Computers and the visual arts

A L T H O U G H T H E R E IS M U C H INTEREST in applying the computer to various areas of the visual arts, few real accomplishments have been recorded so far. Two of the causes for this lack of progress are technical difficulty of processing two-dimensional images and the complexity and expense of the equipmen:t and the software. Still, the current explosive growth in computer graphics and automatic picture processing technology are likely to have dramatic effects in this area in the next few years. In contrast to music, pictures are easier to generate (on inexpensive plotters, for example) than to analyze. About a dozen exhibits of "computer art" have been already held, produced mainly as a hobby. (See Bibliography, CHum, I. [1967], 154-156.) Michael Noll pioneered with twoand three-dimensional computer-generated movies. His variations on Piet Mondrian's "Composition with Lines" created quite a stir. Maugham Mason produced fascinating Moire-like patterns on an analogue computer. Frieder Nake and Georg Nees in Germany generated many interesting random abstract designs. Jack Citron's work (see CHum, I [1967], 223) is representative of the computer art generated by mathematical formulae. Charles Csuri (ibid., pp. 240-241) introduced representational art, such as his "Metamorphosis," in which the face of a young woman dissolves gradually and is transformed in,to the face of an old woman. Leslie Mezei 0bid., p. 240) has been using Canadian national symbols such as the maple leaf and the beaver for studies in "controlled randomness" in art. H. P. Peterson's "Digital Mona Lisa" graces many a wall in the computer industry. The painting was scanned and transformed into digits by a computer and plotted by a mechanical plotter. A major international exhibit entitled "Cybernetic Serendipity" is being prepared by The Institute of Contemporary Art in London for 1968. Interactive design systems with graphic consoles including a display tube and "light pen" are becoming more common; so far they are mainly used in engineering design. Some work is being done in textile design, and pa~tern grading of clothing is in actual production. A recent survey by the Association of Collegi~ate Schools of Architecture shows that many schools teach programming but the visual design work in architecture is not yet being assisted by computer graphics anywhere. The Association for Computing Machinery now has a Special Interest Committee on Civil Engineering, Architecture and Planning.