Anchorage Daily News

At the gallery opening May 12, art lovers sipped wine and munched on chips and salsa. They soaked in a black-and-white winterscape by Anchorage photographer Hal Gage and read about Ron Senungetuk's beginnings as a young artist at the Bureau of Indian Affairs school in Sitka.

They shared reactions, even debated a little about the artworks' merits.

And they did it all in cyberspace.

The Rasmuson Foundation Gallery of Alaskan Artists -- a wall-less, three-story gallery on top of a virtual mountain -- marks the first time an arts-related Anchorage organization has established a presence in Second Life, an alternate, Internet-based reality.

About 20 million people have created virtual personas, known as avatars, in Second Life. Their avatars can do anything they can do in their first life: watch "Gossip Girl," play soccer, shop for shoes or have a one-night stand.

Then there are the Internet-only perks, which include flying, defying the laws of physics and trying out life as a different gender or race or as something other than human. Avatars can look like anything -- one artist's avatar is simply a pair of bare feet, with shoelaces woven into his skin.

The alternate reality has become a haven for musicians, theater artists and visual artists because the overhead is low, the opportunities for viewer interaction are heightened and the possibilities are endless. The avatars of Second Life performance artists are particularly daring, sending ostriches running through virtual Miami nightclubs, even committing suicide.

Second Life hosts more than 1,000 art galleries, according to Richard Minsky, who publishes Slart Magazine, which covers the Second Life art scene. The world has its own art stars, including Cao Fei (avatar China Tracy), who recently sold a virtual-art piece to a private collector for $100,000. Yes, real dollars.

The Rasmuson Foundation hopes its Second Life gallery will help introduce Alaska artists to new audiences, especially people who live outside Alaska.

"We like experimenting," said Jeff Clarke, vice president of the foundation (avatar Jeffronius Criss).

"We're always looking for different ways to call attention to the good works of our grantees. ... It's just another medium to do that."

The Rasmuson Foundation pitched its gallery on a plot of land in Second Life that's owned by the University of Alaska Fairbanks (which has yet to develop its site). The gallery sits on top of a mountain, and a sea sparkles below. Larger-than-avatar photos of visual art hang midair on the first two transparent floors, and a third-floor lounge invites avatars to hang out. Music by Philip Munger plays in the background. Behind the art, virtual snow falls.

For artists who don't do 2-D visual art, presentation varies. A poem by Jerah Chadwick is carved into a tower so avatars can fly up and down to read it. A short film by Nicholas Galanin streams on the second floor.

Avatars can click on each artist and view a note card that gives information on the artist and the piece.

"People may scratch their heads at first, but it gets their attention," said Aliza Sherman Risdahl, who designed the Rasmuson gallery. "You get to tell your story your way, and there's no limits, no boxes or walls. You can literally create whatever your imagination can come up with."

Risdahl (avatar Cybergrrl Oh) is an Internet strategist, multimedia content developer and owner of Moonbow Productions Inc. She's also a Second Life entrepreneur whose ventures include real estate development and clothing design.

She said the gallery will morph regularly. For instance, sculptures that are depicted in photographs right now could be built to have a 3-D presence, so avatars can not only walk around a sculpture but climb inside it or fly through it. Eventually, Rasmuson will invite its grantees to do performances in the gallery, which could include live concerts, lectures or dances.

Right now, the gallery only features Rasmuson's individual artist grantees from this year and last. There are about 120 other grantees the foundation would like to add.

Clarke said that, at the gallery's opening reception, several avatars asked if the Rasmuson Foundation would ever consider giving a grant to an artist working exclusively on Second Life.

"My answer is, as long as they're Alaskan residents, absolutely. I don't see why not."

Find Sarah Henning online at adn.com/contact/shenning or call 257-4323.

How to find the gallery

If you already have an avatar in Second Life, search for "Rasmuson Foundation Gallery of Alaskan Artists" or go to slurl.com/secondlife/Rhetorica/185/237/44

If you've never used Second Life, you'll need to visit secondlife.com, where you can download the software, set up an account, choose a name and create an avatar. The software and a basic avatar are free. If you want to do things like expand your wardrobe or build a house, it usually will cost you. About 250 Linden Dollars is equal to $1 in "first life."

Cool destinations

For a sampling of offerings in the Second Life art world, plug these into your search engine:

The SL Globe Theatre: Live performances of Shakespeare plays inside a reproduction of the Globe Theatre.

Arthole: This gallery features art exclusive to Second Life, focusing on 3-D and interactive pieces.

Second Louvre Museum: A huge replica of the original building that houses important artwork in Second Life history. Imagine sculptures of Greek athletes that can balance on just their fingertips.

Phat Cat's Jazz Club: Enjoy the old-school ambiance and listen to the jazz jams, or grab a partner and take a twirl.

Second Life lingo

Avatar: Graphical representation chosen by the user. Avatars usually appear human but can look like animals and objects as well. If you want to look like a sasquatch in Second Life, you can.

First Life: The life your mama gave you, the one in which you probably don't look like a sasquatch.

Linden Dollars: The currency used in Second Life. About $250 Lindens are equal to $1 in first life. Lindens are used to buy things like land and clothes in Second Life. Entrepreneurs who design things like consumer goods or homes in Second Life get paid in Lindens, then use an exchange within Second Life to filter that cash into American dollars.

SLURL: Works the same way a URL works on the Internet. For example, if an avatar has the SLURL for the Rasmuson gallery, the avatar can plug it in and coordinates pop up that allow the avatar to "teleport" to the gallery.

Tips for Second Life first-timers

Daily News blogger, Internet strategist and Second Life entrepreneur Aliza Sherman Risdahl has this advice for getting started in Second Life.

Pick a destination

Your newborn avatar ends up on Orientation Island, which can be a confusing place. Before logging into Second Life for the first time, pick a destination and use a SLURL (a Second Life URL) to get there. Possibilities include the Rasmuson gallery or the Virtual Iditarod.

Read about Second Life

You can learn more about what Second Life has to offer and identify interesting destinations by reading a Second Life blog, such as SLNN.com or CNN's SL iReport (secondlife.blogs.cnn.com).

Join a group

Use the search function to find a group of like-minded people. If you'd like to meet up with other Alaskans, try the group Alaskans in Second Life, run by Aces Spade.

Make a friend

Search for Cybergrrl Oh (my avatar) and send me an instant message within Second Life to say hello. Or stop by my island, Athena Isle, and see what events are coming up.

Aliza Sherman Risdahl writes the AK Tech Girl blog for the Anchorage Daily News. Find her at adn.com/aktechgirl

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