Art Galleries in SL

The first art gallery that I stumbled upon was a reproduction of Nicolas Schöffer’s artwork. Nicolas Schöffer was a Hungarian born French artist who died in 1992 and is considered to be the father of cybernetic art.

Schöffer believed that art must utilize the technology and materials of the time and he applied Wiener’s theories on cybernetics to illustrate a level of interactivity within his creations that the world had never before seen. I have never encountered his artwork before and it was certainly interesting! The work was available for purchase in Second Life.

The next gallery that I came across was probably is one of the most facisinating places I have come across in SL. At first it didn't seem very out of the ordinary, but the ability to purchase art here is unique. This place is known as Avatrait Gallery and displays digital impressionist artwork. The building is a dome that displays around twenty pieces of art by different artists all on canvases available for purchase.

The artwork in this gallery were all original art created in Second Life. As you can see from the snapshot you can buy the original in Second Life and when it is purchased the art is no longer able to be sold. But what caught my eye was the ability to purchase the piece in real life as well. When I touched the buy this art in RL I got this "You are about to purchase a piece of SL art, framed and delivered to you in Real Life." All you have to do is enter your name and address, then you just pay them in Second Life currency, if you have $85,000 L, which is still $340 American, ouch.

The Last gallery that I looked at is called The Raw Art & Sculptures by Colt Parx. The work here is very modern all of which was created in Second Life. It was interesting because the artist used technology to create active art.

It is hard to tell from the screenshot but these paintings were all in motion, allowing for a new perspective on art. All of the art in this gallery was available for purchase as well.

As all of the galleries I visited displayed works that were available to purchase is hard to dismiss the idea that they were manufactured for the intent to be consumed. The debate on whether or not the art industry in SL is a culture industry is kind of a double edged sword. By the culture industry I am talking about the idea that materials (in this case art) are being mass produced, ultimately creating a commodity, with the intention of keeping the upper class richer. On one side of the debate Walter Benjamin would argue that the recreation of art makes the original lose its aura. The aura for Benjamin represents the originality and authenticity of a work of art that has not been reproduced. But on the other side, art is meant to be viewed, to gain an understanding or experience, thus by being mass produced more people can be inspired by the artwork.

The second argument has validity in many cases, but for myself I don't believe it does in Second Life. Why would these pieces all be available for purchase? Especially Nicolas Schöffer's work, we can go into the SL museum and be motivated by his work. I believe that art should be consumed by a mass audience, but when its to make profit, I think that is when it is a culture industry.