Time for a new hobby. Figured I could try a little something like arc welding rebars.
Art vs. Sport vs. Video Games
An interesting comparison by Pharyngula, a molecular biologist, of all things. A rebuttal to Roger Ebert.
Art is a kind of distillation and representation of human experience, filtered through the minds of its creators. A great painting or poem is something that represents an idea or emotion, communicated through the skill of an artist, to make you see through his or her eyes for a moment. Computer games just don’t do that. No team sits down to script out a video game with the intent of creating a tone poem in interactive visual displays that will make the player appreciate the play of sunlight on a lake, for instance. It’s all about balance and game play and keeping the action going and providing a means to win or lose, and most of all, it’s about giving the player control in the game environment. No one wants to play a game that’s on rails and simply leads you to the conclusion the author wants. In that sense, a good game hands the player a toolbox to work within the game environment — it is to art as providing a studio and a set of pigments and a collection of brushes.
Video games will become art when replaying the performance becomes something we find interesting, when the execution of those tools generates something splendid and lasting. It just doesn’t now, though. If you want to see something really boring, watch someone else playing a video game. Then imagine recording that game, and wanting to go back and watch the replay again sometime. That’s where games fail as art, which is not to say they can’t succeed as something comparable to a sport — we may want to explore the rules of a game at length, and repeatedly, and we may enjoy getting better at it. But no matter how well or how long you play a game, it’s never going to be something you can display in your home as a representation of an experience.
Six Art Market Myths
I don’t like to see my beliefs debunked, but here they are…
Art Has Value. That is, art has monetary value simply because it exists. Not true. Art only has monetary value if someone is willing to purchase it. Many people who have had the sad task of administering an artist’s estate have found out they have been stuck with a large number of artworks for which there was no market.
Achieving Brilliant Lighting Effects
A cool tutorial for how to make awesome-looking lighting effects in Photoshop
Achieve Brilliant Lighting Effects in Photoshop | Design.CreativeFan
Lucky Times
Painting today. With a cat on my head. It’s not my cat, either. And he’s really sharp.
Working Hard
Or is it ‘hardly working’?
More Multi-blog Tests
IGNORE THIS!
Getting Back To Work
In the dead of winter, I’m warm and cozy in my heated studio. I’ve rearranged some of the tables and the art wall, to produce a very useable space, which has different zones for different needs. Near the door, R’s motorcycle sleeps out the winter in a warm space. Next to it are the heavy punching bag, and the double-ended bag, for when I feel like a little boxing. The futon/couch is next to the dance mirror, which can be moved aside when R feels like a little dance practice. In the middle of it is the art wall, and easels, behind which is storage for blank canvases and bikes. Against the far wall is the toolbox and work table, for when something needs to be fixed.
All in all, a good space to work, and with the wifi repeater, I’ve got a strong Internet connection for streaming audio … Pandora radio, or SomaFM.
I’ve been working on a number of projects, including this new piece (sorry, it’s sold already):
