But I will try again now.
Ant[i] Design Workshop
Before I started this workshop, I had quite a complex idea of what generative design was. When I was first asked to give a definition of it, my mind got filled up with unfamiliar notions of coding, mathematical equations and other technological amenities. I ended up admitting that generative design was something I was not able to explain to my mum, the truth being that it was actually something I wasn’t quite able to explain even to myself. So to make my mind up, I had a look at a quote by Celestino Soddu. Who better than a distinguished generative design professor, right? His definition sounded as the following: “Generative Design is a morphogenetic process using algorithms structured as not-linear systems for endless unique and un-repeatable results performed by an ideacode, as in Nature�. 3
Now, that wasn’t really helpful, was it? It wasn’t that much clear to me, and I am pretty sure it wouldn’t be much clear to my mum either. It all sounded far more complicated than it actually is. Yes, Generative Design can involve complex algorithms and sofisticated softwares. But what I have learned so far from this workshop is that – surprisingly enough – it can also be extremely simple and rudimental. Generative Design always comes with surprise. That is one of its most important features – to me, at least. It is a journey with an unknown destination. You are free to choose which equipment to carry and what path to follow, but you’ll never know where you will end up. And as with all unexpected outcomes, in the end you can be satisfied or not, but it’s a thrill, and it’s exciting. Generative Design doesn’t necessarily require great programming expertise. It can also be handmade, even artigianal to some extent. It is like trying a new recipe for the first time: you don’t know how it is going to taste, you can only trust the quality of your ingredients 4
and the accuracy of the process. And sometimes the most exquisite dishes come from the most basic formulas. Generative Design can be a single-player game or a team experience. Making other people collaborate makes the number of variables grow. The more it is unpredictable, the more staggering the result is. Considering all this, I think I could provide now, after all, a better definition of what Generative Design is. Not better than Soddu’s perhaps, but surely better than the one I first came up with: Generative Design is the design of a process, a detailed set of instructions (performed alone or collectively), which leads to an unpredictable outcome. This little book contains a series of generative experiments carried out throughout this twoweeks workshop. As you will see, the majority of them are extremely basic, yet they all end up with very unpredictable results. These are just a few examples, but the type of examples I am pretty sure everyone’s mum could understand. And maybe even play out. 5
Ant[i] Design Workshop
Brief 1
7
Materials
A complete UK Lottery ticket. A supply of black and white paper, prepared as indicated below. Traditional design craft tools: pens, scalpes, glue, rulers, set squares and cutting mats. A camera.
Preparation On white paper trimmed exactly to 210×210mm, construct a keyline grid of 7×7 squares, each 30×30mm.
8
Make at least 36 210×210 mm master grid squares (or use one as a template or guide).
Make a large quantity of 30×30mm squares of black paper – you will not need more than 280.
9
10
Process A
Compose black squares on a white grid template, with the number of black squares corresponding to the lowest number on your lottery ticket. When you have completed this, repeat the procedure with the next number in sequence and so on, producing a set of six compositions in total. You are required to undertake this procedure six times following the conditions below.
11
Set 1: System Achieve perfect mirror simmetry throughout in the vertical axis.
(one)
12
(six)
14
(seven)
16
(twenty-one)
18
(twenty-three)
20
(fourty-six)
22
Set 2: Chance Distribute the black squares randomly. Avoid choice and don’t throw them.
(one)
24
(six)
26
(seven)
28
(twenty-one)
30
(twenty-three)
32
(fourty-six)
34
Set 3: Progression Use a consistent accumulative numerical rule throughout. If black squares touch, connect edges before corners.
(one)
36
(six)
38
(seven)
40
(twenty-one)
42
(twenty-three)
44
(fourty-six)
46
Set 4: Collaboration Write your own rules and verbally instruct a non-participant to produce a set of designs. [progression + translation]
(one)
48
(six)
50
(seven)
52
(twenty-one)
54
(twenty-three)
56
(fourty-six)
58
Set 5: Diagonal Starting at the bottom left hand square, place black squares so that they are connected to form diagonal stacks.
(one)
60
(six)
62
(seven)
64
(twenty-one)
66
(twenty-three)
68
(fourty-six)
70
Set 6: Spread Distribute the black squares as regularly, evenly and broadly as you can across each white template.
(one)
72
(six)
74
(seven)
76
(twenty-one)
78
(twenty-three)
80
(fourty-six)
82
Process B
Connect your six sets of six compositions in linear sequences, from the lowest number to the highest, paying attention to the orientation of the squares, without intervals between sections. Make sure that you are doing the same as your peers. This will result in six outputs 210Ă—1260mm per participant.
Note: Set 1 and 5 panels must align with each other vertically. Set 3 and 6 panels must align in a consistent progression. Sets 2 and 4 can align in any way you choose.
