Linden Village Toy Set
Posted on: April 5, 2007This, unlike most MythArc entries, is not fiction: as a healthy part of my destressing as of late, I've been relaxing in front of the computer, gazing at a Winamp visualizer while tranquil ambient music (most recently Tangerine Dream or Ryuichi Sakamoto + Alva Noto) plays. I must've listened to "Happyend" 200x in the last couple days. Speaking of couple, my lovely wife gave me some candles which have a wonderfully focus-enhancing fragrance (and they burn clean too!). I find myself being drawn into these waking day trips and feeling an inner process of navigation while I zone in. It's especially powerful when doing tasks involving a certain amont of repetition, like going through the Public Issue Tracker at work, or guiding Torley Textures to unfold. Under these conditions, I get a lot done.
I had a dream — of a texture community, where bedouin-like Grid dwellers carried satchels of textures to share. In colorful oasises dressed in a kaleidoscope of their very creations, these texture-mongers congregate, sipping refreshingly cool minted water and adjusting their cowls. In the encampments, there are canvases of a sort, on which new textures can be made, and requisite copy machines to distribute them: a Gutenberg press for these priests of paint.
The picture you see above is one taken of the Linden Village from a vantage point in Grasmere, where my inworld offices, dubbed Watermelinden Land, are. I took a raw snapshot, and decorated it through Filter Forge: I used the blissful Batik Art (one of my faves) and faded it to give the tones some veined nourishment, and also applied halo effecting for that "pop 'n' glow" effect. I darkened the sky to what might have been depressing proportions, were it not for the "new sun" coming out of the upper-left. The only part I'm not really happy about was the relatively steep cutoff of the vignette effect near the top, and how it doesn't quite blend with the sloped gradient in the upper right.
When you click through and look closely in the bigger-size version, you can see some blur in the distance. This was intentional, because I've been interested in "tilt shift photography" to simulate miniature models. It's something I really haven't seen done before in Second Life, and synthetically, I'm up for it.
Consider this a taste of newer directions I've been moving in: pardon me that Torley Textures LUSH has been delayed, but good news here; it will be joined by friends. More on that to come in the next couple of weeks or so as I find time to birth more textures, wrap up loose ends, and explore the ongoing threads and thoughtlines happening here.
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April 6th, 2007 at 1:26 AM PDT
Excellent choice of music, Torley. May I ask what Tangerine Dream tracks you have been listening to? And many thanks for the Sakamoto link - I shall be watching many more of those videos in the coming days
April 8th, 2007 at 9:33 AM PDT
@Phoenix: Certainly! In particular, I've really been enjoying the early albums Phaedra and Rubycon. "Love on a Real Train" is always a suave fave, as is "The Dream Is Always the Same". I also like the remix of "LoaRT" titled "Floating Higher" from Dream Mixes IV. The first Tangerine Dream album I actually listened to was Dream Mixes (the first). Which ones do you like?
The Alva + Sakamoto album Insen and their other fruitful collaborations are treats to behold.
April 13th, 2007 at 12:17 AM PDT
I believe the first Tangerine Dream album I ever heard and then bought, was Rubycon, closely followed by Tangram. I have a lot of their early albums, though sadly most are on vinyl and I don't have a record deck at the moment - there was a time when that would have been unthinkable to me!! From the later, possibly more commercial albums I like Tyger, Lily on the Beach and (possibly my favourite) Le Parc.
It's only since reading your blog and listening to your piano music, that I have realised how little I listen to this type of music nowadays, which is a great shame as I find it inspiring, uplifting and just downright beautiful! So, I shall be making a concerted effort to dig out some Tangerine Dream, Philip Glass, Jean-Michel Jarre, Vangelis and some of the classical/choral pieces I love ('Ode to Joy', The Planets, Elgar, Mozart) and spend some quality time rediscovering them. I think this is a very good time in my life to be doing this and I thank you Torley, for giving me the nudge I needed to do so
April 15th, 2007 at 7:08 AM PDT
@Phoenix: I love how choice ambient music can set the tone of, and enhance your daily activities without overwhelming it. Tangerine Dream are amazingly prolific (granted, it's been Edgar Froese with a rotating cast incl. family throughout the ages).
I know all those artists you named, they're also among my favorites… brings back good memories of even more like Kitaro and Tomita! Electronic pioneers. There's also the warm analogue sounds of the 70s which more recent releases have turned towards to emulate.
And you're most graciously welcome!
April 15th, 2007 at 11:46 AM PDT
How could I have forgotten Kitaro and Tomita!!!! Thank you Torley - I shall add them to my list