The Smithsonian American Art Museum plans to unveil a new exhibit this month, “The Art of Video Games,” which is one of the first in the world to examine the evolution of video games as an art form.
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Sponsored in part by ESA, the exhibit opens on March 16 and reflects the growth of video games as a storytelling medium and as works of art, replete with stunning visual and audio elements. It will feature images and videos from 80 different games selected by a public vote, including work by some of the industry’s iconic developers and artists.
In addition, the exhibit will focus on visual effects within games, the creative use of new technologies, and how those elements are used to tell a story. Five of the featured games – Pac-Man by Namco Bandai and Midway, Super Mario Bros. by Nintendo, The Secret of Monkey Island by LucasArts, Myst by Brøderbund and Flower by Sony Computer Entertainment – will be playable by the public to help demonstrate how they introduced new game play elements that influenced subsequent games. Twenty video interviews with developers and artists will play throughout the exhibit, as well.
The six-month exhibit begins with GameFest, a three-day event featuring artist meet-and-greets, discussion panels, movie screenings, costume photo-ops and opportunities to play video games with other attendees. Other public events include a Gamer Symphony Orchestra performance on April 29, a symposium discussing how video games are affecting other industries on May 4, and a “Music of Games” performance with the 21st Century Consort on May 5.
“The Art of Video Games” will be on display at the Smithsonian American Art Museum until September 30. It will then travel to six other cities, including New York, Miami, Memphis and Seattle.
After receiving 3.7 million votes from 119,000 people in 175 countries during the game selection process, the exhibit is expected to be one of the most popular of its kind.
For more information about the exhibit and a complete schedule of GameFest events, please visit: http://americanart.si.edu/exhibitions/archive/2012/games/.
