FOCUS Magazine is happy to announce that on Friday, June 5th is the amazing Exhibitions Opening at Focus.
EXHIBITIONS DJ’S & LIVE MUSIC
12pm ~ 2pm SLT
-ڿڰۣ-Avalon Boa -ڿڰۣ- (avalon.bouvier)
6pm ~ 7pm SLT
Icecremn Merlin
7pm ~ 8pm SLT
Female (female.winslet)
JUNES ARTISTS ~ FOCUS GALLERY
Tweeko
“I like taking photos, most often inspired by a story, a song, my imagination, a fantasy, experience or maybe your story. I tend to be attracted to deep emotions, sadness and eroticism and sexuality in my photos. I’m not necessarily feeling that specific feeling I’m trying to display in a photo just at the moment I took it, but it’s all familiar feelings to me and part of who I am.“
“If you would like to something with me, feel free to talk to me about it – who knows, maybe we could create a cool picture together 🙂“.
I have two favourite animals – penguins and meerkats.
I like lighthouses very much, I visit them, research them, take pictures of them.
I love languages and understand/speak 6 languages that are English, Danish, Norwegian, Swedish, German and some Faroese.
My favourite colours are green and deep red.
I’m a book worm and read at least 3 books a month.
A cute little odd fact. I don’t like roofs and walls in Second-Life at all. I need open spaces and lots of room to do my things. I go nuts if I see walls every time I turn lol
FOCUS Magazine & Gallery now has a page on SocialVR.me, which is a network almost exactly like Facebook for avatars and businesses in SL. I’ve heard that Facebook doesn’t much like having avatars as part of their database and regularly has major sweeps of deletions, or disables things like Flickr-to-Facebook abilities. I presume their reasoning is that they want to compile (and sell) our RL photos and information, but if their information is impure because of avatars and aliases, they can’t guarantee to their clients that everyone who has an account in Facebook is a potential paying customer. Though there may be more to it than that.
The term “Social VR” means any virtual reality experience that is shared between two or more people. As people become more aware of SocialVR.me, this could potentially stand to rake in thousands of avatars from many different games. I don’t know a ton about it yet, but Athayus Quan is the founder and he personally invited me to join and create a page for FOCUS (after Avalon Bouvier-Boa introduced us).
Doc and I both attended DJ Avalon’s Disco Party at Elysium. A bunch of folks from TSFTG were there doing dances like “the hustle,” and I struck up a conversation with Doc. Angie was shooting pics, so I took the opportunity to “photo bomb” him! He has some interesting outlooks and we had fun discussing TSFTG on the dance floor!
Greg: Where are your favorite spots to take photos?
Doc: I have an unusual technique. After more than 12 years of landmarking and forgetting why I did so, I sometimes zip around what I call ‘the cemetery’ and maybe after 30 or 40 places among my landmarks of long ago I hit gold. I wander around a ‘cool place’ just seeing what catches my eye, and then I zoom in like a primitive hunter out stalking. Snap, snap, snap.It’s a lot like my yearly adventures backpacking in Colorado.
Greg: What inspires you most in your SL?
Doc: Everything in SL inspires me. For me Second Life is more truly my first life. It’s my kind of crazy. If it offered the senses of touch, taste and smell, I’d leave RL without ever looking back. I’m not ‘on the market’ but talking with and understanding women in SL in depth is something I really find mind-expanding. My RL ‘conversations with ladies’ always seem to end in boring platitudes and superficiality. Not so in SL.
Greg: How has TSFTG benefited your SL?
Doc: What a list! I’ve broadened out meeting people (and I tend to be a one-on-one person so that’s new). I have been dragged – happily – into renewing my love affair with art and photography, begun when I was 9 or 10 years old. TSFTG has let me see new sides of people I know. I just love to be around people and learn about them. And once again, I’m in an orderly world (TSFTG) where I can find meaning and purpose. This group means a lot to me. It’s like arriving in a mountain mining town after days of solo hiking, and finding a sandwich shop that serves coffee.
As I was out celebrating the US Memorial Day when I noticed Yoh Boa — one of our TSFTG members — dancing away. It was a great fotobomb opportunity seeing how his wife, DJ Avalon, was spinning tunes to the packed crowd. I took some time to catch up with Yoh as I crept up behind Avalon’s tip jar…
Greg: Yo, Yoh! (editor’s note: Greg totally got that from Angela) Nice to see you here on this fine Memorial Day!! Tell me, where are your favorite spots to take photos?
Yoh Boa: Well, I’m an old SL surf bum. I’m drawn to the ocean, so I love to take beach and surf photos. Avalon and I just did a blog and took some pictures at Kia Kaha.
Greg: That’s awesome – I saw a few of those photos on your Flickr page! What’s your favorite place to shop?
Yoh Boa: Other than Cabela’s? Oh, you mean in SL! I’m kind of a Cold Ash fan. Shopping may not be on my top 5 list in SL though 🙂
Greg: Haha of course. We’re guys! So when you have free time, what things do you like doing most?
Yoh Boa: Avalon and I have been building out a sim. It’s called “Mon Joli Cadeau.” Our vision is a classy place for couples in a Paris setting. We are also planning an art exhibit and gala for July. It’s been a blast! Avalon does most the creating, and I hold the toolbox and blueprints.
Greg: Sounds amazing! What else inspires you most in SL?
Yoh Boa: AVALON! I’ve been in SL for 12 years and most of that time lived a quiet surf life with close friends. I come from a technology background in RL so the graphics, photography, and creativity always intrigued me. Now that I have more time, and have an amazing creative wife, I am enjoying learning photography. I have a long way to go, but it’s been fun to learn.
