Skillshot: The Collaborative Art of Pinball will open in September of 2015 at the Glass Curtain Gallery on the campus of Columbia College Chicago, located in downtown Chicago.

Skillshot will present pinball machines and related artwork by enthusiasts and industry professionals alike. A full color catalog will be produced. We are looking for submissions of all types for both the exhibit and the catalog.

For the catalog, we are looking for industry background stories or any kind of blog type writing or an essays.

For the exhibit we are looking to display anything related to pinball, original machines from any era, backglass, play field parts, original artwork wether created by you or by a pinball manufacturer.

We are also looking to exhibit after market mods, artwork related to pinball, your own fantasy pinball designs, anything related to pinball!

We have a modest budget and will be able to cover some shipping costs and other exhibit related expenses.

For more info or submissions please contact Mark Porter, Exhibition Coordinator, Columbia College Chicago at [email protected]

Thanks!!!images.jpg

Hi Jonathan,

The exhibit will open in early September, around the 6th (2015) and will close mid or early November (2015). The exhibit will be totally free of charge (unless we have to charge to play the machines, hoping not) and open to the public. It will be open well through the 2015 Chicago Pinball Expo.

Please let me know if you have any other questions!

Mark

Just to emphasize- the exhibit will concentrate on the process of how pinball machines are created, from concept to finished product.

Id also like to include any mods that people have created or artwork inspired by pinball in general.

Im looking for interesting pinball stories, an experience you had, something you learned about a particular machine. An interesting conversation you had with a game designer.

Im not just looking for machines, Im looking for the nuts and bolts that make them what they are or how you think you have improved them.

Do you run a repair service? Please share an interesting story for the catalog, something unusual, strange or puzzling.

Please contact me here at pinside or [email protected]

Thanks!!

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The exhibit will be free to enter. Depending upon the agreements we reach with the lenders, the pinball machines will either be free to play or a typical price 75 cents or less for a game.

The exhibit will feature original artwork and pinball machines alike and will make an attempt to provide a behind the scenes view of pinball, the nuts and bolts of how the machines work and how they are designed.

We are totally open to ideas, contact us and let us know what you would like to see!

Hi Fastpinball,

Your table looks awesome! Im really interested in including this! I have a modest shipping budget for the exhibit, by modest I mean not so great. Im hoping to fix that problem by partnering with another institution. Aside from that problem, I would love to include this in some way, at the very least something about it in the catalog.

If you plan to be at the 2014 expo, Ill be sure to say hi in person.

Thanks so much for sending this!

Hi Joel,

Im simply blown away by this! Your item and the item by Fastpinball are exactly what Im looking for- creations by people connected to pinball in someway, making their own creations wether the creations are entirely new products, mods or etc. Id put this in the etc section, something I never expected to find, its totally great. I have a TOM and would love to see what you did with that one and anything else you have made. Yes, lets stay in touch and figure out how we can get you involved in the exhibit!

Thanks!

Mark

These are great, interesting to see the shift from the first piece to your newest one. Really great stuff!

Have you ever made a cast of one of these carvings? I really like the effect of the wood, just curious as to how it would translate in some other material like a clear plastic lit from behind, might not be as interesting actually.

I love that you included the clock on TOM. I really wish the game had a rotating clock so that you could tell how close you are to midnight madness.

Thanks for sharing these!

Hi All,

its been quite sometime since Ive made any posts. We have decided to move the opening date of Skillshot to September 2016 so that we may open the exhibit in conjunction with a video game exhibition. Im still looking for pinball related submissions of any kind, here are some suggestions:

Your pinball related artwork, drawings, sculptures

Pinball products you create/sell, mods of any kind, newly improved designs

Interesting journal/blog type pieces of writing, interviews, stories, anything that can be used for a catalog/zine printed for the exhibit (hopefully available free of charge)

Photos

Documentary videos

Thanks all! Ill be at the Midwest classic in a few weeks!

Hi all,

What is your favorite game/album combo?
Lately Ive found that I can really get into certain games with the right soundtrack. What's your favorite game/album combo? Lately Ive really been into Totan paired with some nice drony stoner rock like "Holy Mountain" by Sleep and "Houdini" by the Melvins.

The Velvet Underground is pretty great with Surf Champ, anyone else?