ARTIS PROJECT together with ARTIS GALLERY invites you to a fascinating journey through the worlds of virtual and augmented reality of contemporary artists!

Artists: Alexey Andreev, Sofia Karaulova, Gosha Tochnik, Valeria Mordashova, Elizaveta Kudryavtseva, Oskar Storm, Asya Dobrovolskaya, Alexey Neretin, Philip Igumnov, Ksenia Grabynya

Games in many different forms and forms accompany a person from infancy through history and throughout life. Today, when the society is not so acutely concerned with survival as the living of bright emotions, the game is the richest and most flexible mechanism that allows you to get unforgettable impressions, accompanying the achievement of great goals, able to change the worldview and even subjugate yourself. 

We're distracted from everyday problems with video games by the rich fantasy of their creators and the fascinating story. Cyber entertainment allows you to create an avatar that is devoid of flaws and complexes. If a gamer feels like a superhero with unlimited possibilities, why not choose virtuality over reality?

The desire to play with destiny, to try your luck and get a portion of adrenaline, which is burnt with courage, attracts people to gambling (French "jeu de hazard" - literally "the game of chance").

Just as ancient Greek athletes competed in agility, speed and strength, today's athletes, filled with the spirit of competition and the desire to expand their physical abilities, participate in international competitions that bring people from different countries, cultures and beliefs together. With a sinking heart, the whole world is watching sports competitions on the screen or from the stands.

According to the author of the book "The Player of the Game" by the Dutch philosopher Johan Höyzing, "the game exists before every culture, hovers over it". The games were played by animals long before humans appeared. People themselves have been playing since prehistoric times, when ritual games were a way of communicating with the forces of nature and maintaining a channel of communication with totemic beings.

The gaming aspect is present in the relationship between men and women with each other and with the world around them. Psychologically, the concept of a gender game is close to the process of resolving an acute, conflict situation, which requires its participants to follow certain rules. Thus, in the Middle Ages noble knights achieved beautiful ladies according to the rules of courtesy love - participating in fights and knights' tournaments, dedicating poems to them. In the XVIII-XIX centuries, adultery became a trend of fashion, and treason became an integral part of the image of a secular lady. Nowadays, the role of the instrument of romantic play is played by flirting. In the age of smartphones likes in social networks, dating applications, messengers became a universally accepted virtual language of quick flirting.

Game theory and strategic manipulation translate the "game" in the category of more serious concepts, which affect areas such as business, education, career or war. Game theory is essentially a science of rational decision making, taking into account goals, preferences and limitations in various interactive situations. Game theory in applied mathematics studies and calculates the optimal solutions and strategies for fighting for their interests.

The philosophical aspect of the behavioral game is that the most different types of actions are united by one common motive, the meaning of which is not the result, but in the process itself. To predict the course of the game means to model an alternative reality, anticipating the possible outcome of the situation.

Art, as a mirror of the world and reality, does not stay away from gamification. Deceptions in painting (or "trompe-l'oeil") have been known since the times of Ancient Greece. For example, the story of Zeusse - the author to such a degree of realistic paintings that the birds flew to the painted grape bunches. In the 20th century, another kind of deception was presented by Belgian surrealist artist René Magritte, who accompanied the image of the tube with the signature "It's not a pipe" and made the audience question their ability to adequately perceive reality.