An Educational Digital Environment of Contemporary Aesthetics

Focused on Slow Gaming

Ieva Gintere

Institute of Social, Economic and Humanities Research, Vidzeme University of Applied Sciences,

Cēsu street 4, Valmiera LV4201, Latvia

Keywords: Digital Art Game, Contemporary Aesthetics, Slow Gaming.

Abstract: The article discusses the concept of an educational digital environment with elements of game, Art Space

which has been created on the basis of analysis of the art games produced between 1999 and 2020, and

incorporates an explanation of their cultural context. Art Space is related to serious art games and focuses on

the aesthetics and historical heritage of contemporary games. It invites the user into a virtual art academy with

several rooms where he/she can create individual artefacts. Art Space is intended to clarify the stylistics of

contemporary art games and hopes to open a new page in new media art devoted to research into contemporary

art. The article provides a review of recent literature on digital art- and edugames, as well as proposes an

innovative approach in digital media creation using the aspect of slow gaming.

1 INTRODUCTION

This paper traces the development of a new digital

environment, Art Space. It belongs to the niche of

modern art- and educational gaming. Art Space is

identified as a digital environment because its

interactivity is less important in a comparison to a

regular game. The goal of Art Space is to educate its

players concerning digital aesthetics as well as to

stimulate reflection on its conceptual aspects. Because

Art Space is strongly linked to serious gaming, its

theoretical discourse is related to the research into

gaming. This paper presents an analysis of the pertinent

literature concerning game theory and art game

analysis focusing on the aspect of slow gaming. The

author suggests treating the digital environment as an

effective tool for transferring knowledge of

contemporary aesthetics to college and university

students as well as to a wider, general audience.

Work on the digital environment is being carried

out through collaboration between the researcher,

Dr.art. Ieva Gintere (Vidzeme University of Applied

Sciences, Latvia) and the game artist, Mag.art.

Kristaps Biters (Art Academy, Latvia) in the

framework of a post-doctoral project led by Ieva

Gintere between 2018 and 2021. The methods used

are stylistic analyses of games as well as studies of

https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0203-3351

gaming theory. The project encompasses a body of

articles published during the development of Art

Space with a theoretical analysis related to its concept

(Gintere, 2019; Gintere, 2020a; Gintere, 2020c) and

the creation of a demo version of Art Space (Gintere,

Biters, 2020).

2 DISCUSSION

The author of this study suggests developing the

educational aspect of contemporary aesthetics in

serious gaming that has been missing to date. In Art

Space, which is devoted to the subjects of education

and contemporary art, the mode of slow gaming has

been used in order to pave the way to a thoughtful

kind of individual education as well to support a more

reflexive and immersive approach to modern artistic

phenomena, and to encourage their understanding and

appreciation.

2.1 The Situation in Edugames

Regarding Contemporary Aesthetic

Styles

Recently, digital educational or serious gaming has

been developed in multiple directions. However,

Gintere, I.

An Educational Digital Environment of Contemporary Aesthetics Focused on Slow Gaming.

DOI: 10.5220/0010403201630168

In Proceedings of the 13th International Conference on Computer Supported Education (CSEDU 2021) - Volume 2, pages 163-168

ISBN: 978-989-758-502-9

163

education related to contemporary aesthetics has been

neglected. Several authors have presented the

research situation into modern edugaming without

mentioning the subject of contemporary aesthetic

theory. As Baptista and Oliveira (2019) have noted,

“few cultural variables” were identified in the

literature about serious games, including little

mention of the specific area of modern art and

aesthetics. In the literature review by Malegiannaki

and Daradoumis (2017) there are no serious games

devoted to this field. The lack of this kind of gaming

is also obvious in a more recent article by Ferdani et

al. (2020). They have examined the state-of-the-art of

games around culture, but no aesthetic aspects were

taken into account.

There are many games with an aim to reconstruct

the phenomena of the past such as the spiritual beliefs

of the ancient Egyptians and the culture of ancient

Rome (Mortara et al., 2014). There has been little

focus on the present time, so there is a need to

document, analyze and categorize the currently

relevant aesthetical environments in digital games

from the point of view of today. By doing this the

research community could thus gain an accurate

image of the present-day artistic styles and document

changes as they develop. The audio-visual traits of art

games, the specific means of expression, appearance

of different styles, nuances of shapes, colors, manner

of design and other artistic features are almost left

aside in gaming theory. Since games can have a short

shelf life today, the aesthetic representations in some

games are at risk of being lost after a period of time.

