Tosha's Bilbao Wow

Wow, just like that, from Louisiana to the northern coast of Spain, and some of the most interesting modern art remade in the virtual, all thanks to the spectacularly talented Tosha Tyran. Craft grid veteran and self-confessed 'bricklayer' Tosha has created some of the most amazing opportunities for opensimmers who want to tour world heritage sites without ever leaving the house. From her Taj Mahal to the Hopi Indian village, her interest in architectural heritage is truly global. We arrived on sim The Caravan on craft to a nice welcoming bit of graffiti on the plaza. 

Thirza Ember: i find it so fascinating how art could change a city and change people's lives

Tosha Tyran: yes! for example that wonderful Zubizuri, and all the new metro stations, they really are like this, and a new university building, and a lot of art and theater and music all over the city of Bilbao.

Forest Azure: was fighting with the terms of agreement

Unadecal Masala: having to sign gdpr... for what, there is no personal information collected beyond an avatar name, a mac address and an IP address. People need to get off thinking that an IP address is in any way private information

Lucy Afarensis: what is a GDPR ?

Tosha Tyran: German Democratic Peoples Republic

Martin Eccles58: EC regulations I think?

Unadecal Masala: It's the european data protection law, it governs privacy issues

Thirza Ember: It's this . The first of the Key Provisions is the one that affects - or doesn't affect - opensim. Ask a lawyer lol.

As usual on Safari, there's a lot of 'hello'-ing and 'oh wow'-ing and 'hey, I didn't see you before, nice outfit'-ing as we all acknowledge each other. Lucky Tosha is patient! Particularly wintery looking in mesh clothes that she is famous for making, was Taarna Welles, looking toasty.

cozy hat, Taarna!

Tosha Tyran: well... is everybody here? welcome to alll of you :)

James Atlloud: Now I admire Dabici's segway.  OH i see them!

Tosha Tyran: to move around on the region here you can use the segways or the bicycles or your feet of course

Dabici segways over to the Guggenheim

Tosha Tyran: I would suggest you follow me on the white bridge - one of the builds that Bilbao acquired following the Guggenheim.

The Zubizuri bridge. Its name means 'white bridge' in Basque.

Tosha Tyran: the bridge was built in 1997 by Calatrava, a very cool spanish architect

James Atlloud: The grounds are awesome.  What a fun walk

Tosha Tyran: we should take the Metro to go the guggenheim, the green button is the right ticket :)

Thirza Ember: They let segways on the metro? cool!

The story of how the city of Bilbao got a new lease on life, shedding its polluted and rundown past and acquiring a reputation for being a youthful, vibrant, successful city full of world class art, is one you may have heard recently if you attended the Hypergrid International Expo, where Tosha gave a very interesting talk in Spanish about both her virtual build and the rl story behind it. You can watch a video of her talk here, and if you don't speak Spanish, Youtube supplies subtitles in the language of your choice.   

Arriving at the Guggenheim Museum

Thirza Ember: is that a cat?

Tosha Tyran: it is supposed to be a dog, the most well-known dog in spain, I think :(

James Atlloud: I sit.  Therefore I am.

James sits on Spain's famous floral Puppy

Not that you'd notice, but there was just a little hiccup before we arrived on the region.

Tosha Tyran: phew, 10 minutes before the safari I deleted part of the build

Taarna.Welles: Oh no!

Tosha Tyran: oh yes - it was horror

James Atlloud: We've all been there I think Tosha.

James Atlloud: This is super realistic.  And a sense of Deja Vu from the model that was at HIE.

Tosha Tyran: well frankly the inside of the build has nothing to do with the real thing, it is just... well, what came out when I was working on the outside

Nara Nook: really amazing. I'd never get to visit the real one. SO glad this is here.

James Atlloud: Interesting - you could have fooled me to believe it was actuality.

Thirza Ember: hehe yeah because the guggenheim has the Safari calendar on display

The interior of Tosha's Guggenheim includes both Picasso on the left and on the right, the 2024 Opensim Calendar, featuring many of your favorite Safari heroines and their builds!

Tina.Bey: :)) excelente Tosha!!

Tosha Tyran: of the few things I have in here, you find notecards about them if you like. What I find crazy is that there is actually a street crossing the real building

Kelso.Uxlay: shouts: A piece of art

James Atlloud: Yes Kelso

Thirza Ember: did you ever spend much time in Bilbao? or is this work mostly research from a distance?

Tosha Tyran: I spend 1 year in Bilbao researching on the history of ETA, and I spend I don't know how many hours in the museum :D, I really didn't care so much about the exhibits inside - I just loved the building itself

Kelso Uxlay: shouts: Sorry about the shouting, I just can't find how to disable it

Forest Azure: lol, shouting about shouting :)

Dabici Straulino: what did you say  Kelso ?

