Algorithmic Art and Its Art-Historical Relationships
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CITAR Journal, Volume 8, No. 1 – Special Issue: xCoAx 2016 Algorithmic Art and Its Art-Historical Relationships Anna Daudrich Department of Media Studies and Art History, University of Erlangen-Nuremberg, Germany ----- [email protected] ----- ABSTRACT 1 | INTRODUCTION This paper aims to discuss algorithmic art (also known The era of computer-generated art began in the as computer-generated or generative art) in a 1960s [1]. This form of artistic practice was born after comparative perspective with artistic practices the emergence of computer technology during the generated by means of non-computer-based Cold War. During that time, two rivals, the Soviet methods. More precisely, it seeks to trace art- Union and the USA, had been forwarding the historical relationships between algorithmic art and development of computer technology in order to certain examples from modern art movements. The demonstrate their military and technical achievements. artist whose works are chosen as the starting point for In this context, many practitioners from computer this investigation is the German artist Manfred Mohr. science began making visual experiments to The investigation will firstly attempt to identify key implement their artistic ideas. For example, features of algorithmic art based on its formal visual researchers at the Bell Laboratories in New Jersey, A. properties as well as production techniques involved. Michael Noll and Béla Julesz, were encouraged In the second step, it will discuss these observed through their professional activity to create computer- characteristics in a comparative perspective with generated works for aesthetic aims (Taylor, 2014, pp. historical precedents and contemporary practices 27-39). from non-computer art. By comparing aesthetic Many traditionally trained artists were also affected by principles and techniques used by selected artists, the new computer technologies and began challenging paper seeks to contribute towards a growing this device within their creative concepts. They often awareness that it is necessary to consider algorithmic conducted visual research in collaboration with art within the broader historical context of its scientists, forming worldwide several computing relationships with non-digital art forms. research groups and other pioneering movements in this new field. In France, for example, there was the KEYWORDS Groupe de Recherhe d’Art Visual, also called GRAV, Algorithms; Aesthetics; Manfred Mohr; Modern Art with one of the most eminent computer art pioneers Movements; Art-Historical Relationships. CITAR JOURNAL 37 Vera Molnár as a co-founder. In Germany, the algorithms. Similarly, Weibel (2005) contributes Stuttgart school was founded around Max Bense, one towards a growing awareness of these kinds of art- of the founders of Information Aesthetics. In Zagreb, historical relationships, pointing out that algorithms – the former Yugoslavia, science-oriented artists formed in the sense of following predefined rules – had been the New Tendency movement. Artists who already applied in traditional arts as manuals or established all these groups commonly intended to musical scores for centuries. In this context, he conduct visual research on computers in order to remembers Leon Battista Alberti’s architectural create artistic objects. tractate De re aedificatoria (1452), Piero della Francesca’s script on perspective in painting De However, due to its origins in scientific and technical prospectiva pingendi (1474) and Albrecht Dürer’s purposes, the majority of the fine arts community book on geometry Underweysung der Messung initially took a rather skeptical view of computer- (1525) that were written as manuals for artists, giving generated art and separated it from traditional art instructions for making buildings, paintings and history, allocating it rather in a pure technical domain. sculptures. First practitioners of computer art themselves, such as Herbert W. Franke, A. Michael Noll or Frieder Nake, This paper aims to discuss algorithmic art in relation did not try to position their works within 20th century to so-called “natural” art. In doing so, it seeks to art history either. Moreover, when writing about their analyze its key features in a comparative perspective works, pioneers of computer art usually concentrated with its historical precedents and contemporary only on the technical aspect of the production (Taylor, practices that have been created without any help 2014, pp. 3-10, 257-258). In doing so, as Piehler from a computer or digital technology. The artist (2002, pp. 62-63) believes, they were not yet aware whose works are chosen as the starting point for this that they were growing against the background of