84
85
86
Working as a group, connect these final outputs to make six rectangles, one for each set. To do so, place your outputs in the same order (on the floor), starting with the participant who has the lowest number and ending with the person with the highest.
87
88
89
Generative Identity
Landor City of Melbourne Generative brand identity for the city of Melbourne. “The challenge was to reflect City of Melbourne’s cool sophistication on the world stage, capture the passion of its people, and provide the city with a unified, flexible, and futurefocused image. 91
“The new identity needed to overcome political complexities, improve the costeffectiveness of managing the brand, and unite the disparate range of entities [...]� [airportcolours.tumblr. com/post/22825420 836/beautiful-brandidentity-work-fromlandor-city]
92
Stefen Sagmeister Casa da música “This is a comprehensive identity for Casa da Musica, the Rem Kohlhaas designed music center in the harbor town of Porto in Portugal. Our initial desire to design an identity without featuring the building proofed impossible because as we studied the structure, we realized that the building itself is a logo. Kohlhaas
calls this ‘the organization of issues of symbolism’. Really. But we did try to avoid another rendering of a building by developing a system where this recognizable, unique, modern form transforms itself like a chameleon from application to application, changes from media to media where the physical building itself is the ultimate (very high-res) rendering in a long line of logos.”
93
“Our goal was to show the many different kinds of music performed in one house. Depending on the music it is filled with the house changes its character and works dice-like by displaying different views and facets of music.� [sagmeister.com/ node/192]
94
Field Aol Identity "Field created a series of generative animations for the much-anticipated rebranding of Aol in December 2009. The most astounding fluids splash around
in soapy, oily, icecream or ocean-like colour palettes in these 8, only seconds long animations; revealing the white on white logo from behind." [field.io/project/ liquids#/0]
95
96
Ant[i] Design Workshop
Brief 2
97
Process C
1 Select You will select a card providing a basic costraint which you will use to generate forms for the next stage of the project, still working with the six numbers on your lottery ticket. The question you are seeking to answer is: how can I apply a generative method to my six numbers using the condition selected? You should establish processes which will describe the differences in your numbers with as little personal, local intervention as possible.
2 Plan Make rough plans or prototypes for what you will do. 3 Prescribe Write draft outline instructions for the work you will undertake. These can be very simple but should avoid any assumptions, omissions or errors. It may help you to approach the task as if you were writing a recipe, asking someone to play a game or to play a piece of music. The key is to construct rules and conditions which can be applicable to different subjects or
circumstances. Like a song or recipe, they should be repeatable and should accommodate variable inputs. 4 Test Carry out the planned work on Day 3 and 4. 5 Retest Observe any disparities between the output and its prescription and read it in more detail, correcting any errors or assumptions in the rules or instructions. Repeat the procedure if necessary. Read the recipe. Change ingredients and processes if it improves the output.
99
Filter/Translation
This is a generative experiment about filter and translation through numbers, memory, time and drawing. It is also collaborative, and it is meant to be carried out with the help of a chain of people. Our memory often acts like a filter. When we hear a story and we are asked to repeat it, our brain selects only the information which have been recorded in our memory. The mechanism of the experiment works like the chinese whisperers game, with only one difference: the information is not whispered but drawn, each person being the filter and the translator for the next one.
101
Materials
Six numbers; Six people; One stopwatch; One notebook; One pen.
Preparation A
2 Take a white notebook and make a drawing on the first page. The drawing should be as detailed as you can, but should not take you too long.
seconds, which will correspond to the highest number you have chosen (for example, 49 seconds). Then ask him/her to turn the page and draw what he /she remembers, trying to be as carefull as possible.
3 Ask someone to look carefully at your drawing for some
4 Repeat the whole procedure asking another person to look
1 Choose six numbers from 1 to 49.
102
at the second drawing, this time for as many seconds as your second-highest number. 5 Repeat for each of your six numbers. 6 Compare the first and the last drawing to see how much they differ.
Original
103
46'' Daniel
105
23'' Tom
107
21'' Santiago
109
7'' Raechel
111
6'' Elloise
113
1'' Abbey
115
Preparation B
1 Choose six numbers from 1 to 49. 2 Choose a random sentence between 15 and 20 words long. It can be extracted from whatever source you prefer (newspaper, books, websites etc.). Write it down on a white notebook. 3 Ask someone to read carefully your sentence
for some seconds, which will correspond to the highest number you have chosen (for example, 49 seconds). Then ask him/her to turn the page and write down what he / she remembers, trying to be as carefull as possible. 4 Repeat the whole procedure asking another person to look
at the second sentence, this time for as many seconds as your second-highest number. 5 Repeat for each of your six numbers. 6 Compare the first and the last sentence to see how much they differ.
