Arthur in Pangea, with Terra Merhyem

On Pangea Grid, there is an Art and Culture Festival going on, and to kick it off, Terra Merhyem has prepared a magnificent region celebrating the Arthurian legends, on a region called Avalon. 

Afterlife at Amerika art

Terra joined in Second Life in 2016 and immediately got started with art shows featuring both 2 and 3D art. 

She twice qualified for a sim at the LEA and in 2021 also had a SLEA region. She's had going on for thirty art shows altogether in Second Life, and has two permanent exhibitions, at The Galleries  and at The Peace Gallery 

Terra came to Opensim thanks to the art initiative Amerika Art, the brainchild of Art Blue with Juliette Surrealdreaming. You can find the installation among a constellation of important SL names like Glyph Graves, Thoth Janssen and Bryn Oh, on the Amerika regions of Craft Grid. 

If you would like to see the exhibition just go to Craft Grid, type into your Map Amerika and when you get there, look for the funky little chairs deep in the bowels of the pyramid. There are various rooms that enable you to travel to the installations, most many thousands of meters above the ground. There are plenty of installs, all following the theme of an afterlife in various ways, to choose from. It only took me about 45 minutes to find Terra's.

But worth it. Terra's build 'The Afterlife' is a spectacular sculpture soaring high up into the night sky, full of fire and energy, a bit like the lady herself, and from that positive experience on Craft Grid, great things have happened. Was it easy to connect with people in Opensim?

Terra Merhyem: I had no difficulty in participating immediately in other art projects in Opensim: I just had to introduce myself and ask. The rest came naturally: I am regularly offered other exciting works to realize and in different Opensim grids. I hope that many SL artists will become aware of the advantages of Opensim for the creation of artistic works - especially for sculptors and builders: the possibility to work in "giant" mode without having (as in SL!!) to limit themselves because of the number of prims. There is a considerable liberation of creativity and I love this! I've been in Opensim for only 18 months and I just finished my 3rd big "full sim" realization.The build Excalibur, on your region TerraMerhyem - AVALON - what inspired it?

Terra Merhyem: "Excalibur", by John Boorman (1981), based on the book « Le Morte d'Arthur (1485) of Thomas Malory. It is this film which inspired in all its parts my "Excalibur" in Pangea Grid. It is a masterpiece - beauty, poetry, violence, magic, grandeur, "breath", love, distress, music. I think I had this Excalibur in me for a long time but it would have been impossible to realize in SL. It is Opensim which allowed this realization.

Excalibur build

The opening event - which served also as the big opening event for the whole of the Pangea Art Festival, which will be continuing throughout the year - was memorable, for the choreographed dancers - involving the public in the best possible way - and the story was broadcast via Text Chat and through a musical accompaniment telling the story of each chapter in the life of Arthur.

These included memorable moments like Merlin using the Magic of the Dragon's Breath to change Uther Pendragon's appearance into that of Igraine's husband, so that and she welcomes him into the castle, and her bed. (and no, we didn't do a historic reconstruction, never fear!)

Or the moment when Arthur, now a young man of 18, has a strange vision, and sees the living Tree of Life, battles, dragons and snakes! Some time later, he walks near the rock where Excalibur is, grabs it for fun, pulls it out effortlessly and brandishes it! Excalibur is given to the young man, he will be king! The infidelity of Guinevere, the naughtiness of Morgane, the death of the King, all these classic dramas find their place in Terra's imaginative build. 

The event was such fun, beautifully orchestrated by Terra and her 'gang' of co-conspirators including Medora Chevalier, Alazi Sautereau, and Kitty Sarrasine with of course the wonderful Lampithaler Artist, heart of Pangea grid. There was a wonderful atmosphere of collaboration, kind admiration, and love of fun, making the art accessible to all and the whole experience worth repeating.

Terra Merhyem: I am fascinated by the North, the Northwest. In many traditions, that is where the dead go, but no one alive knows where the dead go, so the mystery remains. To the northwest of my Excalibur lies perhaps - somewhere inside the giant shell - the "teleporter" bringing Arthur to this "Beyond of Life", but no visitor of my installation will be able to access it, just and simply because he is alive! Is it so simple to cross this threshold? Probably not! There is a Guardian of the Threshold there, armed with a flaming sword! Another Guardian, a Goddess of the Sea, a Spirit... will these entities let everyone through? 

Terra Merhyem: It is this "place of mystery" that I find fascinating, it opens to the imagination (not only to mine but to that of each one who wants to "listen" to his imagination) of what could be - or not could be - this "beyond"... On the boat which is burning and escorted by 2 strange sea animals, Arthur - his Essence - is on his way to the threshold, and when he will dock he will go towards the "portal" to cross to go to Avalon, the Isle of the Dead What is Avalon like? I don't know yet. Maybe one day in the future, something of the nature of Avalon will appear in my imagination and then I will turn it into an artistic installation.

Terra's list of creative accomplishments is as long as your arm, ranging from photography to musical compositions. She makes immersive installations, as you see here, in her latest build called Emd of Days, also on Pangea Grid.

In Second Life, she has published six books through SchiZoid Books, starting back in 2016. 

Part of End of Days by Terra

She has an eclectic love of music, ranging from Classical works to authentic ethnic trance rhythms, has inspired her to create musical experiences.  I wondered if she has added 'musical composer' to her resume yet!
Terra Merhyem: to compose music is on my schedule since a long time, but until now, I never found the time to immerse me in such a creation. I select a choice of music to bring to life and describe the story I want to communicate. 

Terra defines her concerts as "more 'rituals' and performances than 'sets' - that's why they are called 'concerts' : I create generally special builds for them, often spectacular, and I use to invite some of the guests to dance with me on stage". 

You can find a record of some of her shows on Youtube here and here(don't forget to Subscribe!) and also follow her on Flickr.

With such a multimedia approach to art - in the virtual environment, what is the most difficult part of making such an installation? 

Terra Merhyem: The only difficulty, and it is an initial one, is to have the "idea". When the idea is there, it is the motor and everything follows. I start the work with the idea and it grows and develops - and evolves - as the work progresses. I am very concentrated when I work and concentration avoids getting upset about obstacles and therefore allows me to overcome them. In fact, throughout its duration, I "live" with and in my realization (including partly in my RL 😊 ). Then it becomes quite natural to progress in the work and I have no perception of special difficulties.

On the whole, then, what would Terra say to any creators from, say, Second Life, who are hesitant to take the plunge and spend some time in Opensim?

Terra Merhyem:  I have a message to communicate: “Come to Opensim, artists in the virtual arts! You will sometimes get annoyed by some technical problems but the creative possibilities will allow you to give your full measure on the artistic level !”

How to visit:

You can visit the Excalibur build here         pangeagrid.de:8002:TerraMerhyem - AVALON

and Terra's new build, End of Days, here    pangeagrid.de:8002:End of Days

Part of End of Days by Terra Merhyem