Cory Arcangel - Super Mario Clouds

[stardust4ever]

Put it on an NES cartridge and sell it!

[flakyfred]

erasing everything but the clouds AND the background

[rumpledd]

As I view Super Mario Clouds, I cannot help but stand mesmerized at the sheer brilliance of deleting most of Super Mario Bros.'s assets and leaving clouds. It truly is a breath-taking work of art.

tl;dr: wut?

[kaiman99919]

thankyou!!!!! this is such good stock footage!!!

[fotcaaron]

this is shyte

[Sh3llshock361]

Saw the article in The New Yorker a while back. This is really cool and nostalgic to me. Very relaxing as well.

[runsvoodoodown]

someone make this into a screensaver for me

[davkrnk]

@runsvoodoodown

yeah, thats what i wanted. thats why i had to youtube it to find the name of the artist, lol

[north2kohala]

read the New Yorker article and took a look. Worth it to me--I never played or saw Super Mario.  I was just a little too early for that. I did play Spacewar and Pong on an Amdahl though...

Those are happy little clouds in a very optimistic blue sky.

[nathen607]

Saw the video also saw the conflict between mass aesthetic and conceptual avangarde. Just like the Fountain made by Duchamp years ago. I love the concept, not because it is well knowned and almost appear in every book dealing with history of media art, it is because the great concept attract me and distinguished between commercial and massive production or applied art

[MechaCrabtree]

anything could be art nowadays. its only when some upper-tier art critique deems it as art does it actually get noticed.

[espiritus88]

art is a way - the way - of life - enjoy - share - be serene and kind -

[samwinchestersgf]

i had this game, it was the shit

[nyotorono]

how relaxing...

[HeroBombdotCom]

Duchamp

[uprooting]

these comments are very sad

[yelliebellie0928]

see his supermariomovie if you have not - different but so sweet.

[camargohugo]

This is one of my favorite art pieces ever.

[selectohh1]

love it! super cool.

[ferjosantana]

Love it !!! Master Piece of Art !!!

[erwinparker]

lol@4:24

[parrrrot]

Wow look at all these people defending this garbage. Seriously, he could have something other than this and slap on the same explanation to his work and try to make it sound like he made a work of art. Anyone can be a self-proclaimed artist like this dickhead, just that most people rather spend the time doing something worthwhile than wasting time on a piece of shit work like this one.

[Volcanic9]

If anybody argues this is pretentious art without reason, please take into account the heated debate it causes universally among it's viewers. Art isn't just about drawing flowers very very well, it's a statement. The idea that doing something seemingly meaningless as erasing everything but the clouds on a game can make people very angry at eachother.

[uberd0gAlpha]

Art is supposed to instill emotion in people, right? If that's true then this is definitely art, because I have an irresistible urge to kick Cory Arcangel in the nuts.

Utter shite. The very definition of pretentiousness.

[hotlinkcinema]

@uberd0gAlpha Wow - you feel violence because someone made something that gave a lot of people pleasure. What is that about? I mean, I can understand not liking it, that is totally your right. But to evoke violent threats. This work must have deeply touched you to prompt such an emotion. Nice one Cory!

[Egberdien64]

hahahaha!!! Best art in the world. Just isolating the clouds from the game cartridge

[PochoProfeta145]

is like to watch the sky in a park...

[WhackWackenhut]

did he use a computer snes emulator and hit all the F keys?

[Dulesy]

hmmmm... nup

[KnightSama]

ummmm wtf is this?

[snowblindu]

this is fucking retarded go fuck a tree.. you could base the same conclusion off the trees in metal gear for the nes or any other repeating game object in nes games or whatever

[MusoukaMX]

Any work made by men can be considered as art.

This is my favorite definition of art, and why anything from a drawing in the sand to a can full of beans can be considered art. However, the closest thing to objectivity you'll find in this comment is: I like it!

Also, I can see an old man's face (mouth or mustache, you decide) at 3:08, hah!

