Are board games art?

These days, i've been reading the old posts of a blog i used to read, and i ended up seeing one of those blog posts about how video games are art, and all the discussion we'requite tired of. The thing is, some of the main points used to say that video games are art(Character development) don't apply to board games at all, while some arguments against video games, also apply against board games(It focuses on entertainment, instead of focusing on expressing emotions). I know some people are going to say that it's hard to define art itself, therefore, it's hard to categorize something like that, but i think it's going to be a fun debate, especially because we're not so attached to board games(Most of us, at least.), and it would be nice seeing the arguments for both sides instead of reading a bunch of dumb comments about Roger Ebert's mom.
So, for you, are Board Games art?

art is a really dumb term since it can be so vague. pretty much anything and everything can be art.

the shit i took this morning, it kinda looked like a horses head. is that art?

basically what im saying is that arguing that anything is or isn't art is pretty much pointless. because everything is "art".

@Clonedzero said:

the shit i took this morning, it kinda looked like a horses head. is that art?

Did you flush?

@Clonedzero said:

the shit i took this morning, it kinda looked like a horses head. is that art?

Did you flush?

I have a pretty basic definition of art which I think is actually one of the best; it's anything created by man (or arguably animal) that evokes an emotional response which supersedes the content of the work. Basically anything we have an emotional response to that is 'more' than whatever is depicted. That's what makes the difference between family photos and artistic photos. Under that definition, I would struggle to see how boardgames (as an entire medium) could be considered art, but I would say video games, most especially because they tell a story and are visual/audio works, are art. You could (and indeed I would) argue that boardgames contain elements of artwork in terms of pictures on them.

When I think of art, I think of paintings or pictures. Board games are just games.

They can have pictures on them or something so I guess that can be considered art.

I move my space marine across the war-torn painted landscape, and it evoked a sense and understanding in me about how our world really is a form of materialistic mysticism, but in a positive light.

I think the thing we should be focusing on is trying to make a connection between any form of game and sexism/misogyny.

Well it's got box art so maybe.

They sure are. They have graphic art on them and usually depict a scenario/story so they're also usually narrative art. Some of the more abstract ones could be considered abstract art.

@Cynically_Happy said:

Well it's got box art so maybe.

If I pour water into a glass, that glass does not automatically become water. Board games may very well contain illustrations or photographs, but they aren't art.

@sissylion said:

@Cynically_Happy said:

Well it's got box art so maybe.

If I pour water into a glass, that glass does not automatically become water. Board games may very well contain illustrations or photographs, but they aren't art.

But a glass filled with water is art, so I think the board game is art since it is like a glass filled with art.

@Levio: Man, postmodern art is fucking stupid.

I actually do think Board Games are art now that you mention it. I suppose my definition of art is something that someone makes to express themselves, and this was definitely what I was trying to do when I made my board games.

Once again the thing being lost in a lot of the responses here is that without giving some kind of definition of art, any statement about whether they are or are not art means nothing. I've seen so many "games as art" discussions rage on which are essentially entirely pointless because the participants are often not arguing about the same thing, or have no real idea what they are arguing about and are just going on a vague sense of what feels like art.

Once again the thing being lost in a lot of the responses here is that without giving some kind of definition of art, any statement about whether they are or are not art means nothing. I've seen so many "games as art" discussions rage on which are essentially entirely pointless because the participants are often not arguing about the same thing, or have no real idea what they are arguing about and are just going on a vague sense of what feels like art.