Portals in the Metaverse

Cyberspace as we know it is evolving.  The next step in its evolution, which we are already beginning to get a taste of, is an immersive cyberspace, more commonly referred to as the Metaverse. 

When we first had access to internet there were only static pages that focused on information.  This was called Web 1.  Web 2, centred on user-created content uploaded to services such as blogs, forums and social media, is all about interaction.  Web 3 will be about immersion. 

Whereas we browsed the internet before, we will soon be immersed in it and be, in a sense, able to live in it as digital avatars in a 3D space.  Headsets will enable full immersion.

Immersion ©Linda Hollier

Examples of immersive tasks will include gathering with friends remotely, working with work colleagues collaboratively, and co-experiencing virtual events such as concerts. Many functions of life will move into virtual environments.  Shopping and virtual travel will be available with an accompanying economy.   

We started to experience some of these possibilities with Zoom during the pandemic, but what was missing in this 2D experience on screens was the networking experience that accompanies in-person events.  This will be able to be replicated in a 3D immersive world.

I have recently joined Spatial, a metaverse with visually stunning, immersive 3D spaces.  It  has enabled me to customize my own virtual gallery and event space and host live events, all of which at this point in time can be experienced via smartphone, laptop or a Meta Quest headset.

To navigate the metaverse, we are already hearing about and experiencing the “portal”.  One moves between spaces and so one requires a way to do so.  

 Stepping through ©Linda Hollier

Currently, by clicking on a portal one exits a space and enters another instantaneously.  One is reminded of teleportation where one is transported across space and distance instantly.  In the metaverse, a portal is opened, one’s avatar passes through, and there is fluid spatial switching.  

Let us consider the choice of using the word “portal”. 

In architecture the portal, whether it be a gateway or a doorway, is a space which is framed to call attention to spatial transition,  In the 14th century,  it referred to “the entire architectural treatment of the entrance and its surroundings of a cathedral or other grand building”.  The structural elements alluded to something of high significance behind them.  

Portal, from the Latin “porta” meaning “gate” and the Latin “portare” meaning “to carry” is also often used to mean a gateway to a realm in another dimension, another plane of existence. 

The portal symbolizes spatial transition and has the characteristics of both a special place and a path.

 Threshold ©Linda Hollier

Most importantly, a portal implies a threshold - a significant instance or point which invokes or encourages a shift of perception before one goes forward. 

Those of you who know me are aware of my interest in the architecture of cyberspace.  

How will portals in the metaverse be depicted? We are already seeing circular forms. Will they eventually be so designed that they will be able to teleport our digital avatars not only from one space in a metaverse to another, but also from one metaverse to another when there are what is being referred to as multiverses?  No doubt the portal will evolve until there is one possible omniverse.

My series titled “Navigating the Metaverse” is my current contribution to these new realms. 

Individual pieces can be purchased on OpenSea as NFTs.

Interviewed by Mario Uboldi Jewellery Art

In February 2017 I collaborated with and was interviewed by André Meyerhans of Mario Uboldi Jewellery Art. What follows is the interview which at the time was published on various social media platforms.

(Artwork photographed: Yellow Notice

Featured jewelry: Mashrabiya Collar)

What inspired you to create these artworks?

Shortly after I arrived in the Middle East I started a website “here2here” which promotes mindfulness as well as investigates cyberspace - the mindspace we find ourselves in when using technology to communicate.  “here2here” hints at mobility but also suggests that there is actually nowhere to go and that all is already as it should be. 

At about the same time, Downtown Dubai, where we were living at the time, launched a campaign entitled “The Centre of Now” to highlight the area as a hub of a global cultural movement. 

I have always been inspired by stories of bedouins, nomads who lived in the deserts. They embodied wandering and mobility and an awareness of the interconnectedness of life. For them immediate movement was always a probability and they knew what it was to have a centre which was always changing as they wandered through the borderless desert.

This is a century of mobility.  Many people today are global citizens on the move with means of connectivity and communication that boggle the mind.

