Art can be found in everything. From web design to architecture, any craft can be considered a form of art. For a long time, there has been the argument about whether video games are and should be considered a form of art. It, therefore, isn’t surprising that that same argument now affects online casino games.

Should online casino games be considered art? Does art have an influence on them? Have casinos and the gambling industry in general influenced the art world? In this article, we attempt to answer these questions, and talk about the surprising correlation between art and gambling. After all, the two have influenced each other quite a lot.

Art in Online Gambling
The presence of art in online casinos is very evident. It mostly manifests in themed slots. For those who don’t know, themed slots are slot games that adopt certain visual and audible aesthetics. An example of this would be the Aviator slots, that are heavily inspired by airplanes, and air traffic. Looking at the Aviator slot games, one could clearly see that a great deal of work was put in creating those visuals.

And what is that, if not art? The goal of art is to capture the imagination, make us feel something, and perhaps even get us to think about deeper subjects. However, in the case of pop art, the goal is simply to entertain. That is certainly the case here. The imaginative portrayal of airplanes and air traffic in the Aviator slots is fun, and it can inspire others to imagine flying through the air, even if all their doing is pressing a button.

The existence of themed slots is a clear example of how art can impact the gambling industry. But, what about the opposite? Can gambling influence art? Some would say that there is no way this can be done. However, they would be so very wrong.

Gambling in Art
Though art can be many things, most people correlate the word to painting. And if we stick to painting, then we can certainly pull up a lot of examples of gambling influencing art. The most obvious is the series of paintings by Cassius Marcellus Coolidge, which is often referred to as Dogs Playing Poker.

At this point, the series of sixteen paintings is iconic, having been featured in several films, television shows, and referenced in cartoons. As the title of the series would imply, the paintings all depict canines playing some variant of poker. In some of the paintings, the dogs are all the same, in others they are different. In some they seem happy, and in others they look depressed.

The fascinating thing about the Dogs Playing Poker paintings is that we, as the audience, can always tell which of the dogs had a good hand, which one is bluffing, and who is going to fall for the bluff. The realistic depiction of the game is what makes these a staple of art galleries all over the world. But, Dogs Playing Poker is only one example.

One of the most revered painters in history, Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio painted The Cardsharps. Believed to have been completed in 1594, The Cardsharps depicts a lady playing a game of cards with two men, one of whom is coaching her, and the other of whom seems to be cheating. The original painting can be seen at the Kimbell Art Museum.

There are so many more examples of gambling depictions in art that we can talk about. However, art is not just painting. Music, filmmaking, and more can all be considered art. But, are there any connections between those and gambling?

Gambling and Music
Musicians have been fascinated by gamblers and gambling for a long time. While many are quick to bring up rock’n’roll, the truth is that even some well-known, classical musicians wrote compositions about gamblers. For example, Prokofiev’s four act opera, The Gambler, inspired by Fyodor Dostoevsky’s novelette of the same name is an excellent example of music and gambling coming together, before the concept of rock’n’roll even existed.

Another famous Russian composer, Piotr Tchaikovsky, wrote a piece called The Queen of Spades, a three-act opera, which deals with a gamblers obsession with finding the right formula to win at cards. The story is inspired by Alexander Pushkin’s short story, which bears the same name. Evidently, musicians and writers have been taking inspiration from gambling long before the 20th century.

Of course, this isn’t to dismiss all the great songs written about gambling during the age of rock’n’roll. Ace of Spades, a classic in rock and metal circles is a masterful ode to the casino. Written by metal masters Motorhead, the song talks about how much the narrator loves to gamble. He doesn’t care whether it is roulette, blackjack, poker, craps, or anything else. In the words of Lemmy Kilmister, “I know I’m gonna lose/ and gambling is for fools. / But that’s the way I like it baby!”

Gambling and Film
Film is often called the art of the 20th century. For good reason too, as it was during the 20th century that many people truly pushed film to its limit, and tested what can and cannot be done with this new art form. Considering that the 20th century was also the era of Las Vegas, and the rise of the grandiose casinos, it isn’t a surprise that the two new industries had a lot of crossover.

In 1936, the romantic musical, Show Boat opened in theaters. Set on a cruise, the characters can often be seen at the ship’s casino, with roulette wheels in the background. Of course, we can’t talk about films from the mid-20th century without bringing up one of the most influential pieces of cinema of all time, Casablanca.

The romantic drama starring Ingrid Bergman and Humphrey Bogart has had a lot of influence on Hollywood, and continues to influence filmmakers to this day. As the protagonist is the owner of a casino, it shouldn’t surprise anyone that gambling factors heavily into the film’s background.