noOne by Alan Sondheim

Second Life, which self-describes as a “free 3D virtual world where users can socialize, connect and create using free voice and text chat” has become artistic fodder for many artists since its inception in 2003. Not a game, Second Life has no end goal for it’s users: it’s an open-ended consequence-free alternate reality where avatars, free from earthy concerns like nourishment and gravity, can interact with their environment and community in any way they see fit.

The work “noOne” by Alan Sondheim (an official selection of the UMove Festival in the Animation/Gaming category) is an exploration of the lack of rules that exist in the virtual reality of Second Life. The piece is a record of live interactions Sondheim’s avatar had with various uploaded environments. Dance is perhaps a limited genre, as it is typically limited by the capabilities of the human body, but when the human form can fly, bend, and contort into any position the choreographer dreams of, a new set of possibilities opens up for the choreographer. Yet we hardly ever see the avatar in this work, as it is largely obscured by its environment in this piece: the near-human form swallowed by the technological environment, leaving a trail of breadcrumbs in the form of red particles through which the viewer may only hope to keep track of its whereabouts.

Dorsey's Knob by Foofwa d'Imobilité

“Dorsey’s Knob (série Second Live series)” by Foofwa d’Imobilite (official selection of UMove in the Surprise Me! category) takes Second Life as its inspiration, but places the choreography back on live performers. While the avatar inside of Second Life may not be limited by gravity or length of ligaments, the range of movement is stifled, emotion non-existent, and nuance a complete impossibility. By taking the movement language of avatars and repurposing it for performance by a live body, d’Imobilite has created a limited movement palate rife with possibility. While “noOne” relies heavily on the abstract changing environment to create movement within the frame, “Dorsey’s Knob” creates a series of static landscapes in which the robotic movement of one dancer placed next to the near non-movement of another creates a bizarrely human character study.

Perhaps where “Dorsey’s Knob” succeeds is in it’s realization that technologically enhanced worlds are only as interesting as the humans that inhabit them, and humanizing the movement language of avatars (very successfully done through micro-moments showing set-up with the dancers: they are cold, they make each other laugh), creates situations rich with metaphor.