Unit 3

jan van eyck the arnolfini portrait, 1434

This painting looks mildly realistic as it has agknowledged shadow and a lot of detail but when it comes to the face it is not nearly as detail anal especially the female on the right. However the background is very detailed such as the bed and the light/chandelier. It was produced by Jan Van Eyck and I think he was trying to show the Italian merchant Giovanni di Nicolao Arnolfini and his wife, in their home in the Flemish city of Bruges.

W.Turner, yacht approaching the coast,1845

This one looks really real as it has acknowledged many realistic effects, such as making the painting quite blurred which would be the case if its a windy and rainy day/night at sea. As well as this they have still made it possible to see the ship which you would be able to if you were really there. the artist was definitely trying to achieve a realistic look to this painting and was trying to make you feel as if you are actually there in that given time.

Monet houses of parliament 1902

This one looks realistic with a cartoon feel to it. for example it has realistic shadows and reflections in the water as well as having shade and texture to the clouds. However it also has simple colours which don’t give it a lot of realistic feels to it.

Picasso, woman playing mandolin, 1909

This piece of art doesn’t look realistic as it has a more cartoon type of look to it. however it does have detailed parts to it which make it clear to see what the image is of. The artist also uses a type of art called cubism which is when you use cube like objects to create art.

Pollock, number 1, 1950

the image is of lavender mist and has a lot of detail however due to it being hard to tell what it is, it makes it not that realistic as lavender mist doesn’t actually look like that. He  produced it by laying a large canvas on the floor of his barn/studio, then using house paint, he dripped and poured as well as flung the paint around onto the canvas.

Ralph Goings, McDonalds pickup, 1970

This photo uses a small amount of colour variations which creates a cartoon feel to it. for example if you look at the car in the painting you see that it’s mainly only one beige colour which gives it the unrealistic cartoon look. However it is clear to see what the image is so therefore it is slightly realistic.

chuck close, big self-portrait, 1967-68

This painting is very realistic in every aspect. as its colouring is very detailed and complex as well as the actual person drawn. They have even added lots of tone and shadowing which creates a fully realistic image.

The exhibition

 

The exhibition is about the progression of how games were made. We begun the exhibition with a walk through of how different games are created and designed, they did this by using story boards as well as sketches to develop characters and the story line. This way they already have the game planned out so when finalising designing the characters or map they already have a clear idea of what is happening and do not make any mistakes. This continued throughout the exhibition. However we also watched a video of game designers explaining the process of making games and trying to push for them to go on the app store or game platforms. Throughout this exhibition you could also try/play many games most of them very simple with simple instructions. This helped show how simple a game can be but yet so addicting and fun. The exhibition has got a lot of recognition and therefore its fair amount of reviews, one of the reviews coming from “The Guardian” gave the exhibition 5 stars and stated “video games are a unique and messy texture of everything from visual arts to music, coding and animation.” They stated that games do have visual arts to them which backs the point that the exhibition showed games as an art form. There were a few controversial games which sexualize women in the games. This had people annoyed and there were videos of women and men talking about this subject of game. There were also a lot of games that had no violence or immaturity which makes me think they were trying to dispel the stigma of (violence and immaturity). By showcasing games that did not involve any violence they show that games don’t all revolve around violence and can be made well without. Which will appeal to a lot more people if they are not into violent and shooting games.

Summary

The themes/key points of the exhibition ………………………

The curators statement is a statement said by Marie Foulston where she says “a case of asking if video games are art. We don’t need to ask if all games are the Mona Lisa. We need to change that question. We need to ask, ‘are games craft,’ and we need to do that through the lens of design.” She is suggesting that rather than questioning if a game is art you need to show it is by the use of design and the craft of the design.

There were many games as well as artists and designers on display such as journey (the game), No mans sky (game) and blood-borne (game) . These are just a few of the many games I saw.

Exhibition set up

When walking into the exhibition you feel like you are in a cinema for the game as there is big screens with projections on which showcase the game. This makes you really engaged with the game and therefore creates an engaging atmosphere. They set it up so there was only one path to go round the exhibition which was good as you then get to see everything they have to show rather than choosing different turns and then getting confused what you have already seen. This was a simple but smart setup. The lighting was a low gradient of light for the beginning of the exhibition as it helped create that “cinematic” atmosphere but still light enough to read and see the sketches of how it was made. However at the end part of the exhibition the light was a lot lighter as it gave the impression of an arcade where you can play and try a variety of different games. For each different game the preview/game play and showcase of the game would be on a projected screen and the steps to creating the game would be along the side with some text and images. For most of the games we passed by they would have an area for you to try and play the game which helps keep the audience interacted and enjoy the experience more. Due to all this I think the presentation was very effective as it engaged me as well as me then wanting to find out how they did it.

Journey

Journey is a simple looking game but has a whole quest to it and hooks you in very quick. You’re character is a robed traveller who travels across a desert and towards a mountain peak. In this game you can join up with anonymous travellers who are also playing online. You cannot communicate with text or speech however you can use sounds and movements to share you’re emotions. Due to you not being able to communicate using text or speech they were planning to create really detailed eyes so you could communicate through facial expressions, however due to it being cultural bias they decided to remove the features of the face and instead communicate via whistles and chirrups. The artists started off with drawing and sketching the characters and different scenes as shown here.

