1. Research Post 1:

Please read the description of what a research post is in the deliverables part of this site. This is the first research post task and it requires you to research and describe a piece of generative art. Generative art is defined as:

“all generative art focuses on the process by which an artwork is made, and this process is required to have a degree of autonomy and independence from the artist who defines it. The degree of autonomy and independence assigned to the computer varies significantly—from works that seek to minimize or exclude the creative “signature” of the human designer to those in which the computer’s role is more passive and the human artist has primary creative responsibility and autonomy.”

Consider artists on the artists page such as Jessica Rosenkrantz, Neri Oxman, Mitchel Whitelaw, Lia, Allison Parish, Mary Huang & Jenna Fizel, Zach Lieberman, Marias Watz, Casey Reas.

In your post you should describe one or more examples of their work, and reflect on this type of making, that sees creative agency shared between artist and computer. Can a machine be original? What does it feel like to be a computer making art? Can beauty, or human aesthetics be formalized and proceduralized? If you are stuck for ways to think through this, see this paper that considers some of these questions.

2. Programming exercises.

A. Parameterization

Make sketch of a simple graphic such as an arrow, a smiley face, a heart, a simple house. Then introduce x and y parameters so that the graphic moves with the mouse.

B. Mouse events

Make with one ellipse. Have the ellipse change color and move to a random location on the screen every time the mouse is clicked.

3.Read

Chapters 4 of Learning Processing. Do 4.2, 4.3 and 4.5.

4. Work on the generative face project.

(see the description in the deliverables menu.)