Greg: Well, you’ve really come a long way. Those classes at FOCUS are paying off! Finally, how has TSFTG benefitted your SL?
Yoh Boa: We are both pretty new to TSFTG and have been introduced though DJ gigs. What a fun and nice group of people! Patrick and Angela are very warm and welcoming, and I think they model that for the rest of the group. Kindness is addicting and FOCUS is all about that. Greg: I couldn’t agree more! Thanks for your time and we look forward to seeing more of you at FOCUS and TSFTG events.
Greg: I couldn’t agree more! Thanks for your time and we look forward to seeing more of you at FOCUS and TSFTG events.
Avalon has become a staple at FOCUS events. If you don’t already know and love her, she’s the voice that sweetly asks you to remember to vote, or to visit the featured photographer’s exhibit in the gallery. She’s a dear friend and super DJ. And, here, we get to know her a little bit better!
Angela: As a DJ, you know what music you like. If you could have lunch with any musician from any era, who would it be?
Avalon: We may not agree on everything, but people can come together in our love of music. As it does for most people, music speaks to me and moves me. SL has given me an opportunity to enjoy and discover music. My first love is blues, but having to choose one artist to have lunch with seems impossible. So, music is about a party, and a party it shall be! I would bring together a GROOVE of musicians and throw a party, not a lunch! Wouldn’t it be amazing to have Mozart and Prince in the same room? Maybe even doing an impromptu jam session? Marilyn Manson said ““Music is the strongest form of magic.” The whole party would be MAGIC!
Angela: What do you enjoy being a DJ?
Avalon: The creativity of SL is key to why we all become so addicted! I have been a manager, hostess, owner, creator, decorator and a DJ. The ability to be creative is endless! In RL, I was a high school teacher and certainly spent many hours talking and sharing. Being a DJ in SL gives me the ability not only to share music, but to talk with people from all over the world and all walks of life. For me, the most significant aspect of being a DJ is the interaction with others. I love to get requests and dedications, and to share new music with others. I especially love being able to create a themed set for a party. DJing has been my favorite adventure in SL!
Angela: How did you learn about SL?
Avalon: I have asked so many people this question! I remember watching a C.S.I. episode in 2010. It was a re-run but it involved a murder in SL. The investigators created avatars and came in world to hunt down the murderer. I had never heard of virtual worlds before and it intrigued me, so I logged in. August 9, 2010 is my REZ day and I have been completely immersed ever since.
Angela: How did you first discover you had a talent for photography?
Avalon: I have always admired photographers in SL. I love to take pictures in RL and have several framed in my home. Taking pictures in SL is truly an art and has steep learning curve. I admire so many artists here and have only just begun my journey. I’m so grateful to those that share their secrets and ideas. The collective spirit of “I’m Too Sexy for this Group” has been refreshing. Often in SL, ventures are extremely competitive, so I appreciate the encouragement.
Angela: Do you have any favorite places to take pics or favorite windlights?
Avalon: The grid is your oyster! So many amazing places to explore,
“Congratulations! Today is your day. You’re off to Great Places! You’re off and away! You have brains in your head. You have feet in your shoes. You can steer yourself any direction you choose. You’re on your own. And you know what you know. And YOU are the guy who’ll decide where to go.” ~ Dr. Seuss
I’ve been so blessed to have people send me places they found inspiring and I have been methodically trying to see them all. This world is exploding with potential! I love to try different windlights but need to keep better track of those I use the most. I wish there was a way to write on the back of the photo the settings I used!
Angela: What inspires you in SL?
Avalon: Other people inspire me! It’s the collective imaginations that catch my breath. A world where everything that exists is built by the users is amazing. What a delight to the senses, with never ending possibilities. So, creating is a great outlet for my imagination and it so relaxing. When I get into creating, I get lost in my imagination.
Angela: And lastly, how has TSFTG (Too Sexy for this Group) affected your SL?
Avalon: I was brought to the group through my good friend, Greg. I first met Angela and Patrick when they attended a disco party I was DJing, and they quickly invited me into their world. I have since then DJed several opening parties for their gallery and attended photography classes. I have also been blessed to meet so many others in the group and love the artistic sharing that happens every day. I am so excited to learn more and grow as a photographer.
Avalon DJ’s at most of FOCUS’ events, but you can also find her around the grid and, lately, at Big Daddy’s 80’s Club. Visit her at her SocialVR site.
June is a great month. For most of us in the northern hemisphere, it means school is out, the days are long and the weather is warm. The name comes from Juno, the Roman goddess of marriage and fertility. That may be why June became a favorite month for weddings. In much of the southern hemisphere, it’s time for open fires, warm cuddles and bingeing on Netflix!
As I write this, there is a new moon in the night’s sky — that sliver of promise that the full moon will reliably appear again soon. There is a feeling of wonder, of safety in certainty, but also an underlying uneasiness about how much we don’t know and may never understand about the moon. Or life for that matter.
CybeleMoon’s photography evokes a similar feeling. Her photography is undeniably beautiful, but beneath the surface, if you dare to look, we are given a foreboding invitation to look through a keyhole into her dreams. If we let ourselves be hypnotized by her details, we experience the surreal, the possible, the impossible. Through her jewel-toned hues, we can hear the ringing of love’s distant echoes, but she also reaffirms the serenity of our own heart’s abiding hope. If you can, please stop by the gallery.
We are also featuring DJ Avalon Boa – a good friend to TSFTG and our usual DJ at events. Even more than the artists, or the curators of the gallery and magazine, everyone knows her name and hears her voice as the gallery’s welcomer. In this issue, we learn a bit more about her and her busy SL. Please enjoy this issue!
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