[arg_discuss] ARGs in Interesting Places

[Andrea Phillips]

On Jan 6, 2006, at 4:58 AM, Alex Fleetwood wrote:

> I'm particularly interested how you map the virtues of traditional  
> art forms
> on to other media in a meaningful way. A contemporary opera that is
> conceived and shot as a film is one example of that; an art
> exhibition that contained an ARG would be another. I'm also  
> interested in
> how you might access arts funding for this sort of work - I don't  
> see why it
> shouldn't be substantially supported.


You know, my first thought on this was ARGs in a historical museum.  
Specifically: the Holocaust Museum in Washington, D.C., hands out  
little slips of paper at the beginning of a visit with information  
about real victims on it; that's 'you' during your visit. At the end  
of the tour, you find out whether 'you' survived or not. It's pretty  
chilling.

So mI started to wonder, "Hey, something like that could very well be  
a deeper, more involving educational experience! A whole ARG!" And  
then I thought a little bit more about PM responsibilities (would  
people play Nazis? ...I assume we all know about the Stanford prison  
experiment...) At any rate, that example proves we'd have to be super- 
cautious about consequences and context, but I still think it could  
be a really valuable educational experience.

Of course, this brings up the whole 'what is an ARG'  question. :)

--
Andrea Phillips
http://www.perplexcity.com
http://www.deusexmachinatio.com