Image Processing Reference
In-Depth Information
Chapter 13
Interactive Cellular Automata Systems
forCreativeProjects
Angus Graeme Forbes
Abstract. The use of cellular automata as a mechanism for generating captivating
and unpredictable creative output has been explored by artists and composers since
the introduction of the “Game of Life” by the mathematician John Conway and its
subsequent popularization via the writings of Martin Gardner. This chapter surveys
notable creative projects that incorporate cellular automata systems in order to gen-
erate new aesthetic possibilities. In particular, it describes a recent project, Fluid
Automata , that utilizes a cellular automata system to create fluid simulations and to
enable a range of expressivity in different interactive environments.
13.1
Creative Projects Based on Cellular Automata Systems
Cellular automata (hereafter, CA) systems have been used as a mechanism for gen-
erating creative output by artists and researchers since the introduction of the “Game
of Life” by the mathematician John Conway and its subsequent popularization via
the writings of Martin Gardner [33]. These include practitioners in a wide range of
fields, such as musical composition [7, 15, 20], urban design [58], cognitive sci-
ence [66], video game programming [3, 5], and media arts [12, 24, 41].
A rich tradition of using algorithms to generate creative content exists in both
music composition and the visual arts. For instance, artists such as Duchamp and
writers and artists of the Ouilpo movement placed constraints on their art-making
process in order to generate more focused possibilities from a reduced set of choices
[17, 43]. The artist Sol LeWitt created algorithmically inspired instructions for the
creation of his paintings [39]. Composers from Mozart to John Cage have used
randomness as a generator of musical themes [49]. More recently, 20th-century
composers, including Xenakis, have developed complex algorithmic compositional
systems that guided the creation of their musical scores [67].
Angus Graeme Forbes
University of Arizona, USA
e-mail: angus.forbes@gmail.com
http://angusforbes.com, http://creativecodinglab.com
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