There are few scientific studies documenting stylistic

analysis of games. Abstractionism is a recognized

category of games (Gee, Dolah, 2018), Koc has

examined the modern trend of vaporwave (Koc,

2017). Photorealism is present in the discourse of

games, too (Järvinen, 2002). However, an illustration

of aesthetic styles in art gaming is scarce. The author

of this study has recently sketched the profile of

gaming stylistics and named games representing them

(Gintere, 2020b).

2.2 Complexity of Aesthetics Today

The lack of serious games about contemporary

aesthetics could be explained by its complexity. The

aesthetic trends of contemporary art are not an easy

subject to master. They may seem to be edgy and not

easily understandable. This is caused by the

intellectually charged tradition of modernism that still

governs our cultural arena and requires a specifically

educated public. Because the public today is mostly

orientated towards gaining practical knowledge, it

might miss the metaphysical information that can be

obtained by studying arts’ theory and philosophy and

thus miss becoming familiar with contemporary

cultural capital. Aesthetics today possess a complex

stylistic language that can be difficult to understand if

the public is not informed about its derivations, and

cultural context. Particular styles might need to be

decoded. For instance, it is important to explain why

the quite robust style of pixels is still used in gaming

very frequently while there exist other technical

resources to create a photorealistic environment with

curved lines and smooth figures. Pixel style refers to

the classical values of aesthetics where geometrical

forms are said to be the best images of absolute beauty

and harmony. A geometrical shape has the status of

an ideal form recognized not subjectively, but

universally (Kane 2014), i.e., everyone must agree it

is perfect. Even if this concept seems to be outmoded,

it is deeply rooted in Western culture and the modern

means of expression does not improve upon it.

One of the general goals of Art Space is to express

the intellectual baggage that each style encompasses

as simply as possible. The information should be easy

to perceive in order to be enjoyed.

The author of Art Space suggests that game-based

digital media should become agents of cultural

transformation with an aim to help to introduce

contemporary art traditions to an audience even wider

than students of art. Shliakhovchuk and her colleague

in a recent literature review concerning serious

gaming claim that “video games explicitly or

implicitly encourage gamers to absorb their built-in

cultural messages” (Shliakhovchuk, Muñoz García,

2020). Games have been proven to be capable of

affecting the way people think and develop

intercultural literacy. They are acknowledged to be

tools inhabiting and disseminating cultural meaning.

Gaming has a capacity to stimulate intellectual

awareness in particular when it is not oriented to a

rapidly achieved result, but rather when oriented

towards exploration and making deliberate choices.

2.3 Slow Gaming

Art Space has the aim to find an effective approach

for explaining the difficult area of modern art and its

theoretical heritage. This explanatory style largely

dictates the tempo of play in Art Space. It is a

sandbox-style game-related contemplative

environment with an art gallery and short textual

materials that are intended to clarify the theoretical

aspects of styles such as pixel, generative art,

futurism, and others. Art Space has been built as a

virtual art academy with several rooms representing

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each style. The users are guided by a narrator. In the

game the Orbs of Knowledge discuss the cultural

context of styles, show examples in gaming, and their

antecedents in the era of modernism. In addition, the

user is invited to act creatively using the stylistic

means of expression of each room. The creative

elements also affect the dynamics of interaction.

During the last few years, some authors of new

media art have demonstrated an alternative feeling of

time and an unusual emphasis on reflection. Although

the paradigm of existence in the modern world has

proved to be fast paced, recently there has been a

tendency towards slow interaction in gameplay. As the

gaming theorist Tim Marsh has stated, slow games are

“intended to focus attention/concentration, and provide

openings and opportunities for reflection,

contemplation, and learning”. The authors of games

with a slow interaction are artists Ernest Edmonds,

Michael Brough and Ian Bogost, to mention a few.

