Algorithm

Algorithm

An Algorithm is a set of instructions used to solve problems, perform specific tasks or make decisions.

With origins in mathematics, algorithms are now a crucial element of coding and Generative Art. Making changes to an algorithms will result in different outputs from a given input. More advanced algorithms use conditional decisions – 'automated reasoning' – to progress from intput to output. Determninistic algorithms will have a more controlled output, however some algorithms incorporate one or more randomised steps and as such have more unpredictable outcomes.

20 results found for "Algorithm"

essay

Emily Xie: Plastic Code

Chinese-American artist Emily Xie’s coded creations replicate old world fabrics in new world media. Combining AI and generative methods, she asks what it means to be material in a digital world.

Emily Xie: Plastic Code
essay

How CryptoPunks NFTs changed the face of digital art

Created in 2017 by Matt Hall and John Watkinson, CryptoPunks were one of the first NFTs minted on the Ethereum blockchain. CryptoPunks quickly penetrated the mainstream, captivating not only crypto enthusiasts but also artists, celebrities and the general public. Today the 24x24 avatars are a divisive status symbol living up to their Punk name.

How CryptoPunks NFTs changed the face of digital art
guide

What is Generative Art?

Humans have been experimenting with generative art for centuries, but Web 3.0 technology such as NFTs and smart contracts has unlocked new possibilities. Here’s what you need to know about the movement that’s shaking up the art world.

What is Generative Art?
essay

Artificial Inspiration

What does recent progress in artificial intelligence mean for art and artists?

Artificial Inspiration
interview

In conversation: Tyler Hobbs

"Can I write a program that creates a painting?"

In conversation: Tyler Hobbs
article

Avant Arte & NFTs

Avant Arte’s core purpose is to make discovering and owning art radically more accessible. In 2022, we’re adding NFTs to the picture.

Avant Arte & NFTs
Artist

Linda Dounia

Linda Dounia Rebeiz (she/her) is a Senegalese-Lebanese artist. She was born in 1994 in the coastal city of Mbour in Senegal and now lives and works in Dakar.

Linda Dounia
Artist

Snowfro

Erick “Snowfro” Calderon (he/him) was born in Mexico City in 1981. He lives and works in Houston, Texas.

Snowfro
Artist

Dmitri Cherniak

Dmitri Cherniak (he/him) was born 1988 in Canada and now lives and works in New York City.

Dmitri Cherniak
Artist

William Mapan

French artist William Mapan (he/him) was born in 1988 and is currently based in Paris.

William Mapan
Artist

Tyler Hobbs

Tyler Hobbs was born in 1987 in Austin, Texas, where he currently lives and works.

Tyler Hobbs
Artist

Ix Shells

Itzel Yard, aka Ix Shells, (she/her) was born in 1990 in Panama, where she continues to live and work.

Ix Shells
Print

Mecha

Generative expressionism meets hyper-textured printmaking in a new series by Michael Kozlowski (mpkoz).Written entirely in GLSL and JavaScript, Mecha is centred on synthesised texture - procedurally, thematically and physically. It represents the final evolution of a photoreal painting algorithm mpkoz started developing two years ago.“The narrative behind Mecha is an exercise in maximalism. I wanted to push my technical skills, the complexity of the outputs, and the technology used to print them, to their limit.”In doing so, Mecha became a visual reflection of this process: a series of complex, tactile compositions each replicating physicality, consistency, light and shadow to an uncanny level. It is the first body of work that mpkoz has created in which the technical processes used to create the artwork directly influence the visual composition of the outputs.This narrative of maximalism extends into the printing process. The artist worked closely with the printmakers at Make-Ready in London for over a year, perfecting a cutting-edge technique to physically reproduce the simulated depth of Mecha’s outputs.Each artwork is printed with up to 31 layers of UV-cured ink on an aluminium plate – resulting in a variable build-up of texture, highlighting the level of detail present in the algorithmic outputs and bringing them to life in a way that simply isn’t possible on a digital display.

Mecha
Print

Guardian Lion

Emily Xie unpicks a rich tapestry of identity and heritage. In Guardian Lion, Xie finds new meanings for the Chinese 'foo dog' symbol. Traditionally found in pairs, the artist discovered her mother standing beside a single foo dog in an old photograph. Xie’s adaptation of this photograph explores the transformative power of traditional symbols in contemporary contexts. Her singular lion represents adaptation, evolution and the solitude of immigration. Xie utilises modern techniques such as digital collage, free-hand drawing and masking, enriched by algorithmic textures. The print process continues a textural dialogue between the past and present – gold foil is applied to the print as a nod towards traditional Chinese art, representing prosperity and fortune. 

Guardian Lion
Print

Sierra

Sierra carves a lone mountain from chance and serendipity.From thousands of generative outputs, Matt DesLauriers was struck by an artwork that broke the confines of his algorithm. Like a mountain reaching out from the landscape below, his code had arranged colours to cast an ‘alpenglow’. This optical phenomenon occurs when the sun dips below the horizon, bathing mountain peaks in a fiery glow.The dialogue of colour theory was pivotal in transforming the digital artwork into a print. The palette of DesLauriers’ algorithm, while striking in digital form, presented challenges for silkscreen printing. This led to a careful unravelling of the original RGB palette into CMYK components. 15 layers of ink flood a creamy off-white background, creating a textured depth reminiscent of a woodcut print. Finally, a layer of fluorescent ink is applied to the red and yellow areas, capturing the warm iridescent sheen of alpenglow.

Sierra
Print

Centrifuge

William Mapan pushes his algorithm beyond familiar confines with a new series of generative artworks.Centrifuge is a series of unique and tangible prints drawing inspiration from memory and nostalgia. Mapan’s experimental outputs are a display of kinetic movements linked to how ink moves upon paper. Coloured inks form a sequence of 35 distinct variations of colour and pattern, each unique output controlled by code. No detail is sacrificed in the transition from digital to physical, as Mapan invites us into a sensory world of rhythm and chance.“The work itself is more about experimentation as a whole. I know how code behaves, but wanted to explore the algorithm and how to go further. How can I have randomness in real life, and how can it make new textures?”

Centrifuge
Artist

Margo Wolowiec

Margo Wolowiec was born in 1985 in Detroit, Michigan, USA, where she continues to live and work.

Margo Wolowiec
Artist

DRIFT

Lonneke Gordijn (b. 1980, Alkmaar, Netherlands) and Ralph Nauta (b. 1978, Swindon, UK) met while studying at Design School Eindhoven and founded studio DRIFT in 2006. Their multidisciplinary, Amsterdam-based team now has more than 60 members.

DRIFT
Artist

Huma Bhabha

Huma Bhabha was born in 1962 in Karachi, Pakistan, and now lives and works in New York, USA.

Huma Bhabha

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Parra's studio, with Parra at the centre, his back to the camera as he works on the large painting takes centre stage, showing a faceless blue woman in a striped dress, painted in red, purple, blue and teal. The studio is full of brightly coloured paints, with a large window on the right and a patterned rug across the floor under the painting.