Doomslangers at Allegra Viola Gallery

More Dungeons & Dragons in art! I was just pointed to this page for the Doomslangers exhibition at the Allegra Viola Gallery (showing right now in NYC).

This show is a spectacular grab bag: character illustrations, real-life magic items, conceptual art, humor, and some thoughtful academic pieces as well.

It brings to mind an obvious question: why should we care if some D&D stuff gets shown in an art gallery? Does that bring any benefit to us as gamers?

My take on it is this: as gamer, designers, and players, we're creating every day. That creativity doesn't belong in a bushel basket. It belongs out in the world where people can experience it. I'm not saying we should take our character sheets out of our notebooks and hang them on the wall. What I am saying is that D&D players are everybody: they're artists, parents, students, IT managers, salespeople, and politicians. If playing games enriches their life at all (and I think it's pretty obvious it does), then it's enriching these activities.

So I guess what I'm saying is that good games teach us to create, and there's no reason that creativity should be restricted to the game.