Slow games are created with the aim of raising

awareness, of “deep attention, reflective, and

contemplative experiences”, in order “to stimulate

thought and shape experience”, and thus to open better

opportunities for deepened thought (Marsh, 2016).

In Art Space play is “similar to performing, or

dancing with technology”. It aims “to create a sense

of calm and allow participants to break away, clear

their minds, and unwind”. The style of interaction in

Art Space depends on the user. Although the tempo is

not permanently and obligatory slow, its’ flow is

similar to the games that could be called

contemplative such as The Night Journey (2010)

which is aimed not at fast reaction but rather at

reflection and exploration of the environment. Also,

in the famous Minecraft (2011), as Tim Marsh has

noted, the speed of the game “is dictated largely by

the player” yet one can see moments “when the player

stops and pauses to watch the beauty of a sunset or

marvel at the sudden rain” (Marsh, 2016). This kind

of lingering is characteristic of games that enhance

the capacity for philosophical reflection like Every

Day the Same Dream (2009) and Graveyard (2008).

This group of games has been described by

(Chittaro, Sioni, 2018), as well. The authors have

carried out research regarding existential video games

which are “employed to encourage users to reflect on

the impact of death awareness on their lives”. This

“could be considered as a sub-genre of serious

games”. Moreover, there are many serious games and

art games with the purpose of reflection that could be

classified as contemplative. In these games the player

can take his/her time without a risk of breaking “the

subtleness of the experience” caused by a time

limitation and without interrupting “the flow of

emotions” the game can evoke.

Furthermore, there are game-based artworks

where the mechanics are much slower such as the

“game poems” The Slow Year (2010) by Ian Bogost,

Vesper.5 (2012) by Michael Brough and the Shaping

Form artworks (2007) by Ernest Edmonds. These

activities might take days or months for the player to

see the changes caused by interactions such as

walking-by or hand waving. Vesper.5 only allows the

player to take one step a day. The work replays all

previous steps evoking reflection on steps that have

already been taken, before pausing to wait for the

player to take their daily step (Marsh, 2016). These

works develop the capacity for sedate observation,

consideration, and peacefulness.

Papa Sangre (2010) is a unique example of slow

gaming that could be called an audio horror game. It is

focused on the acoustical experience. “The player must

have patience and move slowly through the space […]

Through controlling the pacing in this manner, the

game forces players to listen while they move, paying

attention to the sounds that other characters or objects

are making as well as to their own sounding bodies in

the virtual world” (Collins, 2013).

In comparison to a purely entertaining game, the

user of Art Space needs more time to reflect upon the

messages and atmosphere of the digital environment.

The author of this study believes that this type of

game-based works has the potential to raise cultural

awareness and to develop an intellectual approach to

disciplines in the humanities. In these disciplines,

phenomena “are understood to change through

consecutive readings and interpretations” and are

“highly contextual and subjective” (Levenberg et al.,

2018). Art Space provides a space to question cultural

ideas and stresses individual meaning-making. This

approach has been less important in gaming to date

since most games have been largely orientated

towards action. However, a more developed

reflective approach would diversify game culture,

widen the scope of the analysis, “inscribe new value”

into video games and “pave the way for a new

generation of games” (Styhre et al., 2018).

Slow play also refers to the concept of critical play

coined by the well-known game designer and theorist

Mary Flanagan. She claims that games should not link

players to the “slavery of play” but should rather help

them better understand the deep significance of

artists’ messages and see the world in new ways

(Flanagan, 2016). This kind of perception regulates

the tempo of play and excludes rushing. The

contemplative approach to play in Art Space

determines its rather moderate speed of interaction,

but this can be combined with a rapid style of play.

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2.3.1 Details of User Activities in Relation to

Slow Gaming

Art Space typifies slow gaming for several reasons.

Firstly, its user is invited to read the textual

information that explains the historical and

conceptual context of styles. This requires serious

attention and time even though the texts are laconic.

The metaphysical information that can be obtained by

an insight into arts’ theory and philosophy will not be

revealed quickly. Yet the appealing virtual space in

the game that talks about the roots of styles in a most

simple way has been created with the goal of making

users intrinsically motivated to gain new knowledge

concerning contemporary art. Thus, the author of Art

Space intends to support the process of education

regarding styles and strengthen an appreciation as

well as discursivity of contemporary culture capital.

