me. Lex was a soldier and just recently lost another brother in arms to suicide. In the end more veterans commit suicide than are killed in action. They have memories of things that used to kill people and the pictures drive them nuts. Far too often the only cure given are drugs … with the known results.
Lex’ anger with that and his own struggles with recovering from what war has done to him is the basis for the “Numb“.

In the light of this background “Numb” is quite depressive, but it is also a very artful way to express feelings. Art can be healing, expressing yourself in art can be healthy: “There’s a pill for everything these days…. none of them actually cure what’s wrong”

I dicovered a little girl on the palm of a creepy figure sitting on the ground. For me the girl expressed hope and it made me smile in all this darkness.
What else? A scene with a mermaid (created by Ginger Chevalier) surrounded by floating fish. I also saw two faces by the artist Wassa (wassaabii) almost buried in the ground. I saw objects from Frank (meshmastermind), Raya Jonson, Runa (alrunia ahn), Krys (krystali rabeni), C. Edo (cory edo) and Paco Pooley. But there might be more…

Impressions of “Numb” by Lex Machine (3)

Oema (Oema Resident) made a video on “Numb” which is really very well made and she must have changed the environment setting as the pictures are quite brighter and she selected a fitting music. Great work, Oema!

Lex told me the installation “Numb” shall be available a few days more although it was already set up one month ago. I learned though that it was closed down on September 6th to make room for another temporary installation:
“I will build a short lived installation to remember 9/11/01. This event changed my life and others I know personally and I always remember it with a build every year. On 9/12 the sim will be closed again and re-opened as soon as the new build is completed.”
Hence when you go there right away until Saturday, September 11th, you can see Lex’ 9/11 installation.

“Never Forget” by Lex machine

Thank you Lex Machine (archetype11 Nova) for the installation “Numb” and for our open conversation laying out your thoughts. I did enjoy our talk and my visit.

Landmark to “Numb” by Lex Machine
https://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Solveig/103/119/22
Lex Machine (archetype11 Nova)’s flickr
https://www.flickr.com/photos/sorrythatnameisinuse/
Oema’s video of “Numb”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fkAZyOTpBTs