1.

Rhode Island based artist/designer Ara Peterson isexhibiting a collection of very colorful backgammon boards he created with his father, Jack Peterson, at the Ratio 3 gallery in San Francisco.

As it looks, the Petersons took standard sized wooden backgammon board and decorated it with the young Paterson trademark multicolored graphic patterns. The result is amazingly beautiful, as in the example given above, and in other times, almost eye dazzling, and unpractical at any rate, like in the following example:

And if your head doesn’t hurt by now, you should check this guy’s website, it looks like that:

2.

Of course, it is not the first time a backgammon board was taken away from its original purpose and instead served as a platform for a work of art. In 2008, Play65 has sponsored an exhibition that consisted of 62 artistic backgammon boards called "The Art of Reconciliation". It was first exhibited at the Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial Library in Washington DC and continued to tour the world, and now it lands in Israel, where it will be exhibited at the Municipal Gallery in Giv’atayim from the 14th of October, 2009.

Backgammon board by Anat Strul

Backgammon board by Hagit Kazinitz

Play65 first Supernatural Weekend on the 19th-20th September was a huge success! 60 backgammon pros attended the opening event, the Pro Gammon, increasing the total prize from €1000 to €1200, and 100 played the following Exciting 750 tournament, both held on Saturday. Similar scaled tournaments held on the following day, with a 6-hours-long marathon from 17:00 until 23:00 PM. 

Pro Gammon Tournament

The Pro Gammon tournament was the first time Play65 has held a 5-point match that was sequenced by a 7-point final. Not surprisingly, many players have agreed to this challenge and instead of the guaranteed €1000 prize, an amount of €1200 was shared by the top competitors. The 1st prize was won by a Japanese pro nicknamed fairytails who bested a German player who is known by the username of muuuuus.

Play65 Plans for the Near Future

The Supernatural Weekend is planned to return next weekend at the same times and same formats but with bigger prizes; the next Supernatural Weekend will be closed with a €3000 backgammon tournament and hopefully with more attendants that would contribute to the prize pool as well. Special midweek backgammon tournaments are also expected to take place soon.

Play65 has been refreshing its online backgammon platform and adding some new features for your convenience. Play65 new features enable you to contact your community members faster, enter the tournament lobby easier and play backgammon on a felt board.

Play65 New Community Features

From now on, with Play65 community features, you can view your last game opponents right after entering the game lobby and add new friends to your community with one click. From now on, once you click on a player’s name that appears on any list in the lobby, a new menu will be opened, allowing you to peek at the player’s details, add him to your community or change the settings.
If you do not remember who your last opponents were, and you wish to recall them whether to play them again or to avoid them, simply click on the "last played with" tab.

Felt Backgammon Board

The felt backgammon board is added to Play65 virtual wooden and leather boards, letting you play backgammon online on a board of your choice. Play65 felt backgammon board comes with 3D graphics and realistic sounds.

More New Features

• Right click to open a menu and then change your settings, invite a friend to play or open the help topics.
• Right click on a tournament name to immediately enter the tournament lobby.