A component of the Duke Art, Law, and Market Initiative (DALMI), Fantasy Collecting is a multi-player, browser-based game that replicates some of the dynamics of the art market and casts students as collectors. They trade with each other, participate in auctions, communicate with each other about the virtues of the artworks in their collections and learn about art and art markets in the process.
The project began with a paper-based game, designed by AAHVS PhD student Katherine Jentleson and GTG affiliate Patrick Herron, in an interdisciplinary seminar on art markets in the Spring of 2012. In Fall 2012 a digital prototype was developed by Humanities Writ Large Digital Humanities Consultant Will Shaw in conjunction with Herron and Jentleson. For a history of the project, see Herron’s presentation at the 2012 Southeast College Art Association meeting.
GTG has provided key contribution to the project through training (in game design and theory) and support for Jentleson, a Lab RA from Fall 2012 – Spring 2013.