# Pinball Artwork Exhibition Opens **Source:** Pinball News Website **Type:** article **Published:** 2016-09-12 **Beat:** Pinball **URL:** https://www.pinballnews.com/news/skillshotexhibition.html --- ## Analysis A pinball artwork exhibition titled 'Skillshot: The Collaborative Art of Pinball' opened in downtown Chicago on September 6, 2016, and runs through November 5, 2016 at the Glass Curtain Gallery in Columbia College. The exhibition features playfield and backglass artwork from various pinball artists including Greg Freres, Kevin O'Connor, Dirty Donny, Jeremy Packer, and George Gomez, with nine playable machines (six recent Stern titles and three Bally/Williams classics) available for free play. ### Key Claims - [HIGH] The exhibition features artwork development for recent Stern Pinball titles including Ghostbusters, and playfield development drawings for Medieval Madness by Greg Freres — _Exhibition contents directly documented in article with photographs_ - [MEDIUM] Gary Stern has stated the pinball industry will eventually die unless machines are out where people can play them — _Reporter Dan Marquardt references interviews with Gary Stern; not direct quote_ - [HIGH] Nine pinball machines are available for free play at the exhibition: six recent Stern titles and three Bally/Williams classics — _Specific game list provided in article_ ### Notable Quotes > "I have seen interviews with Gary Stern in which he states that the pinball industry will eventually die unless the machines are out where people can play them." > — **Dan Marquardt** > _Demonstrates industry perspective on importance of public accessibility to machines for industry survival_ > "It is very clever of Stern Pinball to support a pinball exhibition in a college building. There's a large number of young people that will be exposed to the exhibits and hopefully they will see how much fun they are, and then will play pins in the future." > — **Dan Marquardt** > _Commentary on strategic positioning of exhibition to reach younger audiences and ensure future player base_ ### Entities | Name | Type | Context | |------|------|---------| | Skillshot: The Collaborative Art of Pinball | event | Pinball artwork exhibition in downtown Chicago, September 6 - November 5, 2016 | | Glass Curtain Gallery | organization | Exhibition venue inside Columbia College building at 1104 S. Wabash, downtown Chicago | | Greg Freres | person | Stern Pinball artist whose work is featured, including Medieval Madness playfield development drawings | | Kevin O'Connor | person | Stern Pinball artist with extensive Kiss artwork on display | | Dirty Donny | person | Pinball artist with artwork and Beatniks backglass featured in exhibition | | Jeremy Packer | person | Stern Pinball artist whose work is included in exhibition | | George Gomez | person | Stern Pinball designer with artwork featured, including Monster Bash drawing | | Mark Porter | person | Exhibition curator and pinball fan who conceived the exhibition idea | | Doug Watson | person | Artist whose Barracuda artwork is displayed (before it became Barracora) | | Dan Marquardt | person | Reporter covering the exhibition for Pinball News | | Stern Pinball | company | Primary pinball manufacturer whose recent titles and artwork development are featured | | Columbia College | organization | Institution hosting the exhibition at its downtown Chicago campus | | Spider-Man Vault Edition | product | Recent Stern pinball available for play at exhibition | | The Walking Dead | product | Stern pinball at exhibition | | Ghostbusters | product | Stern pinball with artwork development featured | | Game of Thrones LE | product | Stern pinball at exhibition | | Metallica | product | Stern pinball at exhibition | | Kiss | product | Both Stern and Bally versions available at exhibition | | Medieval Madness | product | Classic game featured for playfield development drawing exhibition by Greg Freres | ### Topics - **Primary:** Pinball artwork and design, Stern Pinball artist showcase - **Secondary:** Community engagement and education, Industry accessibility and player recruitment - **Mentioned:** Pinball game design process ### Sentiment **Positive** (0.85) — Reporter expresses enthusiasm for the exhibition, appreciation for artwork, and optimism about industry implications. Positive framing of Stern Pinball's support for the venue and potential for reaching younger audiences. ### Signals - **[event_signal]** Major pinball artwork exhibition opening in Chicago featuring curated selection of artist works and interactive playable machines (confidence: high) — Skillshot exhibition opening September 6, 2016 at Glass Curtain Gallery with nine machines available for public play - **[community_signal]** Stern Pinball actively supporting public pinball exhibition in college venue to build awareness among younger audiences (confidence: high) — Exhibition features recent Stern titles and artwork, positioned to expose college students to pinball --- ## Transcript Date: 12th September 2016 Report by Dan Marquardt A new pinball exhibition, Skillshot, The Collaborative Art of Pinball opened in downtown Chicago on September 6th and runs through November 5th. The exhibition is at the Glass Curtain Gallery inside the Columbia College building at 1104 S. Wabash. It is open daily and admission is free. Check their website for hours of operation. The entrance to the Glass Curtain Gallery Graphics for the exhibition The exhibition’s main focus is on the artwork created for pinball machines. Various playfield and backglass artworks are on display at the gallery. A row of various playfields A collection of backbox art The development of the artwork for some recent Stern Pinball titles is featured. Quite a bit of the artwork on display is by the venerable artists and designers Stern Pinball employs, such as Greg Freres, Kevin O’Connor, Donny Gillies (Dirty Donny), Jeremy Packer (Zombie Yeti) and George Gomez. Lots of Kevin O’Connor’s Kiss artwork is on display Pinball artwork from Donny Gillies (Dirty Donny) A close-up Donny Gillies (Dirty Donny)’s Beatniks backglass Artwork development for Ghostbusters Add-on interior cabinet art and body armor on Ghostbusters A drawing from George Gomez for the Monster Bash game Prototype sculptures for some newer Stern pinballs The exhibit curator Mark Porter and his wife Kate are both big pinball fans. Mark told me that the idea for a pinball-themed exhibition came from his personal enthusiasm for pinball machines. Artwork from Doug Watson for Barracuda before it became Barracora Since this an interactive art exhibition, there are nine pinball machine exhibits available on free play. Six are recent Stern titles and three are Bally/Williams classics. Game list: Spider-Man Vault Edition (Stern) The Walking Dead (Stern) Ghostbusters (Stern) Game of Thrones LE (Stern) Metallica (Stern) Kiss (Stern) Kiss (Bally) Sorcerer (Williams) Dolly Parton (Bally) A row of recent Stern pinballs to play Spider-Man, The Walking Dead, Ghostbusters, Game of Thrones & Metallica More of the pinballs in the exhibition: Kiss, Kiss, Sorcerer and Dolly Parton I have seen interviews with Gary Stern in which he states that the pinball industry will eventually die unless the machines are out where people can play them. It is very clever of Stern Pinball to support a pinball exhibition in a college building. There's a large number of young people that will be exposed to the exhibits and hopefully they will see how much fun they are, and then will play pins in the future. A wall with pinball machine diagrams and a video from the movie 'Tommy' The highlight of the exhibition for me was seeing the playfield development drawings of Medieval Madness by Greg Freres. It was fascinating to see the details progress in the multiple drawings. Medieval Madness playfield drawings from Greg Freres I was very happy to see that the home of pinball machines has such a nice exhibition showcasing the art of pinball. Back to the News page Like this page? Share it with your Facebook friends: Back to the front page _(Acquisition: raw_text, Enrichment: v1)_ --- *Exported from Journalist Tool on 2026-04-13 | Item ID: b985405e-dff0-4d03-9afe-ad6ee87b3949*