Art Games: Performativity and Interactivity A thesis presented to the faculty of the College of Fine Arts of Ohio University In partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree Master of Arts Sarah M. Grabner May 2018 © 2018 Sarah M. Grabner. All Rights Reserved. 2 This thesis titled Art Games: Performativity and Interactivity by SARAH M. GRABNER has been approved for the School of Art + Design and the College of Fine Arts by Jennie Klein Professor of Art History Matthew R. Shaftel Dean, College of Fine Arts 3 Abstract GRABNER, SARAH M., M.A., May 2018, Art History Art Games: Performativity and Interactivity Director of Thesis: Jennie Klein This research’s intention is to define and classify what art games are and how these three particular games rely on the audience to activate the artworks, thus making the audience’s interactions essential to complete the artworks. Technology has always impacted the art world and shaped the media that artists experiment with and use. Today, there are many artists who use games as their method for conveying their ideas and messages. This paper will examine how three artists use gaming structures to critique historical and social topics through the audience’s interactions with the artworks’ gaming structures. The three case studies about Pippin Barr’s The Artist is Present, Tale of Tales’ The Path and Wafaa Bilal’s performance Domestic Tension will examine how these artworks exemplify and use the elements of the particular genre of games, art games. Through looking at research done on digital space and the case studies this paper will address how these artworks create a shift from the focus of the artwork being on the creator or artist to how the interactions and performance of the audience complete the works. 4 Dedication I would like to dedicate this to my dogs, Conor, Paladin and Smokey for always being happy to see me when I come home. Also, my boyfriend, Jesse, and my parents for always being supportive throughout this stressful time. 5 Acknowledgments This thesis would not have been possible without the help from my head advisor Dr. Jennie Klein and my other committee members, Professor Mark Franz and Dr. Marion Lee. I am also indebted to many of my fellow Art History colleagues for their support throughout this process, especially Hannah Thome for being by my side during this 2-year program. 6 Table of Contents Abstract ............................................................................................................................... 3 Dedication ........................................................................................................................... 4 Acknowledgments............................................................................................................... 5 List of Figures ..................................................................................................................... 8 Chapter One: Art Games, What Are They? ........................................................................ 9 Introduction ................................................................................................................... 9 What Are Art Games? How Do They Differ from Other Digital Games? ................... 9 Pippin Barr: The Artist is Present ............................................................................... 17 Tale of Tales: The Path ............................................................................................... 18 Wafaa Bilal: Domestic Tension .................................................................................. 19 Art Games, Performance Art and Interactivity ........................................................... 20 Conclusion .................................................................................................................. 26 Chapter 2: Literary Review: Interactivity, Performativity and Digital Space .................. 28 Introduction ................................................................................................................. 28 Interactivity ................................................................................................................. 28 Performativity ............................................................................................................. 31 Digital Space ............................................................................................................... 35 Conclusion .................................................................................................................. 37 Chapter 3: Case Study I: Pippin Barr’s The Artist is Present ........................................... 39 Introduction ................................................................................................................. 39 Pippin Barr’s Background........................................................................................... 40 Marina Abramović’s and Her Performance The Artist is Present (2010) .................. 42 Pippin Barr’s The Artist is Present ............................................................................. 47 Pippin Barr’s The Artist is Present Vs. Marina Abramović’s The Artist is Present ... 50 Conclusion .................................................................................................................. 57 Chapter 4: Case Study II: Tale of Tales’ The Path ........................................................... 58 Introduction ................................................................................................................. 58 Tale of Tales Background—Who Are They? ............................................................. 58 The Path—Description of the Game ........................................................................... 60 What is Unique About The Path? ............................................................................... 68 Conclusion .................................................................................................................. 72 7 Chapter 5: Case Study III: Wafaa Bilal’s Domestic Tension ............................................ 73 Introduction ................................................................................................................. 73 A Short Biography of Wafaa Bilal.............................................................................. 73 Performance Summary of Bilal’s Domestic Tension .................................................. 75 Domestic Tension Compared to Tale of Tales’ The Path and Pippin Barr’s The Artist is Present ..................................................................................................................... 83 Conclusion .................................................................................................................. 87 References ....................................................................................................................... 111 8 List of Figures Figure 1. Fallout 4 screenshot. .......................................................................................... 90 Figure 2. Pippin Barr’s “Let’s Play: Ancient Greek Punishment: Limited Edition!” screenshot. ............................................................................................................. 91 Figure 3. Screenshot of The Path details in grandmother’s house ................................... 92 Figure 4. The New Yorker Comic, “On the Internet, nobody knows you’re a dog.” ........ 93 Figure 5. Screenshot of Pippin Barr’s game, It is as if you were doing work................... 94 Figure 6. Screenshot of the opening screen of Barr’s game, It is as if you were doing work....................................................................................................................... 95 Figure 7. Example of pop-up work boxes in Barr’s game, It is as if you were doing work. ............................................................................................................................... 96 Figure 8. Screenshot of Barr’s game, It is as if you were doing work. ............................. 97 Figure 9. Screenshots from The Artist is Present game. ................................................... 98 Figure 10. Image from Marina Abramović’s performance, The Artist is Present. ........... 99 Figure 11. Image of Marina Abramović and Ulay. ......................................................... 100 Figure 12. Screenshot from Pippin Barr’s The Artist is Present. ................................... 101 Figure 13. Image of the six girl characters in The Path. ................................................. 102 Figure 14. Screenshot of the opening screen in The Path. .............................................. 103 Figure 15. Screenshot of The Path. ................................................................................. 104 Figure 16. Screenshot of The Path’s end of chapter score. ............................................ 105 Figure 17. Screenshot of gold clover. ............................................................................. 106 Figure 18. Screenshot of part of grandmother’s house in The Path. .............................. 107 Figure 19. Screenshot of The Path. ................................................................................. 108 Figure 20. Screenshot of The Path. ................................................................................. 109 Figure 21. Image of Bilal’s performance, Domestic Tension. .......................................