There is an absolutely terrific art exhibit happening in SL this month – the Masks! Show at Erato of Caerleon. It opened Sunday, March 29 and runs for a month. Sabrinaa Nightfire put together the show and also contributed a mask. I heard about the exhibit from Dale’s blog earlier in the week.
I had a ton of work to do this weekend, including some scripting that requires a lot of thought. So I was a bit concerned about making the opening. Openings are always fun – freebies, music, dancing, fun! But I managed to make substantial progress on everything so when 1pm SLT rolled around, I DESERVED a break!
Lucky for me, just as I decided I was entitled to play, Krissy logged on. Krissy and I have been ships passing in the night the last few weeks. Every now and then we wave and say hi, how are you, we MUST get together….. but…. well, we have not been on the same schedule. Today was our day! I IM’d Krissy and asked if she’d like to join me, showing her Dale’s post. Krissy loves art and knew several of the artists exhibiting. So we tp’d over to see the masks.
As I walked in, Sabrinaa greeted me and handed out some gifts. There was a copy of her mask as well as two wonderful tops. 🙂 Clothes!
Of course I immediately slipped one on – a gorgeous red and purple snowflake top. Well. That meant I had to change my boots too, to match. *grin* Sabrinaa has a wonderful eye for color and pattern.
Krissy and I began wandering about, starting with the three masks by Alexith Destiny. A great place to start. Each of the masks had a unique mood: earthy & upbeat, futuristic, and dread creeping up your spine. I IM’d to a friend that the one mask was downright “creepy” (and I meant that as a compliment – definitely it made the hair on the back of my neck rise). It was very powerful. I checked the name and realized that I’d gotten the message loud and clear: The Masque of the Red Death. No – I’m NOT posting a picture of the mask. Go See It.
I continued wandering about the room, admiring the masks, chatting with other people enjoying the exhibit. It really is an impressive show. It’s one of my favorite approaches to an exhibit – give the artists a theme, and see how they interpret it. The masks range from fairly straight-forward (yet elegant and detailed) to the abstract. Many of them have moving parts. Many have masks that change expression. Be sure to touch the various masks. Many of them will give you a wearable, free copy. Others are scripted for actions.
Krissy and I circled the exhibit several times, discussing the concepts and techniques. Many of the artists were there, wearing their masks. One of my favorites was FreeWee Ling’s Mask with Hud. There were different buttons on the wall you could press, and watch the mask change. FreeWee was there as well, wearing her mask. We all had a brief conversation about avatars wearing masks. *grin* An interesting concept, no? Aren’t our avatars our masks already? And yet… I’ve been invited to many “masked balls”. Masks wearing masks…
The show runs for a month. Go. It is worth the visit.
Ahuva's Blog 
Just saw your comments on my masks at the exhibit last year! Thanks so much and glad you liked em. That was a great event. Masks are such a fun subject to explore in SL.