Mak2, Art Survivors (2024). FPS action video games, edition of 3 + 1 AP. Dimension variable. © Mak2. Courtesy DE SARTHE, Hong Kong.
Art Survivors (2024), a new artistic first-person shooter game developed by Mak2, transports players into the gripping setting of a fictional art fair, perhaps the ultimate theater of war. The game begins with a familiar artistic milieu, showcasing the artist’s own AI-generated artworks. But the serene atmosphere quickly spirals into chaos as all the non-player characters within the game transform into feral zombies. In this high-stakes environment, players are thrust into a survival scenario where they must navigate through the dystopian art fair, which has now turned into a complex maze, to combat and eliminate the infected attendees. Dressed in business casual attire, these zombies add a surreal contrast to the harrowing tasks players face. As the living dead advance, the game cleverly intertwines hysterical gameplay with deep narrative elements, making the experience as intellectually stimulating as it is exhilarating. Art Survivors cleverly juxtaposes the calm, elitist, sophisticated world of art fairs with the intense, frantic nature of your average zombie apocalypse. The game employs this scenario as a satirical exaggeration to explore and critique the often-unseen competitive dynamics within the art community and belongs to a long tradition of institutional critique through video game means. Art Survivors reflects on themes of hierarchy, competition, trauma, and strategic thinking, all cleverly wrapped in the guise of an art fair turned survival battleground: the battle royale equivalent of an art fair. The work is currently on display in the context of the aptly titled show Art Survivors (May 4 - June 22 2024) at De Sarthe art gallery in Hong Kong.
Art Survivors, Mak2.2024 installation shots © Courtesy DE SARTHE, Hong Kong.
Mak2 (b. 1989, Hong Kong) is a multidisciplinary conceptual artist whose oeuvre addresses contemporary issues through an exploration of philosophy, art history, cultural shifts, socio-political changes, the internet, and emerging technologies. Her artistic expressions, characterized by a blend of humor and keen inquiry, span various mediums including installations, paintings, drawings, video works, YouTube videos, stand-up comedy routines, and Instagram filters. Mak2’s art has gained international recognition, with exhibitions across various prestigious venues including the Shanghai K11 Art Mall, Beijing Inside-Out Art Museum, X Museum in Beijing, de Sarthe in Hong Kong, and the Pedro Cera Gallery in Lisbon. Her works have also been showcased in significant exhibitions such as Mirage or Reality in Shanghai, The Principle of Hope in Beijing, and at cultural institutions like Whitechapel Gallery in London and the CAFA Art Museum in Beijing. Mak2 lives and works in Hong Kong.
LINK: Art Survivors at De Sarthe
LINK: Mak2
