Second Life provides an unprecedented opportunity for individuals to connect with people from all over the world. For artists this has meant that their work can be seen in a way that was previously unimaginable, and because of this galleries have sprung up all over the grid. There are few sims without a display of artwork of some kind. Cetus Gallery District is a sim dedicated to showing art created by residents of Second Life, but what differentiates it from many other arts-based sims is the lively sense of community spirit that has developed, too.

Founded in 2006, Cetus Gallery District is owned by Xander Ruttan, who describes himself as an sl real estate developer and community builder. In rl, Ruttan is an arts and culture writer, an artist and musician and a former assistant director of a contemporary art gallery.

Ruttan did not enter into Second Life with the idea of creating an arts community. He originally started off with one plot of land on which to experiment with building. After building a house he decided to add a gallery wing in which to display his own art. A separate building followed. Ruttan credits a neighbor, Stranger Momiji with helping him learn to build as well as providing moral support, and through a mutual friend Ruttan met Tricia Aferdita, also an rl artist, who was interested in helping to create an arts community. Things grew from there. Tricia Aferdita is now the president of the Cetus Gallery District Association and co-owner of the Harmony Café at which many live events take place. She also has a gallery in the Cetus Gallery District.

The purpose of Cetus Gallery District according to Ruttan is "to build an art community, to connect people all over the world some of whom may not have access to the art world proper, and to also attract that art world proper by creating places that mimic the art world RL". The idea of "community" is important. Ruttan and Aferdita, as well as other members of the Cetus Gallery District Association, have worked hard to create an atmosphere in which a feeling of community can flourish. The design of the district, which owes something to both the Chelsea area of New York and the Pearl District of Portland, Oregon, provides the support on which the more organic elements of "community" can grow. Visually the district is very attractive and well organized; it looks like an industrial area that has been adapted to a different kind of use. There are approximately thirty galleries as well as residential spaces and public meeting places, such as the Harmony Café. In addition, regularly scheduled activities help to ensure a steady flow of visitors to the sim. Three examples of the kind of events that take place are: poetry readings, a recent book release party and "First Thursdays".

Poetry readings are organized by "The Dead Poets Society" and take place on the fourth Thursday of each month. At the May meeting, not only was poetry read by many of those in attendance (some read their original works, others read from the classics) but this was preceded by a presentation by author Nazz Lane, who read the first two chapters of his book set in Second Life.

The book release party, which took place on June 18, was for a new work written by anthropologist Tom Boellstorff (sl Tom Bukowski) entitled "Coming of Age in Second Life: An Anthropologist Studies the Virtually Human". The party was well attended, with visitors listening to the music of Nancy Brody and Stv4u Conacher (DaBluez Preacher). Interestingly, the two above mentioned events are not to do with the visual arts at all, and both were centered on books inspired by our virtual world.

"First Thursdays" exhibitions have just been added to the Cetus Gallery District Calendar. So far, two have taken place. "First Thursdays" are a series of events planned to take place at different times on the first Thursday of each month. They are organized in conjunction with the openings of new exhibitions at some of the galleries in the district.

In 2007 Cetus Gallery District received the "2007 Best Cultural Site in Second Life" Award in an international competition sponsored by Vauxhall. The district is still growing, and they are working on opening the Cetus Museum of Modern and Contemporary, which, judging from the size of the building, will be a major addition to the sim. Also, Ruttan has just announced that an Italian RL arts organization, Centro Jesi Arte Contemporanea, will be coming into the Cetus Gallery District in the very near future, organizing exhibitions in SL by artists for whom they also organize shows in RL. It is an interesting and fun place to visit, and one to watch during the coming years.

Cetus Gallery District (214, 17, 34)

1. View of galleries along Ruttan Lane

2. Book release street party on June 18