Ragitake Takakura

I decided to go with two content areas I know quite well: ancient Tahitian culture and postmodern media theory/philosophy with a Continental European philosophical grounding. I am from Tahiti and my academic content focus (and master’s thesis and doctoral dissertation) have been on Ancient Tahitian cultural traditions and socio-religious concepts. In addition, I have taken a doctoral level course with Jean Baudrillard himself on thinking the virtual and the real.

I was assisted by my colleague Katherine Watson, who created the scripted stool and headrest in the Tahitian house (fare) based on an illustration I gave her.

Ancient Tahitian Stool

Ancient Tahitian Headrest

They really add to the richness of the house and I had neither the time nor the skill to create those so quickly and perfectly. I would like to take this opportunity to thank Katherine for graciously sharing of her time and expertise. Katherine and I are colleagues at Empire State College of the State University of New York. Our registration at the conference was funded by the college under the auspices of a Charitable Leadership foundation grant to develop high interactive, adult centered online courses in math and science. They include a visualization component, and we have been exploring immersive learning design under this project. See the following website for more information on the preliminary work under this grant: http://www4.esc.edu/smart/.

I’d also like to thank Desideria Stockon and Eloise Pasteur for providing us with this wonderful opportunity to create, discuss, learn and reflect with a focus on designing immersive learning environments. This has been one of the most fabulous studio sessions I have taken (and I have done many) in both RL and SL. Brava, Desi and Eloise.

Due to time constraints, I simply tried to communicate as accurately as possible the gist of the buildings and space and a couple of artifacts. As you can see from the illustration, it is a passable rendering. However, some points to consider:

I didn’t have time to research building materials and methods, and either find or create accurate textures. There is extensive documentation, as well as archaeological findings, on early Tahitian material culture. If I were to do this right (which I hope to do in the near future), I would carefully re-construct the home as accurately as possible based on the writings and findings and use a number of other illustrations to guide me.

Chickens in front of the Fare Tutu - Cookhouse

I also didn’t have time to research textural details, such as: is this the right matting style? How do I create the fringe? Where can I find something that resembles the appropriate materials? Is there anywhere in SL with some Tahitian style Tapa (bark cloth) or would I have to create it? How were these elements really placed in the home?

I did the best I could to quickly find a stone texture that looked somewhat like the stone used in photographs representing Tahitian builds. There are many of those available. If I were doing this “right”, I would also consider: what types of stones were native to Tahiti at the time, and what stonemasonry methods were used? How might I replicate that?

On using a flat drawing to create a 3D build: It’s difficult to ascertain scale and size from the illustration, as well is what is to the side and behind the building. I can’t see into the building, so the interior display is based on written accounts.

I relied heavily on Douglas Oliver’s Chapter 7 on “Buildings” from his trilogy on Ancient Tahitian Society, which is a phenomenal resource based on all primary and secondary sources on early Tahitian and surrounding Polynesian cultures. Due to time constraints, I did not apply the number of the written commentaries on building materials, methods and interior décor, relying solely on the illustration and a few key points.

Oliver, Douglas L. Ancient Tahitian Society. Three Vols. Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press, 1974.

–Ragitake Takakura
August 17, 2007

The Ancient Tahitian House is open to the public at the following slurl: http://slurl.com/secondlife/Empire%20State%20College/40/33/22