Videofreak

Videofreak reimagines the arcade game experience by emphasizing the art of video manipulation over traditional gameplay elements like scorekeeping and end goals. Inspired by the participatory ethos of the portapak-wielding Videofreex art collective from the late ’60s and ’70s, the work connects the legacy of experimental video and audio synthesis tools to an interactive format for a wide audience. Stylistic elements are drawn primarily from vertically scrolling bullet hell games, most notably Cave’s DoDonPachi (1997). Visitors are invited to partake in an ephemeral art-making process, where they can influence a variety of visual and sonic feedback, shaped through various tactile knobs, buttons, and joysticks. 

About the Artist 
 
Allen Riley is an artist and educator working with electronic media and social practice. He designs hands-on learning experiences at Beam Center and builds arcade cabinets as a form of public art with Death by Audio Arcade. Riley’s work has been presented at the Burchfield Penney Art Center, Slamdance Film Festival, Indexical, and the Smithsonian American Art Museum. Riley received an MFA in Electronic Integrated Arts from the New York State College of Ceramics in 2012 and is a PhD student in Film & Digital Media at the University of California, Santa Cruz. The concept for Videofreak was developed in 2016 during residency at the Lower East Side Ecology Center, featuring analog electronic music recorded at Signal Culture and Kimmel Harding Nelson Center for the Arts. 
 
Cabinet constructed and designed by Mark Kleback and Nick Santaniello 
Cabinet Art by Tim Fite 
Loaned from Wonderville