Tuesday, March 1, 2016

The Legend of Zelda 30th Anniversary Art Celebration


This year marks the 30th Anniversary of our favorite green tunic-wearing hero, Link. The Legend of Zelda has filled gamers lives with so many moments of beauty and “The Legend of Zelda 30th Anniversary Art Celebration” at Hero Complex Gallery really puts this on display.

I grossly underestimated either; how popular the gallery or “The Legend of Zelda” was (probably both), because this was definitely the healthiest attendance at an art show I’ve ever attended. Even as I was leaving at 9pm people were still so excited to get in. For good reason too, the art displayed on the walls of the gallery really spoke to me. So many of the pieces really transported me to Hyrule and made me relive iconic moments from the games (even the ones I never played).




 There was a surprising amount of children in attendance, though the variety of age groups taught me a few things. The first being, I tend to associate Zelda with retro gaming, but this franchise is still very much as popular today as it was 10-20 years ago. The second being, this franchise is timeless, and we can thank the lack of continuity and the presence of familiar themes throughout the franchise for that.






“ I love Zelda for its 30 year history”-Jason








I spoke with Jason, one of the featured artists and a co-curator of the gallery, “ I love Zelda for its 30 year history”. We spoke about the long history and how the varying art styles of this flagpole franchise gave the artists so much to pull from. This can be seen through the diversity and high quality of the art hanging on the walls. “I don’t consider myself an illustrator, I’m more of a designer” he said, as he explained how, even though “Ocarina of Time” is his favorite, “Majora’s Mask” speaks to his current art style. 




Chandler, another one of the artists, was just happy to be in the show. She, like myself, hadn’t really played a lot of Zelda but understood the importance and depth of the franchise. She chose the possession of Princess Zelda because she “Loves the darker side of things”.





So many of these prints are amazing and should really be seen in person. If you want to see some amazing art inspired by these dwellers of Hyrule head to the Hero Complex Gallery on Robinson Blvd through March 13th.



-Greg B