"Outside Ground Kontrol" (CPTC #9)

This photo was taken with my crappy camera phone outside of Ground Kontrol classic arcade in Portland, Oregon, USA. I love the weird "visual noise" around the parking lot light (which is either from my phone lens being inadequate or because there was a miasma in the air that night---not sure which. Maybe both?) This arcade is a great place to visit if you're in the Pacific Northwest and you like classic video games, pinball machines, loud places, lots of people, and/or tons of funky lights. (Visually, the place is a treat!)

In addition, I grew up in the 1970s and '80s, and as a kid, I had three primary influences on the development of my art style: comic books, commercial materials (like toy advertising and cereal boxes and candy packaging,) and video games. In this sense, visiting a classic arcade (for me) is a LOT like going into an art museum, and it's not just the colorful cabinets (which are fantastic,) but also the art IN the games (on the screens) that I find particularly exciting and impressive. I'm amazed at how creative the programmers were, making recognizable (sometimes iconic) images with such low resolution screens and limited memory to work with! If it's been a while since you looked at video games for their artistic qualities, I recommend it!

---RFY