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| Pac-Man (1980) |
The 14 chosen games include:
Pac-Man (1980), Tetris (1984), Another World (1991), Myst (1993), SimCity 2000 (1994), vib-ribbon (1999), The Sims (2000), Katamari Damacy (2004), EVE Online (2003), Dwarf Fortress (2006), Portal (2007), flOw (2006), Passage (2008), and Canabalt (2009).
In order to see if the games had artistic value, they were assessed on four-dimensions: behavior, aesthetics, space and time. (While the MoMA blog has a more extensive description of of the dimensions, Time.com summarizes them nicely). Additionally, the MoMA also chose the games based on their cultural and historical significance. While there are only 14 games at the moment, there are a total of 40 games that they hope to acquire in the future. (One of them being one of my personal favorites, Animal Crossing. YES!)
But what about the question of whether or not video games could or should be considered art? Interestingly, according to the Supreme Court, they are. I feel that art itself is something that is subjective, but there are people who disagree--and I do respect that. However, I still think that video games are very artistic. Even though I haven't had time to sit down and play a video game in a long time, I believe that there was much artistic value in the games I have played in the past.
Chris Melissinos, who was a curator at "The Art of Video Games" exhibition at the Smithsonian American Art Museum last March, states that video games should be valued as art because "Video games are the only forms of artistic expression that allow the authoritative voice of the author to remain true while allowing the observer to explore and experiment" (The Art of Video Games).
With the exhibit at the MoMA, Katie Kilkenny's article about the news raises some interesting points that expands on the choices made when categorizing the games within the museum. She explains that previously, video games were being suggested as art due to their storytelling aspect, but the MoMA considers the coding itself artistic by categorizing the games as "Architecture".
According to Paola Antonelli, the Senior Curator of the Department of Architecture and Design at the MoMa:
Overall, in the debate of whether or not video-games are considered art, I believe that The Museum of Modern Art is moving in a very significant direction in affirming that games do in fact possess artistic value.
Sources Used:
Are Video Games Art? MoMA Says Yes.
Supreme Court Has Ruled; Now Games Have a Duty
The Art of Video Games
Video Games: 14 in the Collection, for Starters
Which 14 Video Games Made It Into MoMA’s Permanent Collection?
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| Animal Crossing (2001) |
But what about the question of whether or not video games could or should be considered art? Interestingly, according to the Supreme Court, they are. I feel that art itself is something that is subjective, but there are people who disagree--and I do respect that. However, I still think that video games are very artistic. Even though I haven't had time to sit down and play a video game in a long time, I believe that there was much artistic value in the games I have played in the past.
Chris Melissinos, who was a curator at "The Art of Video Games" exhibition at the Smithsonian American Art Museum last March, states that video games should be valued as art because "Video games are the only forms of artistic expression that allow the authoritative voice of the author to remain true while allowing the observer to explore and experiment" (The Art of Video Games).
With the exhibit at the MoMA, Katie Kilkenny's article about the news raises some interesting points that expands on the choices made when categorizing the games within the museum. She explains that previously, video games were being suggested as art due to their storytelling aspect, but the MoMA considers the coding itself artistic by categorizing the games as "Architecture".
According to Paola Antonelli, the Senior Curator of the Department of Architecture and Design at the MoMa:
Are video games art? They sure are, but they are also design, and a design approach is what we chose for this new foray into this universe. The games are selected as outstanding examples of interaction design-a field that MoMA has already explored and collected extensively, and one of the most important and oft-discussed expressions of contemporary design creativity. Our criteria, therefore, emphasize not only the visual quality and aesthetic experience of each game, but also the many other aspects-from the elegance of the code to the design of the player's behavior-that pertain to interaction design.The exhibition itself will present the video-game in the most appropriate way the game can be experienced. Certain games will be available to be played fully, and others will allow a shorter amount of playing time. The MoMA also plans on creating emulations of older or harder to find games.
Overall, in the debate of whether or not video-games are considered art, I believe that The Museum of Modern Art is moving in a very significant direction in affirming that games do in fact possess artistic value.
Sources Used:
Are Video Games Art? MoMA Says Yes.
Supreme Court Has Ruled; Now Games Have a Duty
The Art of Video Games
Video Games: 14 in the Collection, for Starters
Which 14 Video Games Made It Into MoMA’s Permanent Collection?
woah, i never even considered video games to be art. But now that I think about it, creating a video game must be quite an artistic endeavor, more so than movies even. I still can't really say that considering video games as art changes my opinion on them though.
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