World of Warcraft Gets an Art Exhibit

Keane Ng

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World of Warcraft Gets an Art Exhibit



Laguna Art Museum is hosting an exhibit entitled WoW: Emergent Media Production [http://www.lagunaartmuseum.org/Current-Exhibit.html], a show that looks at how "cultural production" has been influenced by World of Warcraft and game culture, and features work by Blizzard staff, game developers and artists alike.

Running from now to October 4, the show "explores various forms of cultural production based on World of Warcraft in particular and on gaming in general" by looking at how "artistic practices" have been influenced by WoW and game culture.

Blizzard themselves provide a starting point for the exhibit with pieces by major players like Chris Metzen and Samwise Didier, but fourteen artists from around the world also provide work, including Michael Samyn of The Path developers Tale of Tales. Fan art and machinima are also included and examined in the exhibit.

Themes explored by the work on display in the show include "elements of desire, the collapse of fantasy, medievalism, creative critiques, and public intervention." The bigger purpose of the exhibit, it seems, is to use WoW as a context for thinking about the "implications of gaming" and "their greater impact on our culture." So yeah, this isn't just an exhibit for looking at cool paintings of Arthas (though there probably are some).

WoW: Emergent Media Production will be accompanied by a weekly lecture series that'll take place every Sunday at Laguna Art Museum from now until October 1. Topics that will be discussed will include a consideration of painter Hieronymous Bosch [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hieronymus_Bosch] as compared to thematic imagery in WoW, some sort of "collaborative performance," how WoW can act as a way of "constructing a fictional narrative," and more.

If you're in the neighborhood and feel like using your brainpower to do more than calculate how that new dagger's going to change your DPS, check out the show.


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Chipperz

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Wow, that looks like it could be really interesting. Shame I'm nowhere near it or I'd go :(
 

John Funk

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mentor07825 said:
We can already see an influence of WoW artistic direction and colour selection in an upcoming game Diablo III.

It's this reason why I signed the petition that they shouldn't do this.
Really?

I honestly suggest you go back and play Diablo II. That game was plenty colorful. Diablo III looks like Diablo II; the concept art looks nothing like WoW art.
 

SomeBritishDude

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This looks interesting, especially from an art students point of view.

...Thats me thickys.

Anyway, if I was asked to do a painting for a WoW exhibit I'd probably just paint this guy

[img/]http://www.wiworks.com/images/fat-man-at-computer.jpg[/img]

Happy raiding fatty!
 

stormcaller

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Ahem, first we take your games, then we take your culture, we wrap it up by taking your soul

Ahem...

I meant to say, oh that's nice.
 

Actual

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Forgive my ignorance, but why are you surprised that Diablo 3 will have similarities in the art to that of WoW, the same company owns both the franchises right?

I'm not too artsy mesself so I've always had trouble deciding what is is worthy of going in a gallery. I will say that this is more interesting than a lot of what is considered classical art. However having played WoW I do know that the novelty of a slightly cartoony take on traditional fantasy elements does eventually become tired, I don't think it will stand the test of time, and that's the only thing I know that "art" must do.

EDIT: Still it's a cool accolade for Blizzard's artists, I hope they get lots of praise as they do make very pretty pictures. :)
 

SomeBritishDude

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Actual said:
Forgive my ignorance, but why are you surprised that Diablo 3 will have similarities in the art to that of WoW, the same company owns both the franchises right?
Would you be pissed if in Samus's next game she was fighting Goombas?
 

HardRockSamurai

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On the one hand, I'll laugh in the face of anyone who says that World of Warcraft has helped advance the human race.

On the other hand, I do like art, and that show does make the nerd in me all tingly inside..........or that might just be the heat of the flame war I just started..........oops..........
 

squid5580

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War Penguin said:
My current reaction is just like my reaction about the Life Sized Gundam; WHY?!?
And the answer for both is the same. Because they can.