HUMBOLDT PARK — An upcoming art exhibit will give viewers a first peek at artwork behind a new, locally made fighting card game.
Henry Bruce, of Bucktown, has been doing many new things lately, including creating “Rupture,” a fast-paced fighting tabletop card game that simulates a video game fighting experience using trading card game rules. It is a blend of “Magic: The Gathering” and “Super Smash Bros.”
Building off that, his latest new task debuts next week: He’s organizing an exhibit featuring 75 pieces of artwork by six artists at Coming Soon gallery, 3701 W. Division St., that highlights the game artwork.
The show, called “The Artwork of Rupture,” tells the story of the game’s development as a community-building art form while supporting the artists, most of whom are local. The game has six decks designed for people to play three simultaneous, quick one-on-one matches, each their own fantasy world.
“There are six characters in this game and each character is designed and illustrated by a different artist, and I specifically asked they used their own artistic style as much as possible,” Bruce said. “We have watercolor, oil painting, digital art, comic book style, anime-esque and botanical illustrations.”
Henry Adams made the artwork for The Floraform, another deck in the Rupture game. Credit: Provided
Artists in the show include Chicago illustrators Henry Adams, Pat Lyne, Julia Guillory, Kailyn Perry, Kate Summers and two from Europe, Ari Oliver and an artist who goes by Arancia, which means orange, the fruit, in Italian.
The art show is a way to support local artists, spread awareness about the game and give the art form some overdue recognition, Bruce said. Each artist will have at least two framed character study pieces and all work will be for sale.
“Rupture is a card game, and there are 360 cards that come with every set. There are some 90 pieces of original artwork in the game, and I always knew I wanted to commission that artwork from local artists as best I could,” he said.
An illustration by Kate Summers, who did the artwork for the Rupture deck called The Pyromancer, will be part of the Humboldt Park exhibit. Credit: Provided
Bruce, a product manager by day, has spent most of his free time creating the game, which means building a team to help design it, commission artists and now sell Rupture to Chicago’s gaming community. The game’s Kickstarter campaign is launching in February and the game is expected to come out later next year.
It’s already gaining momentum, he said. He’s been hosting game sessions at game cafes, connecting with more role-playing fans and working with printing companies to produce his game.
The art show is an extension of that work and a way to celebrate the new artistic relationships he’s made over the last couple of months. Bruce didn’t personally know any of the artists who made game art but he found them through social media, friends and the Chicago Artists Coalition, a nonprofit that supports emerging local artists.
“I want to share the beauty of game artwork; I think it’s a subgenre that doesn’t get a lot of shine,” he said. “There are a lot of games that have beautiful artwork, and people really like the games because of the artwork. I don’t think it is really celebrated as fine art as much.”
The show opens Monday and will be open by appointment only during the week and open to the public 3-6 p.m. on the weekends through Nov. 23. People can reach Bruce via Instagram to set up a private showing.
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