Generative Artists

People & Resources: Algorithmic/Generative Arts

Here is a partial list of algorithmic and generative artists. Many of the first generation of computer artists worked in this way.

Generative Artists – 1st Generation (active since late 1960s)

• Charles Csuri (*1922) [i]
• Herbert W. Franke (*1927)
• Jean-Pierre Hébert (*1939)
• Manfred Mohr (*1938)
• Vera Molnar (*1924)
• Frieder Nake (*1938)
• Georg Nees (*1926)
• A. Michael Noll (*1939)
• Lillian Schwartz (*1927)
• Roman Verostko (*1929)
• Edward Zajec (*1938)

Generative Artists – 2nd Generation (active since early ’80s)

• Karl Sims (*1962)
• William Latham (*1961)
• Mark Wilson (*1943)

Generative Artists – 3rd Generation (active since late 1990s)

• Robert Hodgin / Flight404 [Flickr][Vimeo][Site]
• Leander Herzog [Flickr][Vimeo]
• Marius Watz [Flickr][Vimeo][Site]
• Karsten Schmidt / Toxi [Flickr][Vimeo][Site]
• Lia [Flickr][Vimeo][Site]
• Tina Frank [Vimeo][Site]
• Aaron Koblin [Vimeo][Site]
• Erik Natzke [Flickr][Vimeo]
• Memo Akten [Vimeo][Site]
• Jared Tarbell [Flickr][Site]
• Mario Klingemann / Quasimondo [Flickr][Site]
• Mitchell Whitelaw [Site]

Historic & Contemporary Resources 

• Ruth Leavitt’s 1975 book Artist and Computer, now online, is an excellent snapshot of computer/algorithmic/generartive arts from ~1965-1975.
• The Digital Art Museum [DAM] in Berlin has an excellent overview of historic works.
• The GeneratorX blog, maintained by Marius Watz, is a comprehensive gateway to contemporary practice in this area.
• Casey Reas has created a marvellous exploration of Software Structures at Whitney Artport.
• A fantastic web site of Generative Art Links by Mikael Hvidtfeldt Christensen.
• The ReCode Project invites people to port older works into new languages.