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jfarkas-cs214u-blog · 8 years ago

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Final Project!

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jfarkas-cs214u-blog · 8 years ago

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Frieder Nake

The field of computer science in the 1960s saw radical advancements in the way humans interfaced with computers. Most practically in 1968, Douglas Engelbart and his staff demonstrated the first interactive computer, introducing an astounding number of novel ideas to computer interactivity (7. Doug). Four years before this breakthrough, the German mathematician Frieder Nake started to experiment with how computers could express themselves visually (4. Wiki). Nake’s exploration into the branch of computer science known as “computer art”, using computers to aid human creativity, introduced a controversial use case for the computer and challenged artists to reevaluate what is considered art.

Around 1964, Nake began programming computers with the intention of generating aesthetically pleasing drawings. At the same time, two other pioneers, A. Michael Noll and Georg Nees, independently started on this journey (4. Wiki). Computers at this time were still incredibly large and expensive, so to use them for art instead of automation or war was perceived as being “irrational” (6. Note). Despite this sentiment, Nake produced nearly 400 works from 1964-1969, most of which were created using the Zuse Graphomat Z 64, a high precision plotter traditionally used for producing maps (1. Bio). Later, in 1995, this type of artwork would be defined as Algorithmic Art, and Frieder Nake would be categorized as an Algorist, a digital artist who employs algorithms and computers to create art (8. Algo).

Throughout the 1960s, Nake displayed his art in a number of art shows, most notably Cybernetic Serendipity in 1968, a landmark exhibition which eventually resulted in the formation of the Computer Arts Society (4. Wiki). His artwork explored a variety of mathematical operations, such as series, matrix multiplications, and sequential lines and rectangle (2. Art). Typically, his algorithms incorporated the use of random or pseudo randomly generated numbers with the intent of producing intricate and wondrous imagery (2. Art). At the time of this show, a vibrant community of likeminded individuals were using computers to generate drawings, produce musical notation and sound, react to light and sound in their environment, and even write poetry. Despite incredible progress of computer art, many still wondered “is it or is it not art?” (6. Note)

In 1972, two years after stating that he would no longer exhibit due to conflicting morals between his political views and producing art in an age of capitalism, Nake reflected on this question in a short note titled “There should be no computer art” for the Computer Arts Society’s bulletin. In it, he elucidates the idea that real artists have neither the financial opportunity nor the knowledge to use computers to create art (6. Note). Additionally, Nake states that art comes after the computer, and the computer is really the means by which an artist can manifest their expression. It should be a “tool in the investigation of visual (and other) aesthetic phenomena” (6. Note). A computer cannot produce art without a computer programmer. This note further fueled the fires of this already white-hot community.

Nake continued to influence the field of computer art by teaching and writing. Since 1972, he has taught interactive computer graphics and since 2005 he has taught digital media design (1. Bio). He has written over 300 publications exploring how humans use computers for creative pursuits (1. Bio). Additionally, he wrote Ästhetik als Informationsverarbeitung (1974), a book which boldly explored the relation between aesthetics and computing by attempting to algorithmically evaluate the aesthetic quality of an image using information theory, a novel and ambitious concept at the time (5. Book). Additionally, the book attempted to model the way the artist and the critic objectively viewed artwork (5. Book). As more data accumulates in today’s age, information aesthetics is a critical part in the process of representing that data in such a way that is both easily interpreted and visually pleasing.

Frieder Nake is a champion and pioneer of the underappreciated branch of computer science known as computer art. He showed the world algorithmic art twenty years before the term even existed. His exhibitions, writings, and teachings influenced generations of artists to utilize the computer as a medium, not just for digital imagery, but for production and expression of any artform.

Sources

1. Bio - http://dada.compart-bremen.de/item/agent/68 2. Art - http://dada.compart-bremen.de/browse/artwork 3. Video - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TV1iol35fHg 4. Wiki - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frieder_Nake 5. Book - http://dada.compart-bremen.de/item/publication/16 6. Note - http://www.bbk.ac.uk/hosted/cache/archive/PAGE/PAGE18.pdf 7. Doug - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Douglas_Engelbart 8. Algo - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Algorithmic_art

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jfarkas-cs214u-blog · 8 years ago

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Dijkstra’s Pathfinding Algorithm - The Mission

Nodes are represented by intersections of streets in The Mission. The thickness of the edge represents the difficulty of that path. Visualizes Dijkstra’s algorithm to find the fastest route between two user-selected nodes using only side streets, only main streets, or both.

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jfarkas-cs214u-blog · 8 years ago

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Dijkstra’s Pathfinding Algorithm - Mt. Kilimanjaro

Nodes are represented by vertices in the mesh of the mountain. Visualizes Dijkstra’s algorithm to find the fastest route to the top of the mountain.

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jfarkas-cs214u-blog · 8 years ago

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A* Star Pathfinding - A randomly generated grid of squares where black squares represent walls and white squares represent potential pathways. The green route represents the A* pathfinding algorithm from the top-left corner to the bottom-right corner.

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jfarkas-cs214u-blog · 8 years ago

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