Draw Mohammad Day?

My contribution to the Draw Mohammad Day yesterday. Everyone seemed to be hell bent on drawing offensive, insulting images and starting a Holy War. Thought I’d try to do something nice instead with generative art (math & code), and still make a point about freedom of speech.

Seeking Interns

Anyone based in New York want to work with me in the world of generative & interactive art ?

Get in touch with me or my studio (Culture Shock) about internships…

Computer coded, Algorithmic art

Or at least, that’s what I’m calling it anyway.  It’s part of my artist’s statement for my entry to the Art Takes Times Square competition, where you can vote for me by clicking on ‘Collect Me’, and help me win the chance to have the work below shown in Times Square.

This is my artist’s statement and collection I submitted in full:-

I create computer coded, algorithmic art. My basic technique is writing code which progressively fills a given area following arbitrary rules and mathematics.

A ‘seed’ image is iterated randomly with unique size, position and orientation (and colouring sometimes), without any overlapping, until a space is filled up, the program code then stops, and the piece is complete, but often I’ll use the results as the seed image for the next piece, creating an iterative, feedback process, which continually evolves and mutates into new compositions through experimentation and discovery.

The basic seed image I start with is usually cultural, political, spiritual, or from nature. I’m fascinated by symbols and icons, and the uniqueness of each shape, and how, when iterated into infinity, you see its self-similar qualities emerge and unravel guiding the overall composition and structure, qualities shared by the DNA helix, fractals and nature.

Although the work is computer generated, I still think like an artist. How will I fill this particular area ? – what kind of feel and tone do I want, and how will I write or change the code to achieve this? Or maybe I’ll just randomly change some numbers and see what happens. Generative computer art doesn’t have to be a movement or field of art in itself, it’s maybe just an evolution of fine art.

By accident, or design, a lot of pieces end up like mandalas and mosaics, guided by the geometric and organic principles.

This collection is some of my recent work, using themes and symbols from New York City, Andy Warhol, my studio’s monogram logo and the Dingbat font.