I have chosen to look at Renaissance and Expressionism art, as these two Traditional art types are similar and different in interesting ways. Renaissance art can be clearly expressed through its use of three-dimensional and perspective pieces of religious iconography, whilst expressionist art denounced religion with underlying tones of depression; Both ideas clearly show an intrinsic theme of the state of faith during the period, and humanities sense of purpose. Italy was not a unified state during the renaissance, meaning that the churches and the banks both had power during the era. The churches were able to freely change the perspective of the public; with support from the banks this led to Renaissance art being created for the purpose of changing opinions on religion. Friedrich Nietzsche, a German philosopher born in 1844, is found to have 3 statements in his school of thought, and with his first it states: “One could accept that life has a meaning if this were the rule in the cosmos. But it turns out that life is merely a trivial exception.” With this, and the nihilistic ages of the mid 19th century, Religion and science had a clash which moved the renaissance towards the age of abstraction and expressionism. 

Of the nine main panels of the Sistine chapels, the creation of Adam is one that captured the eyes of many in 1512 and continues to capture as years go by. It is part of the first story Michelangelo painted: creation. It depicts the Christian God, lowering himself down from heaven to give life to Humanity. Adam is placed in a relaxed position, his posture created with leaning curved lines to show him as lounged, almost waiting for God to come and bring him life. Adam is on a mountain; mountains being the elemental epitome of something outcasted like rocks growing to the top of perspective like mountains.  

The background is cast in simple colours that are shaded together with one or two tones. When comparing this to the overbearing complexity of Adam with bronzing and shading of the skin, Adam is the focus point of God, at least at this moment: Gods eyes lock onto Adams, tunnel vision, all his previous creations are dulled out as seen in the mountains Adam rests upon.  

The creation of Adam is a physical juxtaposition of Creator and Creations: To show the similarities of colour, this being the bronzed skin and shading. The shape and the hands being almost indistinguishable. Even the lighting, composition and volume was all mirrored, the composition being reflective of Gods image when creating humans. Even the odd symmetry being created by the piece, only God is slightly higher than Adam. When Michelangelo paints on this ceiling, it is known as a fresco. He combined sand, lime in a mixture, and applied it to the wall. The colours fused chemically with the lime and it became permanent. 

Die Brücke, A German translation for “The Bridge” was a specific group of German artists, the name “Die Brücke” was to show the metaphoric bridge to the future of art, and the progression of expressionism. Their manifesto states, “we intend to obtain freedom of movement and of life for ourselves in opposition to older, well-established powers” This is their denouncement of the constraints of tradition, which is why this painting by Ernst Ludwig Kirchner named “View of Basel and the Rhine” is a prime example of expressionism, the use of exaggerated colouring contrasting with the cooler colours of the foreground expresses a calm and enjoyable scene of city life, the position from which this is painted would tell you that the bustling nature of the city can be shown with the tranquil feeling created by the outskirts. Water can create a peaceful feeling in comparison with the composition of the upper portion. The cascading light that pulses from the sky can create a feeling of uneasiness when viewing, and the darker edges of blues anxiously press inwards to envelop the city in night. Using thicker brushes made the piece bold and like a memory. Faces blurred and buildings one note. The complexity came from the emotion felt, rather than the detail of other types of art. Doing this art physically had its limitations and so the blocky nature of the buildings created by the paint constricted the work. 

Gris is about as close as you can get to a game mirroring an artistic period, this being expressionism. Colour, Sound and overall design is practically baked with the ideas of expression and emotion.  

Colour is a complexity that is used with expressionism, and it is a modem to communicate emotion with the innate reaction of evolution, the emotions of colours are gathered with the experiences of life and by inheritance from our ancestors. A study from the University of Barcelona in 2013 conducted an experiment using VR, a simulation that concluded that colours can lower our pain thresholds.  

This information itself is important to know, but in conjunction with the expressionism era. Using art to make the viewer feel was shown to be more than just sad and happy but can overwhelm the senses to more than just what you see.  

Gris’ underuse of linework is deliberate, it is shown to not shift the viewers' attention and keep the colour more prominent. The smooth buildings are shown to crack, and the shapes turn from smooth to jagged, this is to show the fragility in the mind as will be seen later. 

Grief is a complex and extreme emotion that can be hard to replicate, every person experiences grief in their own way. A model was created by Elisabeth Kübler-Ross, “The Five Stages of Grief.”

The Five Stages of Grief is a 5 stage explanation of how a person would move through grief. These stages are as follows:

Denial

Anger

Bargaining

Depression

Acceptance

Gris is built on this model and its design is conversely made with it in mind.  

Blue, Red, Green, Black, White, and yellow  

The entire game is built on only these colours, and how they interact is parallel with the emotion of each stage of grief. Critics of the Kübler-Ross model call it one noted, as grief is not experienced the same way with everyone. However, Gris’ conjuncture of colours and shapes, and the way these all collide with each other is just as complex as the emotion itself. 

Even the word “Gris” follows this principle as in Spanish it is translated to “Grey.” A position between black and white. As the game concludes it is found that a balance, an intermedium, is required for the grief to change into a lesson. 

Even though this is a game, Gris’ art is primarily done through traditional art. Frame by Frame animation and watercolor art supported by digital mediums. Compared to traditional forms of art, Gris advantageously used the digital medium to create smooth animation. The sound design is accompanied by compositions that the game wants to show. The medium of a game creates a more personal connection with the consumer. Emotions can be felt on a level not possible in the expressionist period. Gris masters the use of interactivity, creating anxiety and putting it into the players hands to guide the character through the game.  

Even in areas early in development we can see the use of colour to connote abilities. Shape to show effects and animation to smoothen its usage. Art style can influence all areas of games design, and early concept art shows this connection simply, but it is not just the artists, its sound design, level design, animation and so many more areas that are tailored to show the add to the general theme of grief present throughout the game.  

The frame-by-frame animation style was perfect for creating a sense of unease and anxiety using wide unhinging shapes like the mouth in the scene above. The contorting uncanny nature of the scene can really benefit the animation. The saliva, which pulls thin and thick lines apart, is uneasy. The grossness of the scenario becomes a benefactor when linking this to the moods expressed during the game. It is this that allows Gris to converse its theme through every part of the design.  

The chronology of artist movements and the way it all panned out from the renaissance pieces to expressionism still has ripple effects to this day. Gris’ design is intertwined with feelings and emotions like in the era of expressionism. Friedrich Nietzsche and his thoughts of nihilism affected how we perceive the bargaining nature of grief, a state shown through Gris’ sectional design. This affects its gameplay and design of emotion and expression through colour, shape and sound. The processes in which the game was created is heavily influenced by the artistic era of expressionism with its bold and powerful colours; its strokes of paint that are allowed to seeth into each other and the emotion that overrides the experience. Its use of modern/less traditional artistry only enhances the experience of the player. Sounds will immerse and strengthen the player's connection to the game and it uses this to its utmost advantage.