ArtScience Museum’s upcoming exhibition reimagines video games as an art form

From 12 Jun, 2021 to 9 Jan, 2022, video games will be the inspiration for a major exhibition, Virtual Realms: Videogames Transformed, curated and organised by the Barbican in co-production with ArtScience Museum and Melbourne Museum. 

Making its global premiere here, Virtual Realms is a multi-sensation exhibition that re-imagines video games as a 21st century artform. 

In addition, the exhibition will be co-curated by celebrated Japanese video game designer, Tetsuya Mizuguchi, who was once the chief creative officer of Sega’s United Game Artist division. 

The exhibition consists of six large-scale, immersive installations by some of the world’s leading video game designers to create. 

Some of them include Kojima Productions (makers of Death Stranding), Enhance (makers of Rez Infinite and Tetris Effect), thatgamecompany (creators of LittleBigPlanet and Dreams) and David OReilly (Creator of Everything and Mountain), along with media artists and design studios – Rhizomatiks, FIELD.IO, The Mill, Marshmallow Laser Feast, onedotzero and The Workers. 

In a press release, Tetsuya Mizuguchi said: “By creating these exciting new collaborations, Virtual Realms offers game developers a unique opportunity to break free from the constraints of consoles and formal game playing and really push the boundaries of how video games can be experienced together. This exhibition paves the way for a future where the world of games spills out beyond the screen.”

Inspired by David OReilly’s game, Everything (2017), one of the realms – EVERYTHING,  showcases the capacity of video games to generate expansive universes and explore the infinite potential of our imagination. Partnering with onedotzero, Eye (2021) is an interactive environment controlled by visitors to form kaleidoscopic patterns. 

The standard ticket is priced at $19 for adults, $14 for concession and $54 for the family package (two adults and two children). If you are a Singapore citizen, you can get the tickets at a cheaper price at $16, $12 and $45 respectively.  

Tickets will be available for purchase from 31 May onwards at Marina Bay Sands Box Offices and website.