Thomas Spies, Americana, 2019

Thomas Spies’ work offers an exploration of contemporary society through the medium of open-world video games. His twin projects Americana and Americana: Through the Eagle’s Eye reflect a nuanced understanding of American life, both urban and rural, as depicted in games like GTA V and Final Fantasy XV. These projects examine not only the society represented within these games but also the perspectives and biases of the developers who created them.

Americana began as an Instagram-based project in 2019, during a time when the virtual photography (VP) community was experiencing rapid growth and newfound visibility. Spies employs a process of deceleration, focusing on minor details such as trash cans, shadows, and lines that might otherwise be overlooked. This method emphasises a deeper, more contemplative engagement with the virtual environment. Spies frames his photographs using classic photography principles, such as the golden ratio, and often crops the images into a vertical format. This choice distinguishes his work from the «wallpaper aesthetics» commonly used to promote video games and their graphical prowess. The result is a series of images that transcend their digital origins, inviting viewers to consider the societal conditions they reflect. The project Americana subsequently extended beyond Instagram. Spies published a limited edition booklet of his photographs, which quickly sold out, and during the Covid-19 pandemic, he showcased images from the series in a virtual exhibition. Spies’s personal experiences travelling in the United States significantly influenced Americana. His visits to New York in 2011 and the west coast in 2016 revealed a striking similarity between the media images he had grown up with and the actual American landscapes and cityscapes. This hyper-realistic aesthetic, where media representations and reality become indistinguishable, is a central theme in Americana. The nostalgic and often nationalistic glorification of American life, as seen through his travels, provided a rich backdrop for his exploration of virtual cities.

The related project Americana: Through the Eagle’s Eye shifts focus to the depiction of rural American life within GTA V. Spies acknowledges his reliance on media images and limited personal experience as a tourist in forming his understanding of rural America. However, his observations reveal significant insights into the socio-economic conditions of these areas as portrayed by US-American game designers. In this project, Spies highlights themes of decay and desolation. He captures images of rundown trailers, abandoned hotels, and neglected gas stations, where garbage accumulates and the remnants of past prosperity are evident. These scenes reflect a reality where poverty is pervasive, and communities feel isolated and forgotten. Spies’ background in trauma representations in video games, his academic work, and his interest in critical game studies inform his approach to virtual photography. His work bridges the gap between theoretical exploration and practical application, offering a critical, interdisciplinary perspective on the political implications of video games.

More by Thomas Spies: thomspies.net