ZKF - Experimental Game Cultures

Margarete Jahrmann
Institute of Arts and Society, Experimental Game Cultures
2025W, Individual Artistic Instruction (KE), 8.0 ECTS, 8.0 semester hours, course number S30459

Description

playthings we think with

The creation of LUDIC OBJECTS, "playthings" we think with and artistic artefacts are at the heart of the EXPERIMENTAL GAME CULTURES program and thus at the heart of the central artistic subject. We focus via artisitc playthings on  the social impact of play, its activist potential and the ambiguity of play as positive quality and potetnial for the society.

As I noted in my 2021 LUDIC MANIFESTO: The Art of Play and Societal Impact, artistic play is political - and effective. We link these LUDIC METHOD and toy reflections to statements by Anna Anthropy, who talks about empathy games and queer activism, with Mary Flanagan's critical play analysis and illuminate play as a privilege, as Aaron Tammel describes it. Class war games in the sense of Richard Barbrook's British "labor" become essential — when looking at "evocative Objects", edited by Sherry Turkle.

PLAYTHINGS Have the power to become Art and affect democracy and society. 

Examination Modalities

We develop artistic objects, exhibitions and ludic research together. The Central Artistic Subject is essential to the progress of the Master's thesis. Established game mechanics and understanding of games should be questioned, new game concepts would be tested and individual game concepts could be developed. Let´s create LUDIC OBJECTS!

deliveries:

- artistic work
- Participation and project work
- Participation in lectures
- Contribution to FINALS and events/ exhibition

 

10:00 - 12:00 workshop hands on (assistants and support)

13:00 - 15:00 input & "open Floor" (crique and student feedback)

15:00 - 16:30 LB workshops (Thomas B, Max M, Maxim S, Georg L, Jogi)

Comments

Reading list:

Anthropy, A (2012) Rise of the videogame zinesters. Seven Stories Press. ISBN: 1609803728.(2012/2024) https://freegames.org/dys4ia/

Barbrook, R (2014). Class Wargames: Ludic Subversion Against Spectacular Capitalism. London: Minor Compositions. https://www.classwargames.net

Flanagan, M. (2009) Critical Play: Radical Game Design, MIT Press, Cambridge.https://maryflanagan.com

Jahrmann, M (2021). LUDIC MANIFESTO: The Art of Play and Societal Impact. In: Franke B (ed.). NOT AT YOUR SERVICE. MANIFESTOS FOR DESIGN. Birkhäuser Verlag, Basel, pp.319-329. DOI: 10.1515/9783035622751-017. https://www.margaretejahrmann.net/2021-das-ludische-manifest-die-kunst-des-spiels-und-ihre-gesellschaftliche-wirkung-ludics-the-art-of-play-and-societal-impact/

Trammel, A (2023) Repairing Play. A Black Pehnomenology.MIT Press, Cambridge.  https://direct.mit.edu/books/oa-monograph/5530/Repairing-PlayA-Black-Phenomenology

Turkle, S (2007) Evocative Objects. Things We Think With. The MIT Press, Cambridge. https://courses.ischool.berkeley.edu/i290-2/s08/readings/Turkle_Evocative_Objects.pdf

 

Key Words

art game, experiment, critical activism

Dates

08 October 2025, 13:00–17:00 Experimental Game Cultures, Georg-Coch-Platz 2, 1010 Wien (Studio room, 1st floor, left, 152)
15 October 2025, 10:00–16:30 Experimental Game Cultures, Georg-Coch-Platz 2, 1010 Wien (Studio room, 1st floor, left, 152)
22 October 2025, 10:00–16:00 Experimental Game Cultures, Georg-Coch-Platz 2, 1010 Wien (Studio room, 1st floor, left, 152)
29 October 2025, 10:00–16:30 Experimental Game Cultures, Georg-Coch-Platz 2, 1010 Wien (Studio room, 1st floor, left, 152)
05 November 2025, 10:00–16:30 Experimental Game Cultures, Georg-Coch-Platz 2, 1010 Wien (Studio room, 1st floor, left, 152) , "feedback students"
12 November 2025, 10:00–16:30 Experimental Game Cultures, Georg-Coch-Platz 2, 1010 Wien (Studio room, 1st floor, left, 152)
19 November 2025, 10:00–16:30 Experimental Game Cultures, Georg-Coch-Platz 2, 1010 Wien (Studio room, 1st floor, left, 152)
26 November 2025, 10:00–17:00 Experimental Game Cultures, Georg-Coch-Platz 2, 1010 Wien (Studio room, 1st floor, left, 152) , "MIdterms"
03 December 2025, 10:00–16:30 Experimental Game Cultures, Georg-Coch-Platz 2, 1010 Wien (Studio room, 1st floor, left, 152)
10 December 2025, 10:00–16:30 Experimental Game Cultures, Georg-Coch-Platz 2, 1010 Wien (Studio room, 1st floor, left, 152)
17 December 2025, 10:00–16:30 Experimental Game Cultures, Georg-Coch-Platz 2, 1010 Wien (Studio room, 1st floor, left, 152) , "feedback students"
07 January 2026, 13:00–17:00 Experimental Game Cultures, Georg-Coch-Platz 2, 1010 Wien (Studio room, 1st floor, left, 152)
14 January 2026, 13:00–17:00 Experimental Game Cultures, Georg-Coch-Platz 2, 1010 Wien (Studio room, 1st floor, left, 152)
21 January 2026, 10:00–17:00 Experimental Game Cultures, Georg-Coch-Platz 2, 1010 Wien (Studio room, 1st floor, left, 152)
28 January 2026, 13:00–17:00 Experimental Game Cultures, Georg-Coch-Platz 2, 1010 Wien (Studio room, 1st floor, left, 152) , "debriefing"

Course Enrolment

From 01 September 2025, 09:00
Via online registration

Experimental Game Cultures (Master): Game Development and Reflection: Game Development and Reflection I-III 536/001.01

Co-registration: not possible

Attending individual courses: not possible