Playing Art Historian Designing an Adventure Game for 20 th -Century Art History Courses Anastasia Salter and Keri Watson @anasalter + @watson74k
Playing Art Historian
Designing an Adventure Game for 20th-Century Art History Courses
Anastasia Salter and Keri Watson@anasalter + @watson74k
Education + Games
Education is “one of the most perfect game ecosystems that’s out there,” full of challenges, rewards, rules, allies, enemies, countdowns, and incentives, “all sorts of things that make school the best real-world implementation of a game that’s out there.”
And yet “it’s a poorly designed game; it’s kind of broken.”
Set Priebatsch
Alternate Reality Game
An “unfiction” game that invades a player’s normal environment and
invites them to play, often through puzzle-solving and deciphering clues
Examples: THATCamp Games
Rethinking “Twentieth-Century
Art”
Our Platform…
Visual designs and videos by Marcelo Laborda
This course presents an introduction to the major artists, works, techniques, and styles of modernity and relates them to historical and cultural contexts of the 20th century.
Particular attention is paid to the social history of Modern Art, including the cultural, political, and economic forces that influenced artists and art making during the twentieth century.
Course Overview
Course Objectives
Question the continually changing category of experience that comprises the notion of art
Recognize a core group of images within 20th-century art and interpret these works within the socio-historical and cultural context of their production and reception
Develop skills of critical reading, visual analysis, and written expression
Reactions to Games
Strongly agree
Agree Neither agree nor disagree
Disagree Strongly disagree
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
40
24
38
17
10 10
I enjoy playing games (n=29)Pe
rcen
t
Strongly agree
Agree Neither agree nor disagree
Disagree Strongly disagree
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
21
17
7
28 28
The game format corresponded with my preferred style of learning (n=29)
Perc
en
t
Strongly agree
Agree Neither agree nor disagree
Disagree Strongly disagree
05
101520253035404550
18
43
25
0
14
Deciphering the clues in the game helped me to be more engaged in the course (n=28)
Perc
en
t
Groups & Collaboration
Strongly agree
Agree Neither agree nor disagree
Disagree Strongly disagree
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
14
10
31
2124
I enjoy working in a group (n=29)Pe
rcen
t
Strongly agree
Agree Neither agree nor disagree
Disagree Strongly disagree
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
31
62
70 0
I think the ability to work with others is a valuable skill (n=29)
Perc
en
t
Strongly agree
Agree Neither agree nor disagree
Disagree Strongly disagree
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
7
69
14
37
The game fostered cooperation among students (n=29)
Perc
en
t
Polarizing Results
Strongly agree
Agree Neither agree nor disagree
Disagree Strongly disagree
05
101520253035404550
10
45
10
21
14
The game format method of learning helped me to have a greater appreciation of 20th century art (n=29)
Perc
en
t
Strongly agree
Agree Neither agree nor disagree
Disagree Strongly disagree
05
1015202530354045
17
41
17
1014
Because of the game format I have a better understanding of the complexities of classifying 20th century art (n=29)
Perc
en
t
John Cage and Marcel Duchamp, Reunion, 1968
Eve Babitz and Marcel Duchamp playing Chess, 1963
Yoko Ono, Play It By Trust, 1966/2011
Alison Knowles, Homage to Each Red Thing, 1996.
Secret Societies of the Avant-garde