Customer Reviews

i am 8-bit: Art Inspired by Classic Videogames of the '80s

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

My local bookstore in Chicago got the book early, so i couldn't help but flipped through it. I pre-ordered it on Amazon, but wanted to see what I was getting - you know, like a kid on christmas searching through mom and dad's closet. What did I get...?

An f'ing AWESOME book! Great art! I mean GREAT! But, okay, so I remember all these games from back in the day. But I left the book in the kitchen by accident, and when I came back home, my mom was sitting at the dinner table flipping through it... and, to my shock, she actually liked it!

I'd recomend this book for ANYoNE who likes art and/or old-school videogames. If you like both - fantastic! But this is just really cool stuff... lots of variety... and if you asked me, I wouldn't be able to even pick my 10 most favorite paintings... i just Liked too many.

First and foremost, this book makes a wonderful inexpensive gift for anyone who grew up in the '80s playing the 'ole 8-bit video systems and still has a bit of nostalgia for those simpler times. It's also pretty neat as a bound exhibit of how pop culture can be transformed into art that's actually quite captivating. About 70 artists contributed works, and the medium of choice is definitely oil and acrylic paint, with a fair number of mixed media pieces thrown in. The styles vary wildly, with influences ranging from surrealism to manga to skateboard art to graffiti to crafting to abstract to pixelation and on and on. It's actually a pretty decent overview of modern pop art sensibilities.

In terms of subject matter, far and away the most prevalent "inspirations" are from the Donkey Kong/Mario Bros. franchise, with Pac Man coming in next, and Frogger, Zelda, and Dig Dug also getting much play. However, some of the best pieces are from less popular games, like Tim Tomkinson's "Duck Hunter S. Thompson" mashup of a portrait of the gonzo journalist with the Sega "Duck Hunter" graphics, Jim Rugg's faux poster for a pro wrestling event featuring characters from the Nintendo wrestling game, or Jason Sho Green's pen and ink "Tantric Tetris". On the whole it's a very fun, well-designed book, nicely produced, and sure to bring a smile to many 30somethings. It's worth noting that I like Chuck Klosterman too, but his foreword is pretty slim, maybe 500 words, so don't buy it for that!

Where do I start? I found this gem listed under books from Chuck Klosterman, who I think speaks for an entire generation of 30-somethings raised on bad rock bands and crappy John Hughes movies. I gave it a shot, and wasn't disappointed!

In typical Chuck fashion, he analyzes video games and why they had an indelible affect on the childhoods of guys like me who spent about $3 million in quarters on Yie Ar Kung Fu (and why, 20 years later, guys i tell this to completely understand). For Klosterman fans, this is worth half the price right here.

But that's just 2% of the book! The rest is filled with totally awesome art that's hard to describe because I've never really seen anything like it--it's not advertising art, or game screenshots, or concept art from games. I guess it's just like the sub-title says, artwork inspired by what the artists played as kids in the 80's, but it's still hard to understand until you actually see it.

And what's really cool are the pieces that have quotes from the artists explaining their inspirations, why they used a particular game, or just random game memories--really funny stuff!

My favorites are:

1) Excitebike: Cool blocky render of a classic. Made me remember how I'd build my own track and line up all those turbo things.

2) Mega Man: I recognize this artist, Tim Biskup, from Juxtapoz and Super 7 magazines. Cool!

3) Don't Be a 2nd Player Hater (Luigi for Sheezy): Luigi pimped out like Snoop. Hilarious, yo!

4) Pac-Man in Hospice: This gives me nightmares. Especially the Frogger frog.

5) Record Dug Digger: Cross between skateboard art (in a good way) and NY graffiti. Trust me, it's awesome!

Other games I recognized include more mainstream stuff like Joust and Space Invaders to games that are a little more esoteric, like Contra, 720, Kid Icarus, and that weird robot thing that came with the NES. If you're a fan of the classics, I highly recommend it!

"I AM 8-BIT" is a must have for those old school fanatics who long for another golden era... one of the best books ever made. Buy it now!!!

Coffee table or bookcase, this book is for the most artistic of videogame fans, as well as those that appreciate mixed media with their pop culture. Joust, Mario Bros, Donkey Kong, Pac Man, Q-Bert and more are all displayed like you've never seen them by talented artists. The nostalgia is thick and sweet smelling; a feeling that few will appreciate to it's fullest. Highly recommended for artists and nerds alike. Also check out Arcade Fever and Supercade for the history behind our favorite up up down down history.

this book is a great collection of established and up and coming artists interpreting classic video games. what more could you want?

I was super excited to get this book. Many of the works featured throughout the book are actually quite small in real life, which was surprising.
The compilation was great, but left me wishing for more text than just the (awesome) forward by Chuck Klosterman.

Worth the money though. They are coming out with an "8-bit part II" book soon, so I will most likely be waiting to order that too.

This is for fans of old school games from the NES and old atari games. really cool art. takes me back 10 to 20 years.

For those lucky enough to live in LA we've had the chance to experience multiple I AM 8-BIT art shows. These shows were put on by author of this book Jon M. Gibson (curator) and feature talented artists making renditions of 8-bit inspired art pieces. This book showcases most of the first year art work. Here's to hoping there's more volumes in the future!

Also - on a side note - Jon M. Gibson the author was interviewed and featured on COIN-OP TV DVD Volume 1 which can also be found on Amazon!

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