Hypnagogia by Jaime Poutine

MindScape-artist Jaime Poutine is, according to her own words, "a traditionally-trained mixed-media artist based in Dallas, Texas. While having been an artist for most of her life, she has been working primarily with alcohol inks since 2016.  The various properties of alcohol (as opposed to water or oil based colors) work very well to create vibrant paintings that resemble landscapes, ethereal shapes, and visions that only the mind can understand. 
In the MindScape series, Jaime has created a number of works which resemble colorful scenes and phrases that she has seen and heard during hypnagogic hallucinations, a resulting symptom of her narcolepsy.  which is a brain disorder that causes a person to be unable to suppress REM (dreaming) sleep.  These vivid dreams that can occur at the twilight stage between waking and sleeping are often very realistic and strange.  Every phrase on the pieces in this series were spoken in a voice that did not seem to be her own, but originated from somewhere else within her own mind.  Generally these voices speak kindly or violently depending on circumstances in her waking life. As you can see, the mind can be a very strange place."
http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Nice%20Atoll/94/179/1003 .

Lena Kiopak: Mindfulness

Lena Kiopak says about herself: "SecondLife is a beautiful, virtual world, but it is always fleeting. Places come and go...sometimes within the blink of an eye. I love to explore and discover new, exciting sims, and try to capture special moments before they eventually disappear. Some of these special moments are the perfect feeling for the MindScape project, such as Mindfulness. I have been enjoying SL for more than 8 years, but only recently started sharing my photographs. I hope you enjoy them as much as I do."
And her statement concerning her contribution for MindScape is: "Mindfulness means maintaining a moment-by-moment awareness of our thoughts, feelings, bodily sensations, and surrounding environment, through a gentle, nurturing lens.
Mindfulness also involves acceptance, meaning that we pay attention to our thoughts and feelings without judging them—without believing, for instance, that there’s a “right” or “wrong” way to think or feel in a given moment. When we practice mindfulness, our thoughts tune into what we’re sensing in the present moment rather than rehashing the past or imagining the future.
SL is an amazing platform for mindfulness. Because there are no physical barriers to how we feel, behave, or act, we can be our true selves in SL and explore new feelings and emotions. My SL photographs are such examples, since they portray specific events and how I was interpreting my feelings at the time.
I hope you enjoy, and embrace your own mindfulness in your SL adventures."
http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Nice%20Atoll/85/186/1003 .

Fluer Heartsdale: Freeing The Brain To Explore

The artist Fluer Heartsdale Chun says about herself:
"My journey into art began many years ago as a child while watching my grandmother paint. I experimented with many different mediums before falling in love with photography. Photography allows me to capture the world as I see it and show it to other.  When looking around my eye is drawn to the hidden and often overlooked common objects that surround us. With the aid macro lens I am able to capture and bring to light that which is often overlooked. My current work involves close-up photography of frozen water (ice) which when viewed by the naked eye looks clear or perhaps cloudy but generally without any color. With my macro lens I am able to take close-up photos which show that there is much more to ice than is visible to the naked eye.  In the future I will collecting water from different sources to freeze and photograph, so that I may document any difference in how they freeze and photograph."
And this is her comment about her MIndScape-pictures: "When we look at "traditional" art the brain immediately classifies and categorizes the artwork we are viewing such as "landscape, pretty colors, lots of trees" or "flowers......pink roses, yellow tulips".  All of this is done in a blink of an eye, without any conscious thought on our part.  When we look at abstract art it doesn't instantly fit into a predefined category allowing our brain to explore and search.   We will start to see things in the artwork based on memories, favorite literature, or movies.  Abstract art encourages  the viewer to slow down and give our brains the freedom to explore the depths of our memories.  That freedom  to explore our brains allows each person to form their own personal connection with the art they are viewing."

  http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Nice%20Atoll/60/163/1003 .