fun article about pixel art VS "HD" art

[gimbal]

A friend of mine pointed me towards this article, the title of which immediately got my blood boiling:

http://www.dinofarmgames.com/a-pixel...ces-pixel-art/

But its a very interesting read with some valid points to make - which I think are still very much disputable. It gave me food for thought, that's for sure. And I can respect people who dare to just throw such an outing onto the net knowing full-well that it is going to bring with it the responsibility of having to repeatedly defend every single word of it.

Don't ignore the comments; good articles clearly bring together people with actual insightful thoughts.

[paul1981]

Interesting read, thanks. Couldn't possibly read all the comments though.

[gimbal]

Cyangmou shared this interesting follow up read with me:

http://www.wired.com/2015/08/geeks-g...ool-videogames

[commodorejohn]

Phooey to that. Pixel art is beautiful no matter how many Philistines can't see it.

[gimbal]

I -adore- pixel art. On that note if you haven't seen "indie game - the movie" yet, then do so. I caught it on Netflix yesterday, was surprised to find it there.

[gimbal]

Here's part one of a youtube series about how retro graphics (ex: C64) worked that a friend shared with me:

[ Show youtube player ]

I found it a very fun watch, quite informative also!

[Predseda]

After all those years, I am still pixelling.

Even my avatar is a bit pixellated

[Dastardly]

Originally Posted by gimbal

Here's part one of a youtube series about how retro graphics (ex: C64) worked that a friend shared with me:

[ Show youtube player ]

I found it a very fun watch, quite informative also!

Interesting stuff!

[Nishicorn]

As I mentioned in another thread, 'art' is a toilet glued to a wall or a Jackson Pollock painting. See whatever in it you will, but art is worse than trash. Seriously, I'd rather look at a full garbage pail longer than I care to look at art.

Beauty exists in a more absolute sense and in a dimension that speaks to us beyond and bypassing our mental processes, left side of the brain, cognitive reactions and linguistic expressions. It doesn't matter how this beauty came to be, who made it, what format, form or way it exists (there's formless beauty as well).

So monochrome, low-level pixel creations can be beautiful, just as a painstakingly painted ancient fresco or old world architecture-based church or an amazing sunrise reflected on a mountain lake on a foggy morning.

There's beauty in existence, and that beauty can be observed through many formats and flows, by any entity capable of appreciating it.

Of course some forms have a 'learning curve' - someone that has never heard of arpeggio, might not appreciate some wonderful-sounding detuned arpeggio+filtersweep, but after adjusting the ear to accept it as normal, it becomes possible to witness the full beauty of it.

I suspect the same is true of the over-exposed and overly-saturated (not in the literal meaning) eyes of the mainstream people; they might need adjusting, just as the eyes need adjusting when someone moves from a bright area into a darker area.
It just takes awhile to learn how to appreciate, but the beauty is always there.

However, not all paintings are beautiful, and not all 'pixel art' is beautiful, either. A lot of Amiga demoscene 'pixel art' is just imaginationless rip-offs of Vallejo/Sorayama/etc. paintings, and that's a pretty sad and low thing. People just use technique, gimmicks and lots of hours to impress someone without ever taking a second to express their own self in a honest way.

And the ignorant pleb sees 'beauty' and is impressed.

[gimbal]

I'm happy to be a pleb, I have more fun and more friends.