‘Classics’ is a video installation derived from using a process called ‘circuitbending’ to distort and control the graphics on a Nintendo Entertainment System. The concept was inspired by a post on an internet message board which brought into question the ultimate fate of old hardware such as the Nintendo. Will the hardware be kept alive by those who value it, despite its obsolete nature? Or will the passage of time truly bring about the death of the original experience?
‘Classics’ is comprised of circuitbent graphics from 25 classic games, shown in a 25-second looping video (25 being the number of years since the Nintendo was first released in Japan). When installed in a gallery, the footage loops on a TV while connected to a Nintendo system in order to appear as if the system itself is producing its own ominous death rattle. My goal was to open a conversation on the preservation of original experience, as well as explore the aesthetic of ‘glitching’ hardware. Audio was produced by Spamtron and Phlogiston by sampling various audio glitches and distortions.
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