Showing posts with label Rose Borchovski. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Rose Borchovski. Show all posts

Sunday, January 26, 2014

Challenging the Venerable Ms. Oh

As I was busy cleaning up a part of Southern Charm yesterday in preparation for Mirco Dinzeo moving in, my client the scary Ms. SaveMe Oh snuck up on me and almost made me soil myself.

For those who do not know Ms. Oh, or do not know off her, she is an extraordinary performance artist, machinima maker and general nuisance in SecondLife who has gained a reputation for getting banned and ejected all over the grid by meddlesome busybodies who do not appreciate her outspoken manners and her attempts at "invigorating" exhibitions, concerts and events that fail to meet her high standards by taking over with one of her own ad hoc performances. For some reason the two of us have, however, always gotten along famously and she has honored me by appointing me as her legal counsel.

At first we said nothing at all, as SaveMe first walked around me in circles pretending not to notice me and then tried to hide from me while I was busy keeping an eye on her activities. Finally I broke the silence and bid her welcome back to Southern Charm (She had been there the evening before for a concert by Ultraviolet Alter in a sim-covering and colorful installation by Betty Tureaud).

She was telling me about her trials and tribulations in the narrow minded art world of SecondLife and that she was now contemplating making one last dramatic manifestation by hanging herself in one of my - according to her - far too many trees.

I was moved by her story and after having begged her to find somewhere else for "the final performance" I sent her a hug-request, which she - after several questions, much hesitation and me calling her out as a coward - finally accepted.

During our encounter my Tomais had snuck in unnoticed and was sitting and watching us from the gazebo. When I saw my lovely husband I ran up to him and happily greeted him with a hug too.

Tomais and I had a busy day scheduled so we said our goodbyes to SaveMe and left her to her own devices at the skating area. She seemed quite happy and was entertaining herself with a light show.
(You can read SaveMe Oh's own account of our encounter on SaveMe Oh's Weblog: Hiding At My Lawyers (url).)

Sunday, June 20, 2010

Susa Bubble: The Art of Rose Borchovski


Susa Bubble: The Art of Rose Borchovski from Larkworthy Antfarm on Vimeo.


Ojdå, avatarerna är nakna! Hur upprörd blir du på en skala?

Censurskandal i SL!

...och jag som trodde att jag skulle lugna ner mig hos Apmel Goosson, naturligtvis tog jag helt fel.

Apmel har ju en sagolik förmåga att peka på saker som oroar, berör och upprör. Läs mer om Linden Labs övergrepp att stoppa konstverket nedan från en pågående konstutställning i SL på "Min avatar heter Apmel". Där finns dessutom flera ytterligare intressanta länkar.



Det av Linden Labs stoppade konstverket "Kiss" av Rose Borchovski


Motiveringen som Linden Lab lämnade för att stoppa konstverket var: “The images on your build are in violation of our general rating, to be clear: Nudity is not allowed at art events with a general maturity rating.”

Detta är ett upprörande övergrepp på yttrandefriheten och den konstnärliga friheten! "Den djävligt gapiga minoriteten" (som ibland kallar sig "The silent majority") synes ha fått genomslag hos det räddhågsna Linden Lab!

...och jag är minst lika upprörd att jag inte fick reda på att protesten mot Lindens övergrepp skulle äga rum, jag hade velat vara där!

P.S. Att jag inte fick reda på protesten visade sig nu bero på att jag inte var inne i SL, Apmel berättar nämligen att han spammade svenskchatten (Swedish People in SL) så mycket han vågade - och han brukar våga mycket!

P.P.S. Jag beslutade mig också för att lägga in regissören Peter Greenaways protestskrivelse till Linden Labs här!

"Dear Courtney Linden,

As a reaction to the rejection of Rose Borchovski ‘s art installation : The Kiss at the Celebration Sim, I would like you to read this.

It seems to me incredible that you are enforcing censorship concerning nudity in public forums on Second Life.

Traditions of nudity in Western Art have for centuries been legitimate, honourable and creditable.

The cyperspaces of Second Life - and Second Life has so far proved itself to be among the very best of such events - are among todays' cutting edge of visual languages - continuing an enviable tradition of new technologies in the visual arts now that the orthodox cinematic arts are proving themselves moribund and archaic, and enforcing new efforts to avoid artistic elitism and the encouragement of egalitarianism in artistic expression Any artist worth his or her salt, always must engage in contemporary technologies - it has been the very reputable tradition of the most worthwhile artists that has benefitted us all. Visual artists have always taught us to look. The man-made world owes them everything.

Just because you have eyes does not mean you can see. And the political and social emancipation of the naked and the nude by artists has been essential for humanist civilisation - it has given you and me great liberalities of thinking and self-respect.

Whatever else you think you may be doing with Second Life, you have created a very sophisticated tool that combines traditions of painting with cinema and the graphic arts in present tense terms that permits visual expression of language like never before. Do not underestimate what you have created - but to remain creditable you simply cannot enforce reactionary hypocritical standards that have been so discredited over the last five hundred years.

Like any self-respecting artist of course I am against gratuitous exploitation that demeans and insults intelligence and sensibilities but by your blanket censorship you are now doing both those things - insulting artistic intelligence and demeaning sensibility.

I suspect you are responding to pressure, to some form of mind-police, certainly to some form of political correctness that is related to money and the slow swing to the political right that is happening all over the world related to civilisation's fear of financial insecurity. Don't go that way. You are endangering a tool that is greater than you.

When the cultural histories of the early 21st century are written from hindsight, you will undoubtedly find the possibilities and successes of Second Life being eminently lauded and praised. Too many art forms in the 20th century have been stunted and deformed and deflected into ineffectuality and banality by small mindedness. If you really insist in so-called protection of innocence (and I really wonder what that really is - is it a synonym in fact for ignorance and intolerance?) then do so on a careful case by case basis with intelligence and foresight. This will be troublesome for you to do, if you want to do it well. But it will be very well worth your while,

Yours, hoping you will see sense, and not be influenced by short-term gain.
Peter Greenaway, film-maker."

Censorship always sucks, Linden Lab, but this was totally outrageous!