[quoting Marcinkiewicz, 28 Jan 97] Second, at least one researcher has studied the use of IT methodology in the teaching of art--Patricia Rodgers of Bimidji State University in Minnesota.
I've been following the discussion but have had little time to fire off a paragraph or two to this list. At any rate, I won't expound too much on art and IT, but I would like to point out the very close relationship gaming has to art production, art criticism, and even art history and aesthetics. Actually, this was said quite well a few messages back.
[quoting Rieber, 24 Jan 97] As I have studied and thought about how to promote and support the best and most important kinds of learning (i.e., "intrinsically motivating, meaningful learning environments in which individuals self-regulate their own learning," to use the vernacular), I find that gaming and play attributes quickly bubble to the top of ways to put the theory into practice. These attributes include clear goals and expectations, a clear role or purpose for the learner, a meaningful context for a learner to judge whether or not their actions/responses are appropriate, feedback that makes sense, motivation built on individual curiosity and optimal challenges, etc. For these reasons, I think Roger Schank and his colleagues at Northwestern U. are right in referring to games as "interactive stories." Consequently, I think that games should share the special status held by stories within cognitive psychology.
Substitute "gaming and play" with analogous art terminology and you will see what I mean. (I do however have issues with Shank and his quest a few years ago for an algorithm for creativity--an art production predictor, in other words, but that's another story).
Another thing that draws me to game design is the inherent blending of both artistic and analytic elements, an issue that has been raised this week. The best games have a clear structure and purpose requiring careful analytical design, yet have those artistic elements that no one can sufficiently explain why they are needed or how they work--you know it when you see it.
This goes beyond pretty graphics and flashing colors. The "know it when you see it" part begins to touch on aesthetic judgments and historical references and symbols.
I'll stop there because we can quickly move into some BIG areas of discussion.