Believing that we need to seek in newfound ways, as global nomads, the centre of now - the heart of the present moment - that the Bedouins were very aware of, I began to explore the concept of rootedness and movement occurring simultaneously and was inspired to depict this using the modern technology at hand; in my case, my iPhone. My love of photography and art had merged with my interest in technology.  

At first, I began to edit photos I had taken of architecture in Dubai. 

Shortly after I began experimenting with the app Slowshutter, I visited Istanbul and attended a Whirling Dervishes Sema Ceremony. This inspired me to try to figure out new ways of portraying the whole concept of rootedness and movement occurring simultaneously, through my artworks. 

I began to photograph people, focusing on the energy I sensed around them. The individuals in my artworks appear to be rooted in a moment but at the same time appear to be moving in an other-worldly realm which is beyond space and time.

 

(Artwork photographed: Mystery

Featured jewelry: Dot Bracelet)

What message would you like to give to the viewer / What feeling would you like to evoke in the observer?

I am of the opinion that true art takes the viewer beyond themselves and is so much more than mere technique. 

I find that most people are emotionally drawn to my artworks.  Perhaps this is because the thinking brain is initially confused, as viewers often find it hard to believe that the piece they are looking at has been created on an iPhone.

The artworks depict a space filled with mystery and potential and the viewer is invited to enter this space to discover the story waiting to unfold. This story differs from individual to individual.

 

(Artwork photographed: Trinity

Featured jewelry: Dot Bracelet)

You have a unique technique, please explain?

Using my iPhone, I intuitively capture images using slow-shutter photography.  I then transform these, blending and painting on my iPhone screen, achieving this with the aid of various apps. Much of my work is printed onto recycled wood which adds further texture, thereby making each piece unique.  The combination of iPhone artistry and recycled wood is a gentle reminder of the importance of remaining grounded even while enjoying the benefits of modern technology.  

 

(Artwork photographed: Releasing

Featured jewelry: Goldflake Collier)

Your logo is Arabic, your nationality is South African - please explain your motivation behind this and what impact it has on your audience?

As I explore many aspects of here2here on my website - both through the written word and through my artworks - my intention is to promote a shared vision of diversity within unity. 

A lover of culture, I find myself at this point in time in a region inhabited by so many different cultures, and this excites me.  I am born South African but am currently living in the Middle East.  My logo, which has my name written in English and Arabic, is I believe, a witness to both this and to my vision of diversity within unity. It fascinates viewers and evokes discussion. It raises the question “where is home?”, links back to the ideas surrounding ‘the centre of now”, and helps us all remember that we have more similarities than we have differences. 

 

(Artwork photographed: Direction)

You seem to have a mystic feel to your work - these here but also your earlier, more abstract and architectural ones - can you say something about it?

I grew up an avid reader and am curious by nature. My reading included much spiritual writing in many traditions. 

When I am out photographing I need to be very much in the moment. My photography flows out of my mindfulness practice but in a sense has become a practice itself. 

I am honored that you say my works have a mystic feel to them.

 

(Artwork photographed: Heart)

As mentioned, your earlier work goes more abstract with creating spaces - can you share your journey - why you went there?

I am a lover of architecture. When I first arrived in the Middle East I began photographing and posting on Instagram the architecture found in Dubai. 

Interested in exploring the architecture of cyberspace, I began experimenting with various apps to create a series I called “Digital Archways”.   Later, in an attempt to express visually the experience of cyberspace using the very tools found there, I edited photos of mainly Dubai architecture to create the series entitled “Corridors of Cyberspace”.  Some of these earlier works are currently being exhibited in Venice in an exhibition called “Future Landscapes”.  

When creating them, it was also my wish that they would be a reminder of the importance of our own inner landscapes and encourage exploration of them.  

 

(Artwork photographed: Trinity)

…. and where are you heading from here … can you share your intentions- even if they are very vague?

My #interact2connect series printed onto Ethiopian prayer shawls is bringing interesting connections. 

