To make us feel small in the right way is a function of art; men can only make us feel small in the wrong way.  ~ E.M. Forster

There is a lot of moaning in stories and blogs about SL that for a virtual world of endless possibilities, most of what goes on lacks artistic merit. There is some valid truth to this notion. A great deal of Second Life centers on people fulfilling very modest escapist fantasy. They build their dream home on a tropic island with palm trees and waterfalls. They open a little mom & pop store. They slip into trendy, flirty clothing and type naughty words to total strangers. It’s all pretty mundane if you put it up against, say, the Italian Renaissance.

Of course what is left out of that comparison is that not every Florentine of the 15th century was a Medici. Most of them were just ordinary people - peasants, merchants, farmers - toiling through the hours with their families and their chores to get through their days with as little hardship as they could muster. My bet is that most of their daydreams involved pretty things they’d never own, fine houses they’d never live in, and attractive mates they’d never lie beside. There was only one guy dreaming of painting masterpieces on ceilings; that’s why we remember him.

Not everyone can be an artist and not everyone is stirred to create art. No matter how much PR we lend to slogans like “you can be anything you put your mind to” the truth is that most people’s attempts at art are mediocre. The world is full of half-rate musicians, wanna-be painters and dismally bad poets. Typically, the worse they are, the more desperate they are to share their mediocrity with you. Second Life (like the real world) is overflowing with art — it’s just that so much of it is unremarkable that we don’t recognize it as such.

So where are the *real* artists? Well, they’re about. There are creative, glorious builds, pretty baubles, fascinating visuals, and wonderful music hidden among the less remarkable fare. The ratio of gifted folk to average folk is about the same as it is in the real world. But, just as you might attend a local theater group when Broadway isn’t in your backyard, some people in SL choose to celebrate the simpler pleasures. So I squee over pretty dresses and others play with make-believe pirate ships. It’s all very juvenile and fulfilling in that way we all claim to be above, but rarely are.

Art is not easy, and having vision is not always a pleasant gift. Being driven to create can consume individuals and wreck the lives of those around them. Creating art is also generally an expensive obsession - especially for those who strive to be superior. Instruments and tools are not free, and, while having an SL account might be, having a blank SIM for a canvas certainly is not. Having $2000 to drop on a SIM and $300/month to upkeep it might seem cheap to some people, but I’ve known lots of artists in my time, and believe me when I tell you that they’re not the people you call first when you need to borrow a few bucks.

The good news is that the fundamental core of all art is communication. Artists themselves often don’t realize this because some (writers, painters, illustrators, etc) often develop their skills in isolation. Performing artists have higher profiles and more interaction, but still have a barrier between them and their audiences. Creation is about imparting something of yourself into a medium, and allowing it to speak things that cannot be spoken. Expression and communication will always be married, and commerce will always be their double-edged inlaw.

And while it may get lost amid the virtual strip clubs, make-believe mansions, and other amusements that distract us from the ins and outs of daily life, there is communication, expression, and commerce at the heartbeat of all that is Second Life.

It’s okay to pine for Michelangelos amid the prints of dogs playing poker so long as you don’t forget that it’s a paint by number world and the people who color outside the lines are vastly outnumbered. Even here. Especially here.