More Proof that I am a Man-Child

BIG-ASS SWINGS!!! Yeah, now that’s what I’m talking about. For any newcomers out there (hopefully) I’ll state right here that I’m a huge fan of art that is playful and often larger than life. My pervious posts are evidence of that. This is a “multisensory” project by Ann Hamilton that occupies theWade Thompson Drill Hall which, bee tee dubs, is 55,000 square feet…are as I like to say with all the eloquence I’ve gathered after four years of reading classic literature: “Reaaaly fuckin’ big”

I would jump out of that thing...screw up the experiance but it would kick ass

 



It doesn’t end with just a bunch of swings, a curtain, and hardwood flooring. A pair of readers in robes will read from large scrolls which participants can listen to through ear-piece radio transmitters that you can pick up from the floor…why they are in robes and why they have pigeons caged next to them is not something I’m equipped to answer.



My Answer is: Yes, they can be.

The debate has raged for several years (hell, decades at this point) of whether video games are art. My stance has always been, and will always be barring some quantum crazy world altering shit, that video games are capable of being art. I view them as a medium for artistic expression on many, many different levels. But like films and novels and even some paintings and photographs, I think it is possible to not be art as well. What I’m saying is not every game made is a piece of art. But I do believe that many can be art either by actively being as so (the work of Jenova Chen) or unintentionally (the early works of Shigeru Miyamoto, the man behind Super Mario Bros. and The Legend of Zelda). But my personal views aside, I bring this up now because the Museum of Modern Art in New York has just announced that they’ll be adding video games to their collection. Classics like Pac-Man and Pong will also be joined by more modern examples such as Portal and Katamari Damacy (which is just bat-shit crazy fun and hilarious).

One of the Best Villians in History

 

Take a look here for the whole story and a complete list of all the games being added. I think it’s a fine list but why no Ico or Shadow of the Colossus?



It's looking into my soul

I think it’s safe to say that the American populace was an unhealthy relationship with Hollywood stars and their appearances. I don’t know about you, but I don’t think the fact that Taylor Swift being seen in public without makeup on or that Lady Gaga was spotted dressed as a fucking human being are newsworthy. It’s a strange obsession with beauty, or at least superficial beauty. This is what Matthew Rolston's “Talking Heads” project is addressing (or that’s what I’m taking from it). By gussying up (or not) ventriloquist dummies in the style of Hollywood stars of yesteryear (and a few from today) we get a kind of unsettling imagery that some claim to be hauntingly bea—GHA! WHAT THE FUCK IS THAT!?

IT.KNOWS.THINGS.

 

Sweet mercy! Those things creep me right the fuck out. Which is good. Art should elicit and emotional reaction, something I try to do with me writing (mainly by being an irreverent ass, but hey, still a reaction). This certainly elicits a reaction…it’s the eyes. Seriously, some kind of hell-dimension creature is using ventriloquist dummies to spy on humanity…I just know it…no inanimate eyes can look so dead yet so knowing at the same time (*shudders and tries to think of happy things like unicorns and shit*). Sorry…I got off topic for a moment. In all seriousness though, I do think this project is very interesting and I’m for some social commentary leveled at our fascination with Hollywood stars. You can see for youself here