[lecktroswirl]

@MusoukaMX I thinks u'z a retard mofo. I thinks uz a tard. na sa xx

[phisean]

@MusoukaMX Naw that's kitch, it's just recontexualised junk. The clouds are already art since they were designed by a background artist. Taking them out of the context of the game is supposed to make us reconsider the value, this artwork is made from a mass produced medium but in of itself it is a unique piece therefore it has much more value,economics applied to art.. However, the piece is conceptual art - it's pop art and 50 years old therefore not unique conceptually and valueless as art.

[BlackMesaProgrammer]

This is stupid. What a load of shit.

[KnightOfTejas]

wow dis art changed my life bro

[WalrusSAS]

There is no definition of art. I'm sure someone's thinking "this isn't art, anyone could have done this. I could have done this". But they didn't, this guy did. Art doesn't even have to be "visually interesting". Maybe this art project was simply designed to extract a reaction from you hateboarder. You're reaction that "This is not art" is a valid reaction, and you're not alone, but at the very least this piece pushes boundaries and challenges notions of what art "is"

[Theditor]

somebody should make a companion piece called super mario bushes...

[xXmoraleXx]

green version, rofl

[hateboarder]

This is not art. This is merely a basic idea. That is no different to what a mathematician or a scientist does. An artist creates something new from an idea that is intended to be visually interesting. Its the same reason things like Tracy Emin's bed and Damien Hirst's shark are not art (well in my opinion anyway)they have just put something on show which was already there.

[hotlinkcinema]

@hateboarder Ever heard of conceptual art? Art can be an idea.

[hateboarder]

@hotlinkcinema No, I have never heard of conceptual art...sigh...

[hotlinkcinema]

@hateboarder I know its hard to accept that other people have different ways of seeing art than you, but, y'know, you might wanna give it a go. Much love...

[jimUkay]

@hotlinkcinema I agree : )

[ACWrecks]

This is stupid.

[parrrrot]

holy crap this is god awful. all this self proclaimed "artist" did was hack a rom, give it some interpretation (can be anything random), and call it art. how is this not plagiarism.

[hotlinkcinema]

@parrrrot It's called "appropriation" and artists have been doing it since the renaissance. In fact they've been doing it since ancient Egyptian times. You may think it is awful - and that is fine - but don't try to say its not art, cause that is prejudice.

[Floreum]

This... I don't see anything, maybe I should start smoking weed to see?

[tkelley1403]

What an utterly lazy piece of pretentious garbage.

[hotlinkcinema]

@tkelley1403 Yeah, your comment does have that ring to it.

[MateiMocanu]

@tkelley1403 actually am sure he put a lot of effort into cracking the game code and erasing plaything except for the clouds. i dont think its pretentious, just playful

[ChopstickBrando]

@tkelley1403 They need you on the Turner Prize committee!

[KillzoneNET]

He does realize that the grass is the same sprite but in a different color right?

[TheSteve1919]

If this is art, then shoot me dead.

[DorianCTB]

Wait, that's it? 5 minutes of clouds? I'm sorry, but I fail to see how this is art. Art IS meant to have meaning and/or to be something interesting, but this is just clouds. Nothing special about it. Sorry.

[Eolirin]

Just because you can't see the meaning doesn't mean it's not there. Just because you don't find anything in a piece doesn't mean the piece has no value. The artist had intention in creating the piece. That makes it art. You don't have to get the art for it to be art, but "I don't get it" is about the extent of what you can reasonably say.

[MethoDX]

You can try to sound as sagacious as you'd like. However, you need to get off your high horse and realize this piece of trash isn't art.

Nice job sounding like a complete tool though.

[Eolirin]

If you apply the same standard to the MoMA, half the art there is trash too. There are a number of things that are less "interesting" than the clouds. Yet obviously there's a very large community that disagrees.

Something this subjective cannot be dismissed objectively without being pretentious. There are limits to opinion; you only get to speak for yourself.

If being rational and understanding of alternate viewpoints means sounding like a tool,oh well. It's better than the alternative.