investigation is the German-born artist Manfred Mohr. contemporary art practices. He is one of the pioneers of computer-generated art, and is also considered one of the most influential Indeed, there are many reasons to believe that artists in this area. The selection of artworks for a prevailing cultural environments also influenced the comparative analysis is limited to pieces dating from emergence of computer-generated art. Already at the the 20th century. In this context, the main aesthetic beginning of the 20th century, constructivists and principles and techniques used in non-computer art suprematists had demonstrated a close relationship during this period will be compared with Mohr’s with science, relying on mathematical methods in art artistic practice. production (King, 2002, pp. 90-94). Likewise, Bauhaus decided in favor of science, promoting 2 | ALGORITHMIC WORKS BY MANFRED MOHR learning and teaching methods based on the Manfred Mohr began his career as a jazz musician integration of art and technology (Klütsch, 2012, p. and abstract expressionist, but later turned from 81). These assumptions were maintained some traditional painting to computer-generated art (Mohr decades later in several art movements that emerged 2002, 111). In doing so, he was strongly influenced by shortly after the World War II, such as Minimalism, the theories of the German philosopher and Conceptual Art or Fluxus, which also aimed to employ semiotician Max Bense, developed in the 1950-60s mathematical principles (King, 2002, pp. 90-94). (Von Mengen, 2007). In recent years, there has been a growing awareness Bense attempted to establish an objective scientific that computer-generated art should be also seen approach in the realm of aesthetics. His main purpose within the broader historical context of its relationships was to construct a theoretical platform that would with non-digital art forms. For example, Galanter enable a rational evaluation and creation of artworks, (2003, 2008) argues that the roots of generative as opposed to traditional theories oriented to computer art can be already found in ancient Islamic subjective and emotional interpretation. The most decoration. According to Galanter, the placement of influential area of Bense’s theories is the concept of individual elements within these motifs was made by Generative Aesthetics. Bense formulated it as follows: means of manually executed symmetry-based CITAR JOURNAL 38 CITAR Journal, Volume 8, No. 1 – Special Issue: xCoAx 2016 “Generative aesthetics […] implies a well adapted to a computable configuration. combination of all operations, rules and Nonetheless, Mohr never aimed to visualize theorems which can be used deliberately to mathematical properties of the cube. Instead, his produce aesthetic states […] when applied to research is rather focused on the exploration of new a set of material elements. […] Generative visual and aesthetic expressions that result from aesthetics is an ‘aesthetic of production’, abstract relations between structural elements of a which makes possible the methodological cube (Maiocchi, 1994, p. 35). production of aesthetic states, by dividing this process into a finite number of distinct and Using the cube as his primary motive, Mohr created a separate states which are capable of series of computer-generated works. His black-and- formulation” (Bense, 1971, pp. 57-58). white plotter drawing P-154-C1 (Figure 1) belongs to his early work phase Cubic Limit I (1972-1975). This Generally speaking, Bense believed it is possible to computer-generated work shows a sequence of generate aesthetic objects according to exactly three-dimensional cubes. These figures are evenly formulated rules. For Bense (1965, p. 151), distributed over the image surface 10 across by 7 Generative Aesthetics proceeds in three steps. Firstly, down, forming straight rows. There is however no the artist defines the elements of the repertoire that cube with all its edges. Mohr removed a number of will serve to generate a work of art. For example, the contour lines from each of them. In the lower part of repertoire of a literary work consists of a certain the picture, cubes are missing only one or two edges, vocabulary, the repertoire of a musical work – of the so that the three-dimensional shape of the cubes is quantity of notes, the repertoire of a painting – of still recognizable. From the bottom to the top of the individual forms and colors. In a second step, the picture, the number of edges removed from each artist formulates the rules for connecting the elements cube gradually increases, until the figures of the upper of the defined repertoire to a complex composition. rows possess only one or two edges. These cubes For example, in a literary work, the words are are no longer identifiable as such. Mohr deliberately