Thatgamecompany created journey and wanted to create a game that captured empathy,love and awe with a lavish visual style. This also has an evocative soundtrack with online mechanics. Robin Hunicke was the creative producer for Journey and kept notebooks of the day-to-day activities and work she had to do which give you an insight to the game and how it was created.

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The colours used are very plain and simple colours such as a plain red and some variants of yellow/orange which are nice warming colours and just show the simplicity of the game. This game is slightly painterly however is mainly abstract art and is significant to the exhibition as this game has no violence and in fact is about you working together with people you don’t even know which is changing the perspective of games to get rid of the violent image. I think the artist wanted people to learn that you can work with anyone and can succeed no matter who you are as well as making you understand how to solve quests and not needing violence to have fun in games. Personally I find this game enjoyable and unique, as it has taken a different route with the multiplayer mode which I have never seen done before. I would consider this game a piece of art as the visuals itself look very like a well known art form called cubism and the thought and meaning of the game is artistic.

No Man’s Sky

In No Man’s Sky a small team have built/created a universe which allows players to explore the beauty or flying a spaceships to near to infinite planets. Most of the environments and inhabitants are created using procedural generation. This means that much of it is only in the form of graphic textures, codes and blueprints until the game is played. The game has a massive universe but still contains a narrative path to follow. The game creators “Hello Games” were inspired by the human instinct to explore and discover. So they brought the discovery of new worlds to virtual space. No Man’s Sky utilises complex algorithms to generate planets, animals, plants, technology and buildings. One of the tools the game uses is a “Terrain debug tool” which is when the terrain is being procedurally generated through algorithms as you travel. It calculates three different levels of detail, visible in the foreground, middle distance and background. A key part to play in the appeal of the game “No man’s Sky” is the element of surprise which can even include the plants and animals you encounter in game. These are created from a large library of templates which is inspired by “Life On Earth”. The bodies for the creatures and plants are created by base sets of wireframe models and then go to photo shop for the textures and shapes. Algorithms then were used to combine these. Then size and colour were also variated in accordance to aesthetic factors defined by the studios artists. This game has a lot of relevance to the modern world and how we travel round the universe trying to discover new areas and explore new places. Their work is relevant to the exhibition because the game has no sudden violence or aggressive behaviour and is more about exploring and finding new places and since the exhibition was trying to show that not all games need to have violence to be successful or to be a game at all then “No Man’s Sky” is relevant.

 

Blood borne

 

 

 

4           Choose 3 Games/artist/designer to study in depth.

One of these should be Journey, but the other 2 are your own choices.

• Give a general overview of the artist/Designers and the work V&A Play-Disrupt exhibition. Include the images in your essay and caption with the information provided on the wall.
• Explain the visual characteristics of the work, the methods of production, style, -media, materials, genre, and context.
• What could be it’s influences and inspiration? Has it inspired other work?
• Explain what the work is about. The THEMES explored in the work? Is the work in response to something that has happened in the world? Politics, Culture, Economy; Society; etc
• WHY is their work considered to be significant and/or relevant for this exhibition?
• How do you interact with it (if it is interactive)?

 

Include your Journey essay in this Part of the assignment.

Journey Essay-

Gather research for the Journey essay- This should be integrated into the main essay.

• Examine ’Journey’ and the nature of symbolism in games, in terms of colour use, genre, game play and contextual awareness. – There is a colour chart and other information on display.
• Research the designer Jenova Chen and their previous and current work.
• What influences does it contain (aesthetic, cultural, psychological, etc)?
• Discuss the visual characteristics of the work, the methods of production, medium of the work (is it photorealism/painterly/abstract), and any context of the work.
• What are the Themes? What is the game about? Is it a response to something?
• What does the artist want the audience to learn, feel and know by interacting with the game?
• What do you think the artist/designers are communicating with this piece of art and how is it expressed visually?  Secondary research should be used and referenced (i.e. quotes from interviews, articles- Harvard referenced).
• Research similar types of games or contrasting games (The Last of Us or No Man’s Sky (which shares a similar aesthetic)).
• What is your personal opinion on the game? Do you consider a video game a work of art like a painting or sculpture (does a game have a single ‘artist’, is a game asking a viewer to be passive or active for example)? (Add this to Part 5 below)
• Consider Aesthetic, Critical Analysis, Cultural Analysis and Contextual Analysis when writing your response.

 

5 Look at the work you have chosen objectively(impartiality)and subjectively(your personal response).

OBJECTIVE RESPONSE: What is the concept of the artist’s work? What do you think the artist is communicating with this piece of art and how is it expressed visually? What are they communicating with their work? What is the purpose or intention of the work? What do they want the audience to learn, know, and feel by interacting with the work?  (This should be answered in Part 4 above)

SUBJECTIVE RESPONSE: How do you feel about the work? Has the artist been successful expressing their idea in this visual way? Do you have an emotional response towards it? Do you like the work? If so, why? If not, why? Do you understand it? Is it confusing? Do you think it has relevance today? Is it important?