James Atlloud: ha ha ha

Thirza Ember: this place must have puzzled the locals when they were building it, it doesn't look like a 'real' museum

Tosha Tyran: really, the people were disgusted in the beginning - outraged!

James Atlloud: I can believe that.  People general do not like change.

Tosha Tyran: but now they love it - naturally.  Will you come with me to the wind comb? it is not really in Bilbao - but it is fantastic... 

The 'Comb of the Wind' is a late 20th century collection of sculptures by Eduardo Chillida, three of which were arranged as an architectural work by the Basque architect Luis Peña Ganchegui at La Concha Bay, San Sebastian. That's about 90 minutes east of Bilbao, further along the coast of the large and famously stormy Bay of Biscay.

Tosha Tyran:  This is a work by my very favorite artist

Tina Bey: wauuu!! magnifico

James Atlloud: Does metal sculpture come out of the rocks above?

Tosha Tyran: the comb - the metal constructions make a crazy sound when there is a lot of wind and the water is being pushed into that thing outside which pushes wind up through the holes, and if you come closer you can hear the wind howling, and in RL it makes your hair stand up if you bow your head over it, it is fun and amazing

Wind and sea spray shoot out of these holes to create the 'comb of the wind' 

James Atlloud: Is the sound we hear from it? I'm in the air somehow.

Thirza Ember: James is floating on hot air

Tosha Tyran: maybe sitting on it?

James Atlloud: I just walked over it. Lucy too. Usually this happens when I speak -- lots of hot air.

Tosha Tyran: the artist is Eduardo Chillida he really is a gigantomaniac, I put some more of his artworks into the park, and I made them a little adventurous...

Another artwork by Basque sculptor Eduardo Chillada

The red arrow on the side of a rusty tower, almost looking like a heart seen through the eyes of cubism, takes you up to a skybox full of sound and color, capturing something of the world of Basque music, which is a world as tiny as it is vibrant and mysterious.

Thirza Ember: great sounds!!!!

Tosha Tyran: these are txapartas  they are a very traditional bask music instruments

snowbody Cortes: cool 

James Atlloud: Am I claustrophobic?  Let's find out. 

Taarna Welles: Lol James, you say it and I had the same thoughts.

Forest Azure: what do you do then, james?

Tina Bey: es tan lindo como este hecho por Tosha!

Thirza Ember: love the changing photos

James Atlloud: We were inside this sculpture?

Tosha Tyran: we were above it, really. I did that just to play a little... like this I put something into each of the builds, poor Chillida, the tp to go down is the trap door in the ground

Tosha Tyran

Thirza  Ember: Can I get a photo by the spider?  is it a spider by the way?

Mal Burns: spider on roof u mean?

Tosha Tyran: oh, I have to tell you about the spider

Taarna Welles: yes please, I love stories

Tosha Tyran: it is made by Louise Bourgeois a french artist, it is called: Mom

Nara Nook: hmm

Tosha Tyran: I think that is hilarious.... could have been a good name for my mother too, hahahaha

James Atlloud: A challenge to photograph with no person behind a spider leg.. er mom leg.

Thirza Ember: mom has pretty interesting legs

James Atlloud: She must work out.

Tosha Tyran: well, if she has a safari here every day or even once a week, no need for workouts, James Atlloud

James Atlloud: that is true

Thirza Ember: Tosha all your builds are so amazing... thinking about this one, the refugee build, the great taj mahal and timbuktu and so on... what on earth will you make next?

Martin Eccles58: Do any of the older builds still exist?

Thirza Ember: Yes Martin, look on the map here in Craft Grid, and you will find Angkor Wat, Timbuktu, Taj Mahal, and so on.

Tosha Tyran: em, though I have been thinking about that city in latin america

Forest Azure: a fairytale? an interactive one?

James Atlloud: Machu Picu?

Tosha Tyran: yes James

Tina Bey: Machu Picu!! ya quisiera verla Tosha!!

James Atlloud: That would also be amazing.  And we would not need to climb the mountains!

Tosha Tyran: hahaha, yes, and with the thin air... it is unbelievable when you are up there...  you swoon and feel pretty damn old trying to walk in the city, huffing and puffing all the time

Nara Nook: It was another great safari. I have to go but hope to see you all next week.

Forest Azure: it was great again, yes! ty so much, Thirza and Tosha

Taarna Welles: Thank you Tosha for this great region. I enjoyed all of it and there is much more to explore.

James Atlloud: Craftworld grid has performed well again too

Tina Bey: increible todas tus construcciones felicitaciones gran trabajo!!

Mal Burns: unique build - great

Martin Eccles58: Thanks Thirza and everyone involved, and thanks all for your company

Tosha Tyran: you are welcome and thanks for visiting it is always fun to have you here.

HG Address: craft-world.org:8002/The Caravan