Vagrant

In late 2020, my Olgelta avatar became a vagrant artist in Somnium Space VR. This is an amazing 5K world with beautiful changing light, but to build there one had to own land. Any player can upload a custom avatar though, and so I learned to add custom objects to my avatar. Through this hack I created temporary installations that could be placed anywhere, by moving my avatar around the world. These were art integrations into a curated environment, much like Bike Art Messenger from years prior.

The displays varied in look and intent. Some were humorous, others rebellious. I inserted my own art in museums, placed Google Earth reconstructions, added sculpture to the municipal art park, and released an animated creature into the main lake.

This went on for a few months, and I was sure I would be banned once discovered. Instead I was embraced. I received rent-free parcels to build on, and was awarded 6 months worth of Creators Fund grants. My motives changed from subversion to cooperation and comradery. I became incorporated. It was home, and those folks were my clan. I spent a year in Somnium Space.