At home and on my travels, I have been meeting many interesting artists. Further collaborations are certainly possible. 

I have recently incorporated augmented reality into some of my artworks and am eager to explore 3D printing.

I continue to be open to what wants to flow into being.   

(Artwork photographed: Noor)

Why did you look for a collaboration like this …. and why jewelry?

I have wanted to be part of a collaborative project for some time now.  There was no special reason I chose jewelry. While away in Thailand on a fasting retreat I woke up one morning with the thought “Ask André if his jewelry could be photographed with your art”.  Before I could think too much about it and perhaps hesitate, I acted upon it. André said yes and this collaboration was set into motion. 

 

You have deformed photos that depict jewelry integrated into your paintings - please share your thoughts on this intervention.

In Japanese calligraphy there is a symbol called an ensō. It means circle and is often referred to as an “expression of the moment”. As a form of spiritual practice, many artists practice drawing an ensō daily.  I often wondered if it is possible to practice this in photographic form, and for a period of time began incorporating the circle in my edits with this in mind. 

André photographed the jewelry on my artworks but thought the resulting images needed more depth and a stronger story line. When I intuitively worked with his photographs, the circle returned.

His jewelry is certainly an expression of the culture and surroundings he finds himself in and I believe this very fact adds to its beauty.  

 

Great collaboration with artist Linda Hollier where stories are told and retold - like in “Chinese Whisper” - and new things evolve. Enjoy!

(Featured jewelry: Mashrabiya ring)

A famous Swiss Author, Friedrich Dürrenmatt, wrote a book called: The Assignment - or - On the Observing of the Observer of the Observers. Similar to what is suggested in the subtitle, artist Linda Hollier and our team present to you the above work which is a creation of a creation of a creation. This alternating, overwriting approach frees unseen elements and bring them to attention - similar to in the book by Dürrenmatt. Enjoy!

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Collaboration with Mario Uboldi Jewellery

Letting in the Light

In photography, shutter speed refers to the length of time a camera’s shutter remains open.  The faster the shutter speed is, the faster the shutter will close, creating a sharp image. This is perhaps one of the camera’s most amazing attributes. It has the ability to freeze a split second, often capturing details which the human eye can so easily miss.  

The slower the shutter speed is, the slower the shutter will close, resulting in an unsharp image.  Slow shutter speed thus captures movement, in the scene, or on the part of the photographer, as motion blur.  At the same time, the longer the shutter remains open, the more light it lets in. 

The more light it lets in. This concept has always fascinated me on many levels. Whilst the slower closing of the shutter can obviously bring about a light trail, I often wonder how much more of the essence of a subject, how much more Light, can be captured in this way.

By nature, I am very sensitive to the energies of both people and places. With this is mind, I began to photograph people using the Slow Shutter Cam app on my iPhone, focusing on the energy I sensed around them.

Strolling ©Linda Hollier

To artistically portray the people in my works, I set myself the challenge of using only my iPhone for capturing and editing, No laptops, no iPads or other devices come into play.  Using various apps, I create my own textures and blends and at times paint by finger on my iPhone screen.

I soon noticed that I was photographing not only movement, where past, present and future were being depicted in one photo as it were, but that the figures I captured were often surrounded by a distinct light. By letting in more light with the slow shutter app, perhaps, I am capturing energy! I feel this adds to the sense of Presence I am aiming to portray.

Radiance ©Linda Hollier

Shortly after I began experimenting with the Slow Shutter Cam app, I attended a Whirling Dervishes Sema Ceremony in Istanbul. This inspired me to focus on discovering new ways in my art to portray the whole concept of rootedness and movement occurring simultaneously, bringing about an even stronger sense of Essence and Presence.  The individuals in my artworks appear to be rooted in a moment but at the same time appear to be moving in an other-worldly realm which is beyond space and time. The viewer is invited to follow them to discover the story that is waiting to unfold.

