 So, I know sometimes it can be hard to look at something and appreciate it for something other than it's intended purpose. Like those crazy, yet awesome, cut-out books people make. But sometimes, and it's taken me time myself to be able to do it, it's worth taking a step back to look at and really appreciate the art that can be made out of something that was once something completely different. And thus, I want to talk to you about the world of board game art! (ooooh, aahhhh). Now, I hear some of you hesitant folks in the back, "Why ruin a perfectly good board game?" and "Why not donate it so someone else can enjoy it?" I see your very valid points, but I have a few of my own as well. (*Please note that these points are part of my personal experiences)  For one thing, we're typically using mass-produced games which have tons of copies in existence. Me turning one of those copies into something to hang on the wall doesn't mean that Sally Smith won't get to play it, there are plenty more copies out there for everyone!! :D Connected to that, for us, it's all thrift finds. We're re-purposing something that has already gotten a lot of love and been played a bunch. Maybe it's missing a few pieces now, or maybe some cards are bent and beaten. When you turn it into art, it doesn't matter. Every piece is valuable, and if something is missing, it can still feel whole without it. Rather than let it sit on a shelf collecting dust because no one wants to play an incomplete game, we'll turn it into something that can still get a ton of love. Finally, it's still "perfectly good." Look, I'm not playing Monopoly, even if it is skinned with my favorite theme. But that doesn't mean it isn't pretty, and I'd love to look at it every time I go into my board game room. So why not make some wall art, and find yet another thing I love about this hobby?  Another good option for board game art is box covers. A lot of our game expansions fit into the base game box, which is great because it saves space on the shelves! But it does mean we're left with some beautiful box art that someone spent a lot of time creating, and we don't want to just toss it out! So, we like to cut out the covers and save them. Some are easy to frame, if they're not too thick, while others can just be pinned or taped up. One day we'd really like to make a HUGE collage of them in our board game room! One final way to make game art is simply to pin up some cards to a bulletin board. Sometimes we'll find a random card from an unrelated game in a thrift find, or we'll just have some leftovers after making art. So, why not just add it to the array of things on the bulletin board? It's simple and looks great among all the other fun things you might keep there. So, I've said all I can in defense of board game art, and I hope that I've convinced at least a few skeptics out there that re-purposing games can be awesome, and just as great as keeping them forever or donating them for someone else to play. There's a lot to love about this hobby, and I definitely think that creating art out of old/unwanted games is one of them!! :)
Happy gaming, Friends!
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
