Neoludica. Art is Game 2011-1966: art meets videogames

That videogames do not only have negative consequences on our minds and on those of our children has already been demonstrated; that the graphics of many videogames have improved so much that they can catapult us into a virtual dimension that is very similar to reality was already clear to us. What maybe none of us dared to do was to include videogames in the elite of arts, along with architecture, music, painting, sculpture, dance and cinema. But now something is changing, as the Biennale of Venice, i.e. one of the main Italian organisation as far as arts are concerned, has organised an exhibition dedicated to videogames, and if such an important organisation decides to deal with videogames, this means that they must have an ounce of artistic credibility!

This exhibition, which will be open until the 27th of November, is one of the side-events of the 54. Venice Biennale and is titled “Neoludica. Art is Game 2011-1966”, a name that is inspired by a sentence pronounced by no less than Duchamp: “Art is a game between all people of all periods”.

The exhibition is the result of a research carried out by Musea Game Art Gallery, E-Ludo Lab and Fabbrica Arte with the collaboration of Centro Candiani and is meant to show that videogames, in the sense of interactive multimedia works, can be considered as a new form of art, perhaps not understood yet, but still art. A new artistic expression that can be seen as an interesting ground for experimentations but also as an inspiration for other forms of art, from cinema to literature, from music to painting. The exhibition, divided into six sections, includes the works of 33 artists and has been organised with a limited budget and with the help of many supporters. This should not be underestimated, as notwithstanding the limited budget the exhibition has achieved a great success and has inspired many side-events and the publication of a book, “Arte e videogame”, by Debora Ferrari and Luca Traini.

If nowadays we can speak about videogames as forms of art, this is certainly due to the big developments that have characterised this specific sector: if you belong to the generation that began playing with videogames in the 80s, you will certainly remember the non exceptional graphics of games like Pac-man, and it might be impossible for you to acknowledge those ancestral videogames as the forefathers of modern and refined videogames, characterised by excellent graphics, many details, real characters and hyperrealistic locations. Moreover, exactly like all the other forms of art, videogames are believed to be able to provide a sort of analysis of the society in which they have been realised and to make players immerse into different historical epochs, from mythology to science fiction.

Maybe it is still too soon to understand if in the future videogames will be studied at school as one of the main artistic expressions of our days, but this exhibition will certainly give its visitors some interesting stimuli for reflection.