Noor (the Arabic word for light), ©Linda Hollier

The famous photographer Minor White believed that whether the photographer was consciously present or absent at the moment the shutter is released shows up very subtly in the photograph. My iPhoneart flows out of my mindfulness practice but in a sense has become a practice in itself. My whole creative process is becoming more and more intuitive and this requires me to be very much in the moment. 

It is interesting for all who love photography to note that Minor White also believed that when the photographer is in resonance with the subject at the time a photograph is made, the photograph will also seem to radiate the photographer’s presence. I interpret this as yet another form of Light being captured when the shutter is released.

On the Way ©Linda Hollier

The Mobile Art Movement has taken off in the age of social media.  LIght plays a very interesting role in media.  Light can shine on something, or light can shine through something.  Marshall McLuhan, a communications theorist, used the terms “light on” and “light through” to highlight the media that went hand in hand with various cultures throughout the ages.

In the Middle Ages, in the west, light had shone through.  The stained glass windows of many cathedrals are testimony to this. The windows and the way the light was being let in, told stories to the beholder and were meant to point the one looking to a Presence beyond. The dominant belief at the time was that the light of Spirit was shining through all that was taking place.  

The invention of the printing press by Gutenberg in the 15th century had ushered in the Renaissance, an age of “light on”.  The printed word had to be looked at.  Light had to be shone on the printed word so that the eye could read it.  

What excites me as an iPhone artist, is that the digital age has once again ushered in “light through”, and the gadgets we currently use are like electronic stained glass. Their high resolution makes them luminous and beautiful, with light shining in from behind. Each artwork created on a mobile device can be instantly shared and viewed on such an interface. It is in this milieu of luminosity that the Mobile Art community has been established. 

Eggshell ©Linda Hollier

The dark side of the current state of media in the digital age is that social media can blind us to what is actually happening. Users can become trapped in their own filter bubbles, hearing only from likeminded people. Fake news is becoming common and can easily spread. There is a great lack of transparency. 

To further explore the concepts of light through, filters and transparency, I have created a series of six gauze-like veils titled #interact2connect, which I am currently photographing around the world. Six of my iPhone artworks are printed onto these veils. By interacting with people I meet or with strangers, we connect. When the veil is held up in the light, the veil also interacts with the individual and the surroundings. 

#interact2connect ©Linda Hollier

Next time you are out photographing or creating mobile art, I invite you to become aware of the ways in which you are “Letting in the LIght”. 

This blog post first appeared as a Guest Blog Post on the website of Rad A. Drew Photography.

Zoom, We-Spaces of Ubuntu

When I initially set up my website in 2011 and called my blog here2here, I wanted the term here2here to include two messages - the need to be fully present in the moment instead of acting on autopilot; and the call to mindfully use technology in a special place which was beyond the normal realms of time and space. 

Besides being a wonderful hashtag, the term suggests connectivity, interconnectedness and interdependence, calls us to acknowledge the other, invites us to widen our embrace and encourages us to broaden our perspectives.

When we meet online and communicate in here2here, perhaps another name for cyberspace, we are meeting in a special place where distance does not separate us. 

Over the years, since my blog here2here came into being,  we have seen an exponential increase in the availability of connectivity and data, and all that means for the world of apps.

Communication has evolved from the spoken word between peoples physically present, to the written word via letters with time delay, to the immediate spoken word via telephone, to emails with immediate delivery, to instant messaging via word or audio, to being able to see each other via media such as Skype and FaceTime.

This has been followed by video conferencing with apps like Zoom and Microsoft Teams, which make it possible for many of us to communicate and see each other simultaneously. Special we-spaces now exist online. 

And how timely this development has proven to be.   

We currently find ourselves in an unprecedented time in history.  The world is currently experiencing a global pause, brought about by a virus.  Covid-19 has resulted in the majority of the world’s population being in either quarantine or lockdown.  Streets are empty. We find ourselves at home with workplaces and services, except the essential, shut down.  With schools closed, families negotiate new experiences where the average day includes working from home and doing online schooling.

