[NDCOslo2024] The History of Computer Art – Anders Norås
In the incandescent interstice of innovation and imagination, where algorithms awaken aesthetics, Anders Norås, a Norwegian designer and digital dreamer, traces the tantalizing trajectory of computer-generated creativity. From 1960s Silicon Valley’s psychedelic pixels to 2020s generative galleries, Anders animates an anthology of artistic audacity, where hackers harnessed harmonics and hobbyists honed holograms. His odyssey, opulent with optical illusions and ontological inquiries, unveils code as canvas, querying: when does datum dance into divinity?
Anders ambles from Bay Area’s beatnik bytes—LSD-laced labs birthing bitmap beauties—to 1970s fine artists’ foray into fractals. Vera Molnar’s algorithmic abstractions, Molnar’s mechanical marks, meld math with muse, manifesting minimalism’s machine-made magic.
Psychedelic Pixels: 1960s’ Subcultural Sparks
San Francisco’s hacker havens hummed with hallucinatory hacks: Ken Knowlton’s BEFLIX begat filmic fractals, A. Michael Noll’s noisy nudes nodded to neo-classics. Anders accentuates the alchemy: computers as collaborators, conjuring compositions that captivated cognoscenti.
Algorithmic Abstractions: 1970s’ Fine Art Fusion
Fine artists forayed into flux: Frieder Nake’s generative geometries, Georg Nees’s nested nests—exhibitions eclipsed elites, etching electronics into etudes. Harold Cohen’s AARON, an autonomous auteur, authored arabesques, blurring brushes and binaries.
Rebellious Renderings: 1980s’ Demoscene Dynamism
Demoscene’s defiant demos dazzled: Future Crew’s trance tunnels, Razor 1911’s ray-traced reveries—amateurs authored epics on 8-bits, echoing graffiti’s guerrilla glee. Anders applauds the anarchy: code as contraband, creativity’s clandestine cabal.
Digital Diaspora: Internet’s Infinite Installations
Web’s weave widened worlds: JODI’s jetset glitches, Rafael Lozano-Hemmer’s responsive realms—browsers birthed boundless biennales. Printouts prized: AARON auctions at astronomic asks, affirming artifacts’ allure.
Generative Galas: GenAI’s Grand Gesture
Anders assays AI’s ascent: Midjourney’s mirages, DALL-E’s dreams—yet decries detachment, Dolly’s depthless depictions devoid of dialogue. Jeff Wall’s “A Sudden Gust of Wind” juxtaposed: human heft versus heuristic haze, where context conceals critique.
Anders’s axiom: art awakens awareness—ideas ignite, irrespective of instrument. His entreaty: etch eternally, hand hewn, honoring humanity’s hallowed hue.