Something becomes art when the artist presents it as such. In designating a work as 'art' the artist asks the public to judge it in that context. It is then the publics duty to judge the work on its merits (is this good art or bad art) and to fit it into a larger social or historical context (what questions or ideas arise from engaging with this piece).
That's not to say that some video games aren't beautiful, they are. Or that they don't contain artful elements, they do. In the end though I would say 99.999% of video games are being presented with the expectation that they be judged as video games, not as pieces of art. It's the same reason Duchamp could hang a urinal on the wall and call it art. Up until the moment he asked the public to judge his piece as art, it was just a urinal. When you think about it, the artist has an almost supernatural ability to transform objects merely by willing them. Another fun question, who is an artist? Anyone who says they are.
Slashdot Mirror
Right on man, screw english and art! what good ever came from studying either of those subjects?
Something becomes art when the artist presents it as such. In designating a work as 'art' the artist asks the public to judge it in that context. It is then the publics duty to judge the work on its merits (is this good art or bad art) and to fit it into a larger social or historical context (what questions or ideas arise from engaging with this piece). That's not to say that some video games aren't beautiful, they are. Or that they don't contain artful elements, they do. In the end though I would say 99.999% of video games are being presented with the expectation that they be judged as video games, not as pieces of art. It's the same reason Duchamp could hang a urinal on the wall and call it art. Up until the moment he asked the public to judge his piece as art, it was just a urinal. When you think about it, the artist has an almost supernatural ability to transform objects merely by willing them. Another fun question, who is an artist? Anyone who says they are.