My grandfather, Robert Freyer, was in the Navy. The game Acey-Deucey, which is a variation of Backgammon, is a very popular board game in the Navy. He taught me the game when I was a kid and we played it a lot over the years before he passed away. I miss him and playing the game with him so much. The rest of the grandkids and I called him Grandpa Bob. He’s the best man I’ve ever known.

I’ve had the idea of incorporating the Acey-Deucey gameboard into an art piece for a couple years now. As the ideas grew, I felt that it would have to be a very good piece, especially because I knew it would be paying homage to Grandpa Bob. Battleship was another board game I played a lot as a kid and I think it fits with the Navy motif.

I did a few things different with this one. First, its the biggest scale I’ve ever done. Usually I use 20×20 or 20×30 but this one is actually 30×40! Second, I used Golden’s SoFlat Matte paint exclusively because I thought the matte finish would fit the vibe of the piece. And third, I experimented with using glow in the dark paint (also by Golden). This is the green squares you see. They actually glow in the dark really well! I thought this would be a cool connection to the Battleship concept.

I’m really proud of the work, how it turned out, the experimentation, and what it represents. More fun content on my Instagram channel. I also made this playlist to go along with the artwork!

Fun Facts about Acey-Deucey:

• The game is believed to have originated in the Middle East, Greece, or Turkey
• It has been a favorite game of the United States Navy, Marine Corps, and Merchant Marine since World War I
• It’s believed that the great popularity in the Navy lies in the fact that the elements of skill and chance are nicely balanced, so that each is essential to victory
• The game is also known as In-Between, Sheets, Between the Sheets, or Maverick
• The average game requires about 88 roles of the dice between two players