Much of the day for many of the world’s population is currently being spent online in here2here space. 

Although in isolation and totally separated by distance, individuals are using virtual space and apps like Zoom to not only participate in meetings or attend school, but to also sing together, meet with their loved ones and friends, offer online classes, coaching and therapy sessions, meditate together  and even create art. Each of these online encounters take place in these very special we-spaces. 

Over the past years, I have explored the architecture of cyberspace through word and image.  Now more than ever before, we need to pay careful attention to the mindful use of the communication apps at our disposal and the we-spaces we are creating online. 

Before entering the we-spaces created by using video conferencing apps, it is a good idea to get in touch with oneself by becoming aware of the breath, the sensations in our bodies, our emotions and current mental activity.  That way we will be better able to be present to the others online and to connect with them. 

Upon entering these we-spaces we soon become aware that it is not only the mind which is engaged as is the case when we message or email.  The ability to see faces and expressions means that emotions are involved as well. As we begin to resonate with each other, a field is created which involves all present in the video call. A flow of positive energy can be cultivated. 

The visuals of the we-spaces where we meet contribute to the experience, and are created by each individual participating.  People are realizing that these spaces invite creativity. Zoom virtual backgrounds, for example, are proving to be  highly popular.

Dr. Helen Papagiannis writes in her article “Zoom and Digital Fashion”,

“They’re a means to hide the real background in your home, serve as an icebreaker, and are a way to express yourself and be creative in these stressful times..”

Helen also suggests that while we are spending all these hours in front of the camera we might need something digital to wear and this could lead to the rise of digital fashion! 

Each one of us, whether we realize it or not, is a co-architect in the new social worlds being created.  

There is a wonderful Southern African philosophy called “ubuntu” often translated as “I am because we are”, or “humanity towards others” which speaks to the fact that we are all connected. 

Archbishop Tutu, who led the Truth and Reconciliation Commission in 1996 says, “We think of ourselves far too frequently as just individuals, separated from one another, whereas you are connected and what you do affects the whole world.” 

here2here incorporates the concept of ubuntu, and as I use modern technology to create and send out my iPhone artworks into borderless realms, these words are always close to my heart.

The philosophy of ubuntu is gaining ground in the current global crisis. Earlier this month the Nonprofit organization Ubuntulovechallenge came into being encouraging #loveoverfear.  The concept is beautifully introduced in this video. Opportunities abound to advance humanity.

here2here also shouts out the message of ubuntu from the rooftops of Zoom spaces and rooms, and people all over the world are rising to the occasion. Despite the sadness and fear being experienced by so many, incredible acts of humanity fill the news during these trying times.

Placing some of the figures in my iPhone artworks into a Zoom meeting I was confronted with the following: 

I like to think that I chose not to screenshot  the moment when they were all looking at the camera and at it each other, but rather to capture that fraction of a second when simultaneously by chance, each one turned briefly away from the screen to catch a glimpse of something, before coming back to share it with the rest of the group. I choose to believe too that what they glimpsed were humans in all their beauty, performing acts of love and kindness. Diverse, but fully aware of unity and a shared humanity.

As of April 2020, 4,57 billion people of the 7,8 billion global population (59%) have access to the internet.  As we continue to explore the options and potential of video conferencing apps may we carry with us the philosophy of ubuntu. 

The world will never be the same again. We have moved fully from the Information Age into the Transformation Age. The “normal” some wish to return to never existed. Humanity as a whole is now being given the opportunity to co-create we-spaces of peace, unity and love.

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Trend blue

Corridors of cyberspace

IPPA Awards 2018

I am very happy to share that my iPhone photograph of the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque in Abu Dhabi was awarded an honorable mention in the Architecture category of the iPhone Photography Awards 2018.

Congratulations to this year’s @ippawards winners! Take a look at some of the best #shotoniPhone photography from around the world.https://t.co/sW6Uew7VYZ

— Tim Cook (@tim_cook) July 20, 2018