Course Overview
Description
This junior level course allows students to explore code as art in an advanced setting; students are expected to create complex work using various generative techniques and principles. Students will experiment with algorithmic techniques throughout the semester, and complete the course with a larger work or series of works.
Technology
We will be using Processing for most of the semester, but we will also look at other examples of generative work created with C#, Flash/ActionScript, and other languages. For the thesis project students are encouraged to use the language/environment they feel most comfortable with.
Texts
Required
Processing: A Programming Handbook for Visual Designers and Artists by Casey Reas and Ben Fry (ISBN-10: 0262182629, ISBN-13: 978-0262182621).Recommended
Processing: Creative Coding and Computational Art by Ira Greenberg (ISBN-10: 159059617X, ISBN-13: 978-1590596173).More recommended texts in the Readings section.
Course Schedule
Grades
Grade Breakdown
Grade information will be posted before the course begins.Class Portfolio
Thesis Project
Assignments
Readings
Weekly
- TBA
- TBA
- TBA
- TBA
- TBA
- TBA
- TBA
- TBA
- TBA
- TBA
Recommended Texts
Processing- Processing: Creative Coding and Computational Art by Ira Greenberg, ISBN-10: 159059617X, ISBN-13: 978-1590596173
- Visualizing Data by Ben Fry, ISBN-10: 0596514557, ISBN-13: 978-0596514556
- Making Things Talk by Tom Igoe, ISBN-10: 0596510519, ISBN-13: 978-0596510510
- Godel, Escher, Bach: An Eternal Golden Braid, Douglas R. Hofstadter, Basic Books, ISBN: 0465026567
- Code Complete, 2nd Edition, Steve McConnell, Microsoft Press, 2004, ISBN: 0735619670
- African Fractals: Modern Computing and Indigenous Design, Ron Eglash, Rutgers University Press, 2002, ISBN: 0813526140
- The Pragmatic Programmer, Andrew Hunt and David Thomas, Addison-Wesley, 2000, ISBN: 020161622x
- The Timeless Way of Building, Christopher Alexander, New York: Oxford, 1979
- A Pattern Language, Christopher Alexander, et. al., New York: Oxford, 1977
- The Parts of Animals, Aristotle
- Critique of Pure Reason, Immanuel Kant
- The Categories and On Interpretation, Aristotle
- Object-Oriented Analysis and Design with Applications (3rd Edition), Grady Booch, et.al.
- Programming C#: Building .NET Applications with C# by Jesse Liberty
- Windows Forms in Action by Erik Brown
- C# Cookbook 2nd Edition by Stephen Teilhet & Jay Hilyard
- Professional C# 2005 by Simon Robinson, et. al. (This is an older version)
- Head First Design Patterns, Freeman and Freeman, 2004, ISBN: 0596007124
- Design Patterns, Gamma, et. al., Addison Wesley, 1995, ISBN: 0201633612
- UML 2.0 in a Nutshell by Dan Pilone, Neil Pitman
- Learning UML 2.0 by Russell Miles, Kim Hamilton
- Introduction to Algorithms, 2nd Edition by Thomas H. Cormen, CHarles E. Leiserson, Donald L. Rivest and Clifford Stein
- Algorithms by Richard Johnsonbaugh and Marcus Schaefer
Resources
Overview
Note: Some of these artists have released their code as open-source.
- Generative art (Wikipedia)
- Algorithmic Art by Roman Verostko
- The Algorithmic Revolution - Heavy machinery and abstract art in a new context at ZKM
- Processing An open-source free language and environment - download at processing.org.
- StarLogo (and OpenStarLogo)
- StarLogo TNG
- NetLogo
- Eclipse
- Context Free (C++)
- Structure Synth (3D, C++)
- Flash
Note: Some of these artists have released their code as open-source.
- Processing projects (exhibition/links)
- Open Processing and Open Visuals
- Jared Tarbell
- Harold Cohen
- John Maeda
- Casey Reas
- Ben Fry
- Roman Verostko
- Jean-Pierre H้bert
- George Legrady
- Lillian Schwartz
- Mary Flanagan
- Mark Napier
- Manny Tan
- Marius Watz
- Keith Peters (Flash)
- John Whitney
- Larry Cuba
- Joshua Davis (Flash)
- Keith Peters (Flash)
- Erik Natzke (Flash)
- Art from code - Generator.x (conference and exhibition)
- Generative artworks links (generative.net)
- Algorithmic artworks links (George Legrady)
- Processing: Creative Coding and Computational Art by Ira Greenberg, Chapter 9: Shapes
- Processing: Creative Coding and Computational Art by Ira Greenberg, Chapter 14: 3D Rendering in Java Mode
- Processing: Creative Coding and Computational Art by Ira Greenberg, Appendix C: Integrating Processing within Java
- The Algorithmic Beauty of Plants (PDF)
- The Laws of Simplicity
- Bomomo
- SCIgen - An Automatic CS Paper Generator
