Bhaal Spawn
Ben Hardwidge talks to artist Bhaal Spawn (real name Matilda) about her
work based on old PC hardware and DOS games
I
f you follow the retro PC gaming world online, you
may well have seen Matilda’s work shared in
various forms. Her Lego models of the Sound
Blaster Pro and 3dfx Voodoo cards have proved popular with
those of us who remember the early days of PC gaming,
particularly when Photoshopped onto a real Lego box to look
like proper kits.
There’s plenty of other nods towards DOS gaming in
Matilda’s portfolio as well, from her regular stream of Doom-
inspired artwork, to pieces based on Monkey Island, System
Shock and Dungeon Keeper. We caught up with Matilda to
talk about early PC hardware, DOS gaming and what it is
about the PC’s early days that still excites so many people.CPC: Why do you think there’s so much nostalgic enthusiasm
for early PC hardware and gaming at the moment?
Matilda: As you know, PC hardware changes so rapidly that
this year’s super-funky super graphics card is next year’s
novelty coffee mug coaster. Sometimes it can feel like the
machines we used when we were little have more in common
with a Victorian loom than the super-computers in our pockets
or on our desks. And yet, because we used them so much
when we were small, with our heads full of wonder at this
new-found digital escapism, those old machines remain
connected to that time and those feelings. I feel like revisiting
them now is like revisiting that same sense of innocence. I
think that’s quite powerful.CPC: What was it about the Sound Blaster Pro and 3dfx
Voodoo that inspired you to make the Lego models?
Matilda: I created those in a fit of nostalgia myself. I’m a fan of
Lego and had been talking about Sound Blaster cards earlier
that day – the idea just popped into my head. It felt like a fun
challenge, and the shape and colours of the cards are really
attractive. I didn’t really think about whether I had the pieces, let
alone whether it would actually work!CPC: Did you have those cards back in the day?
Matilda: Of course! I was still using a 486 by the time the first 3D
accelerators showed up, so the first graphics card my family
owned was a later Nvidia Riva TNT2. But, long before then, when
I heard a friend’s computer with an actual FM synth and digitised
speech, I knew I had to have a Sound Blaster that Christmas
(even if it meant lighting a fire while Santa was coming down
the chimney and forcing him to hand it over on pain of death).RETRO TECH / INTERVIEW
These sketches, based on
System Shock, Dungeon
Keeper, Carmageddon and
The Secret of Monkey Island,
were drawn on Matilda’s
phone on the train