The Impressionist movement of 19th century France sought to capture “an instantaneous impression of a scene in nature.” Impressionists and Post-Impressionists like Claude Monet and Paul Cezanne provided inspiration to a wide range of people involved in the creative arts. The influence of Cezanne in particular, spans from Picasso and Matisse, naming him “the father of us all,” to the unlikely industry of modern video games.
Video game company Nintendo admitted that the art for its newest game “The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword” was inspired by Impressionism, as well as Post-Impressionist Paul Cezanne. This art direction can be seen as an aesthetic choice, as well technologically necessary. Nintendo’s Wii system is known for lacking the technological prowess of other consoles and personal computers; it has trouble rendering the “realistic” models of the latest graphic-intensive video games. Nintendo is well aware of this technological hurdle, thus they opt for a greater emphasis on art direction rather than high definition textures. This choice creates a parallel to the impressionist movement if we think of “high end” graphics as Realism, and Nintendo’s “art direction” as Impressionism.
Skyward Sword displays distant landscapes in a very impressionistic way; they seem painted with small brush strokes and the forms meld to create a single landscape. The characters and environments closest to the player appear comparatively solid however. Though the game isn’t exactly a moving Impressionist painting, the influence is clear.
The game utilizes a bright pallet, (not fully expressed by my personal screen shots) much like the Impressionists .The Impressionist goal of capturing “the transitory effects of light and atmosphere” is fundamentally captured in the game, because what better way to express moving light than to actually have it move? Cezanne’s concerns are also addressed: the character models are solid and durable, and they exist within the landscape, but do not melt into it. Arguably, the aesthetic of Skyward Sword is timeless compared to the graphics of other contemporary games striving for realism, since it is inevitable that they will be surpassed by future games as technology develops.
When comparing a screen shot of the game and Cezanne’s Mont Saint-Victoire from c.1885, we can see the influence in the mountain and the depiction of the sky, a similar palette is also utilized by both.
Other comparisons that show influence from Cezanne:
Promotional concept art compared to Cezanne’s Mont Sainte-Victoire seen from Bellevue.
Compared to Road Before the Mountains, Sainte-Victoire
1898–1902
Monet also lends inspiration:
Promotional art compared to Monet's The Cliffs at Etretat.
-Nick Pantelaros
Sources: The class textbook, http://www.zeldauniverse.net/zelda-news/skyward-swords-visuals-impressionistic/ , and personal play time and pictures.
I also found a video dealing with this same idea, and it shows the game in motion.
This is a genius post. I mean, Zelda games often had incredibly scenic backgrounds that were considered impressive (in relation to when they came out, I mean we can look at Ocarina of Time now and not be so impressed by the graphics or background), but never would I have thought to draw a connection to a specific art period.
ReplyDeleteThis is incredible! As an avid Zelda fan, I never made the connection between the graphics and painting. I am entirely impressed with this and I now feel the need to replay the games, if only to see the artwork in a new way. Thanks for posting this!
ReplyDeleteWow. I totally /never/ made that connection. Good job! What really hits home was that the in game textures were so painterly!
ReplyDeleteIt was so boggling to see Link move through a beautiful environment. The screenshots do not do justice.
-Joann Chan
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