Secondly, the user of Art Space is able to create

his/her own artefacts in the virtual art academy using

the current trends of digital art inherited from

modernism, such as, glitch, pixel aesthetics, hacking,

generative art, noise, futurism, photorealism, naïve

art, and the kitsch/camp style. The player must

complete the tasks by building and editing objects to

represent the given art style. Building and editing

mechanics give the player the freedom to replicate the

specific styles. Apart from creative activities and the

educative/informative nature of the game, there are

no rules to follow and no specific goals to achieve.

The player explores the stylistics and finds the magic

of the artistic effects of each room.

The third reason why the interaction in Art Space

can be described as relatively slow is that the user will

be acquainted with the historical antecedents of each

style and its contemporary witnesses. Observation of

the artworks by the game players is also considered a

slow, meditative action. The references to the games

made by artists in the first decades of the 21

century

will serve as educational items. For example, by using

the effect of glitch, the player could be introduced to

Error City Tourist (2016) which is an example of

glitch in the modern art game area. Likewise, the

player could discover precursors of glitch in the

modernism era through the painting by Vincent van

Gogh, Bedroom in Arles (1888). It shows the first

signs of deformation in modern art that turned into

significant deviations from images of conventional

reality. Thus, the new game will encompass the

historical background of digital art games today.

Art Space has an educational function, yet above

all, it is an artefact that invites the users to immerse

themselves in the aesthetic atmosphere. Even more

important than the informative, and creative aspect

for the user is the opportunity to enjoy the rooms of

styles in Art Space. This process cannot take place

hurriedly. Art Space offers nine rooms of

sophisticated aesthetic styles. For instance, in the

room of Generative art fine colorful lines are freely

drawn to obtain multiple shapes (figure 1).

Figure 1: Art Space. Generative art room, screenshot

(Gintere, Biters, 2020).

The Hack room surprises with slowly horizontally

moving transparent waves and dark geometrical

forms whose grid is tinted brightly green. The user

needs to build a construction in order to exit the

hacked space (figure 2).

Figure 2: Art Space. Hack room, screenshot (Gintere,

Biters, 2020).

The Pixel room is a hall with a meadow-like floor

that blossoms with tiny flowers and other floristically

designed elements in pixel forms surrounded by a

light green forest (figure 3).

Figure 3: Art Space. Pixel room, screenshot (Gintere,

Biters, 2020).

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The noise room will familiarize the user with the

noise-related sound examples. Antecedents to these

are explored in a black hall with a chess-like floor

illuminated by pastel-white lamps, marble mystic

spheres and screens of noise visualizations (figure 4).

Each of the rooms has its own stylistic character and

mood. They make an ensemble of contemporary

aesthetic trends demonstrating a particular stylistic

signature and cultural context.

Figure 4: Art Space. Noise room, screenshot (Gintere,

Biters, 2020).

4 CONCLUSIONS

The goals of the innovative digital environment

named Art Space are to educate its players concerning

digital art, and to suggest a new trend for edu- and art

gaming focused on contemplation and slow gaming.

Art Space is an experimental example of this

endeavor. This product has been created as a

prototype for emerging gaming and educational

platforms with an aim to enhance a wider acceptance

of contemporary aesthetics, as well as to support an

understanding of its artistic significance. Following

the completion of the prototype of Art Space, the

author of this article hopes to create an alternative

digital soundscape of sound art and immersive

aesthetics. It would offer a virtual trip into the modern

tradition of noise-related artefacts, coupled with the

feeling and concept of immersion, while including

their cultural backgrounds. The final phase of the Art

Space project contains a study to collect the players’

reactions to this aesthetic environment. This survey is

intended to show the educational impact on users as

well as recording their experience of slow gaming in

Art Space.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

This research has been supported by a grant from the

European Regional Development Fund project

“Leveraging ICT product innovations by enhancing

codes of modern art” No. 1.1.1.2/VIAA/1/16/106

within the Activity 1.1.1.2 “Post-doctoral Research

Aid”.

Many thanks to Wayne Chislett for his kind

support and proofreading.

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