[Chubzdoomer]

Eol, you're attempting to sound righteous and educated but coming off as a complete douchebag in the process. The thumbs-down and star ratings speak for themselves. I think anyone with a functional brain can agree that scrolling, monotonous clouds on the screen are in no way art. They're a piece of the big picture that is Super Mario Bros. for the NES. And nobody looks at the game because of the fucking clouds, nor did those clouds somehow form a deep connection with anyone who played it.

[Eolirin]

If a bunch of solid colored vertical stripes get floor space in the MoMA, scrolling clouds definitely qualify as art, your opinion of whether it's good or bad art aside. It's just as ridiculous on the face of it, yet people find meaning in it.

Opinion is opinion; stating it as fact doesn't make it less opinion.

[radinplaid]

i am curious... are you contending that an artists intent to create validates the label of "art" upon whatever he creates? who, then, decides who is an artist? im not sure anyone can make that distinction, so we must assume that anyone can be an artist (which makes sense). however, that means that anything that anyone creates with intent can be labeled as art. the question shouldnt be "is this (or anything else) art?". the question should be "it is worth considering as art?".

[radinplaid]

in other words, everything is art (making the label useless) and so each piece must be judged individually on its merits. the problem is that people like to play make believe. some people pretend to be artists, and others pretend to know what art is. the problem is deciphering who is actually creating something of merit, as opposed to what the people playing make-believe would have you believe is art.

[Eolirin]

Merit is subjective, an opinion, because meaning is subjective; it's impossible to determine except on an individual level. If there's even one person that finds value, then there is value, *for that person.* We can't dispute that, without telling the other person that they're not feeling what they're feeling, which is a ridiculous thing to do.

We can say that there is no value or merit, for *us* but we have no real right to speak for others. "I don't like it" vs "It's worthless"

[AARST]

I was expecting a punchline.

I can understand some forms of minimalist impressionist art, but I see nothing in this. I sure wish there were a man in red hopping around in front of it.

[ZebraMu]

I studied this piece as part of my dissertation, one of my favourites from Cory Arcangel!

[infinitussollux]

It's cool because its a hacked Super Nintendo. This wasn't made with a computer, it was made with the Super Nintendo chip. Let's see you critics make something better.

[pwEclipse]

super mario bros was on nes not on super nintendo

[Chubzdoomer]

It's the Nintendo Entertainment System, you moron! Super Nintendo?  Who the fuck in today's society doesn't know what console the original Super Mario Bros. was on? You have officially FAILED!

[littnguy]

You could shit in a box, take a picture of it, and then project it up on the wall and call it art. Give me a break.. INterviews with cory even state he had no meaning or porpose behind much of his art. while other pieces may be better, "Super Mario Clouds" is crap. Hey fedemocc.. If you think this is good art, then you have terrible taste and no art theory and criticism skills. Please tell me why this piece is important, and a deeper meaning to its pourpose and I might believe you...

[sailorsteve77]

I think you have no porpoise in commenting on this work of art. Seriously why are you getting upset and talking about sea mammals.

Its actually people like you who are holding back the progression of art. Why do you always say the same shit. "anyone could that!" "you could shit in a box and call it art" Someone already did you prick. Read your fucking art history yourself.

[sailorsteve77]

All you need to to do is relax and accept that anything and everything can be art. Its a beautiful thing. Clouds are fantatstic and Cory Arcangel has taken something incredibly important and influential and allowed us to see it in an entirely different way. In a meditative, passive way. But why am I trying to convince you? You dont have to look at it or care about it. Go look at something else instead but my advice is that its more fun to think in an inclusive way - give everything a chance.

[pipefx64]

HOLY SHIT HTE ART DOESN'T MEAN SOMETHING?

NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

it's people like you that frustrate me everyday in my film seminars

[littnguy]

this is crap art. Archangel's work shouldn't be included inthe annuls of history under the catagory of art. Nice try Cory, but there are Propgrammers out there that actually program, not just erase what others have done. You're a joke...

[perceival]

Right - programmers program. Artists make art. The intersection can be a really interesting place, or you can choose to be a reactionary like this guy.

[fedemocc]

AMAZING!

this is modern art!

not that medieval crap they show in so called modern art museums (as seen in MOMA)