117
Original
I am an optimist. It does not seem too much use being anything else.
119
46'' Joao P.
I am an optimist I doesn’t seem use anything to me
121
23'' Joao
I am an optimist I doesn’t seem anything to me
123
21'' Maria
I am an optimist It doesn’t seem anything to me
125
7'' Elisabetta
I am an optimist It doesn’t seems no anything for me
127
6'' Shahane
I am an optomist It doesn’t seems no “anything to me”
129
1'' Thomas
I am an optomist It doesn’t seem anyone else
131
An experiment about memory as a filter
Femke Van Wijk Newspapers memories A reflection on the medium ‘newspaper’. This newspaper shows the memory of 16 different people who read the frontpage of de Volkskrant in 5 minutes. [femkevanwijk.nl] 133
Conditional Design Conditional Design is a project by Luna Maurer, Edo Paulus, Jonathan Puckey, Roel Wouters. Their aim is to investigate new forms of human interaction through design, highlighting the
Conditioning each other: Collaborative Design
134
dynamism and constant change which underpins our everyday life. “Our work focuses on processes rather than products: things that adapt to their environment, emphasize change and show difference.� [conditionaldesign.org/]
135
Daniel Eatock Line Navigation Time Trial Challenge "Normally the easel holds the paper and the artist holds the pen. For the Line Navigation Time Trial Challenge it’s the other
136
way round. The artist holds the paper, and an easel holds the pen (fixed horizontally at waist height). For this challenge, two participants stand facing each other. One holds a board with a printed sheet
on the reverse pressed up against the nib of the pen. The other gives directions as to how to move the board in order to draw a line through five circles printed on the page." [eatock.com]
Ant[i] Design Workshop
Brief 3
137
Process D
1 Work in team of two people. 2 Go to Flickr. Find the scan of Ernst Heinrich Haeckel’s Artforms in Nature (Kunstformen der Nature, 1904) http://www.flickr. com/photos/origomi/ sets/72157601323 433758 3 Select one page 4 Print out the page 5 Cut the page in half
138
6 Cut the halves in half 7 Repeat the process as many times as you like 8 You now have an unplanned collection of graphic elements. Using considered judgment, select four elements as the forms you will use in the workshop. You are required to use all four of these elements and you can’t use anything else.
139
140
141
142
143
Materials
One picture of http://www.flckr.com/photos/ origomi/sets.72157601323433758/ Adobe Photoshop; Adobe Illustrator.
Preparation
1 Go to FlickR. Find the scan of Ernst Heinrich Haeckel’s Artforms in Nature (Kunstformen der Natur, 1904) http://www.flckr.com /photos/origomi/sets. 72157601323433 758/
8 Cut the slice horizontally into four equal parts
11 Copy and mirror the stripe on the vertical axis
9 Re-combine the 4 parts vertically in every way possible creating a jpg file for each combination. Save every combination as an different file.
12 Group the two simmetrical stripes
The combinations are:
14 Select all and apply multiply filter
13 Copy and rotate the pair of stripes by 4° until you return to the initial position
2 Select one page 3 Cut the page vertically in half 4 Cut the halves vertically in half 5 Repeat this for 3 times
1234, 1243, 1324, 1342, 1423, 1432, 2134, 2143, 2314, 2341, 2413, 2431, 3124, 3142, 3214, 3241, 3412, 3421, 4123, 4132, 4213, 4231, 4312, 4321
6 Choose a slice 7 Open the picture in Adobe Photoshop
144
10 Open the re-combined stripe in Adobe Illustrator
15 Save
145
146
147
148
149
150
151
152
153
154
155
156
Generative painting
Michael Kosmicki Faber Covers Using a logarithm from Ted Davis, Michael Kosmicki created this set of stunning covers for Faber & Faber. [rulesbased.wordpress. com/2009/10/10/ faber-covers/]
157
Ted Davis Text2Image "Text2Image is an online tool that does exactly what the name describes, but in a different way than one might expect. Rather than creating a typographic based 158
image of the text submitted, Text2Imagerenders an abstract image that is the translation of the given input. The results remain consistent for any particular entry, however will vary greatly through textual change. Within the
realms of data visualization + digital/ glitch aesthetics, Text2Image explores an alternative way to create images and analyze texts." [teddavis.org]
Field Digital Painting "10,000 unique digital paintings, created for paper manufacturer GFSmith’ latest Print Test brochure." 159
160
161
"Each sleeve features a different view on a hypercomplex sculpture, generated through a process combining generative coding with creative intuition." [field.io/project/ digitalpaintings] 162
Ant[i] Design Workshop Martina Casonato LCC/MAGD 2012