ARTcade Brings Games to Life Through Immersive Art

Denver is filled with opportunities to not only appreciate art, but to experience it. Immersive art allows viewers to interact with the art itself, often activating some or all of their senses and creating an experience that brings the art to life. 

With both permanent and temporary immersive exhibitions across town – Meow Wolf, Prismajic, Casa Bonita and DCPA Off-Center’s MONOPOLY LIFESIZED: Travel Edition to name a few – The Mile High City has become a hub for immersive art. Joining the organizations showcasing immersive art and bringing fresh energy to the 16th Street Mall is the return of The Denver Theatre District’s (DTD) ARTcade, now open at 1555 Champa Street.

Running through December 22, ARTcade is a fusion of classic arcade games and contemporary art. The immersive space is a twist on a traditional arcade, filled with games and prizes all created by local artists.

Artist Kyle Vincent Singer is the creator of Waffle Cone Club. If you have visited Meow Wolf’s Convergence Station, you’ll recognize Singer’s creation Sa Lawn. He is also a return artist to ARTcade after participating in the first exhibition in 2021. 

“Just as ARTcade grew, so did my art career,” Singer said. “100+ artists get paid and everyone who comes into the ARTcade feels like they are winning out. People walk in from 16th Street Mall looking so confused, but leave vibrating with joy, so happy they discovered our little place.”

Singer created a plushie named Garbble Grabble who resembles a devil man and is located in the ARTcade claw machine. “I created a plushie inspired by Dreamcast cell shaded graphics and PaRappa the Rapper. I wanted to pull from my love of gaming and reference that 90’s & Y2k energy,” he explained. 

Bearwarp, a collaboration with friends, explores the relationship between video games and art. ARTcade is the perfect opportunity for Bearwarp to showcase three original video games: Push Star, The Weather Station and Goo Crunk. 

The games “are housed in hand-built arcade cabinets with custom interfaces,” Bearwarp said. “These games have a variety of content and technology that we were curious to investigate.”

It’s rare to find an art incubator that can accommodate Bearwarp’s unique take on arcade cabinets. ARTcade serves as an ideal setting. 

“It’s very exciting to be part of an event that aligns with our interests as artists. Our work is usually an outlier at gaming events or gallery shows as we don’t slot well into either the ‘traditional gaming’ or ‘fine art’ categories. It’s incredibly heartwarming to participate in an exhibit that blurs the lines between traditional venues,” Bearwarp added. 

For Tashina Three Sticks of Three Sticks Mafia Arts, ARTcade serves as a nod to her childhood. Tashina painted the Smokin’ Token, a machine where the player drops coins or tokens down a curved slope and into small slots on a rotating wheel. The slot that the token goes into determines the payout.

“I remember my uncle teaching me the timing of this game as a kid. He would look down and give you one token and say, ‘now this, this is the one, that’s gonna win us all the fun.’ Then he’d help drop the token, at just the right time, and win all the tickets to score the good prizes,” she explained. “My uncle passed back in 2009, but seeing this machine made me laugh and think of him. Since it is so nostalgic for me, I wanted to keep the original art of the inside and reflected that on the outside with a Madame Mafia twist.”

Over 85 artists participated in this years exhibition, which features 16 arcade games and the return of Japanese Arts Network’s gachapon machines. With claw machines and pinball artist-customized games alongside a variety of prizes including original art, stickers, plush toys, handcrafted jewelry, buttons, apparel and more, ARTcade offers entertainment for families and art-lovers of all ages.

ARTcade is open Thursday through Sunday, 12:00pm – 8:00pm through December 22. $12 entry gets visitors 40 tokens and a collectable ARTcade coin bag. Additional tokens are available for purchase in increments of $5 for 20 tokens.

All photography by Third Dune Productions.