They Told Me Not To Title It Train Game

They Told Me Not To Call It Train Game, by Haley Mounes, combines interactive installation, technology, and painting into discussion of how these genres have interacted throughout art history. The installation asks viewers to view both the paintings and the video game with the same critical eye, to discover their influence on each other.Artist Statement for BFA, Spring 2021Simulation has become a valued staple of mass-media entertainment, but originated far before then in the medias of photography and painting, and continues today as a desire for verisimilitude. While this desire has been repeatedly contested in the history of paintings, it is currently unquestioned in gaming, CGI and VR. Yet within fine art circles, the desire for new technology and interactivity has insinuated its way even into contemporary painting. Although I am interested in the rapid growth of technology, I'm also interested in the survival of painting tropes in newer forms. By confusing the expectations for art, entertainment, and technology, my work questions how the boundaries between them are constructed and upheld in a world where all three are quickly evolving.The process of my paintings are worked in tandem with my digital work. First I create 3D models of real-world objects through the use of photogrammetry and 3D modelling programs such as Blender and Meshroom, which are then integrated into virtual scenes created in the game engine Unity. All of the programs I utilize are free to use and have only become accessible within the last several years, which has led to their exponential growth within art communities. Next, I transfer these scenes via projector and paint onto the canvas, which is stretched at the same curvature used for gaming monitors and historic theater stages. It is my hope that these works will inspire the viewer to consider the relationship between our quickly evolving technology and our common desires that have repeated through history.