Behind the Scenes of ARTcade

Here’s a unique way to cut down on screen time! Take the video games, the cartoons, the riveting spectacles that beckon to your youngsters…and bring them to life.

On Sunday, September 7, Baton Rouge arts collective Elevator Projects is doing just that with its latest fundraising effort. For ARTcade, Elevator Projects has recruited a team of local artists to craft large-scale versions of classic games: board, arcade, and video alike. Think Honey, I Shrunk the Kids meets Jumanji. If those references don’t ring a bell, just imagine a room full of enormous, playable games, crafted with love and nostalgia, and buzzing with potential fun for all ages.

Barton Gilley is just one of the local artists helping to make ARTcade a reality. If you’ve laid eyes on one of the myriad Mario games crafted by Nintendo since the early ‘80s, you’ll recognize Gilley’s contribution as one of the gnashing piranha plants that the stodgy plumber frequently faces in his adventures.

To bring the flower off the pixelated screen and into a real-world environment, Gilley learned how to make an animatronic tentacle mechanism, looking to the “Chestburster” scene from Ridley Scott's Aliens and the work of special effects master and director Stephen Norrington for inspiration.

Gilley built the cable mechanism in his workshop at home. Once the moving skeleton was in place, he crafted its costume: green felt wrapped around the tentacle to create the plant’s stem; a flapping mouth with foam lips and bared, pointy teeth; and a bright red head, dotted with white polka dots.

This is not Gilley’s first robot. The LSU School of Art graduate made national news a couple of football seasons ago with his “R2DBrew,” a replica of Star Wars’ R2-D2 as well as a fully operational keg, which obediently served the crowd at Gilley’s usual tailgating spot.

Gilley has a keen handle on the underlying mechanics of a product, and he doesn’t skimp on the surface detail either. The artist spent two years working at Composite Effects, engineering masks and molds at the special effects studio. He currently works at the family business, Gilley’s Gallery & Framing in Baton Rouge (8750 Florida Boulevard).

Gilley’s menacing Piranha Plant will join other jaw-dropping interpretations of childhood entertainment at Sunday’s ARTcade, where attendees are encouraged to come dressed in their best superhero (or supervillain) garb.

Hope you’re ready to play! September 7, 1 pm–7 pm at 761 Choctaw Drive. $10. elevatorprojects.com.