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May 4 16 tweets 6 min read
A quick thread about Robert Mallary, the artist who wrote with the help of his son an algorithm to create the very first computer-generated physical sculpture in 1968. Read on to discover more:
Robert Mallary (1917 - 1997) was an American abstractionist and a true pioneer in computer generative art. Famous for his work with found objects and resin, he was well known for his "junk art," also sometimes referred to as "Neo-Dada."
While Ben Laposky was working on his epic collection called "Oscillons" in 1953, Robert Mallary released in 1951 his series called "Luminous Mobiles." As much as there's a resemblance between the two, it's essential to note that Mallary was not using only analog materials.
From 1968 we can consider Robert Mallary as becoming a "computer artist" when his computer-generated sculpture using Fortran on Amherst's IBM 1130 and called "Quad 1" was displayed in the legendary exhibition called "Cybernetic Serendipity" in London.
Georg Nees, started to work on his "computer sculptures" as early as 1965, but his work was only displayed in 1969 at the Nuremberg Biennale hence the assumption that Mallary was most likely the first to create a computer-generated sculpture.
Like François Morellet or Sol Lewitt, Robert Mallary had a systemic approach to his creative process. His approach was also unique as it was deeply rooted in Shannon's information theory. He described his practice as "transductive art" as it was based on systems of relationships.
During his entire career, Mallary was always ahead of his time. He worked on a virtual reality system as early as 1992 with the 'Cave Automatic Virtual Environment' system developed in the laboratories of the University of Illinois.
One of my favorite quotes from Mallary is from 1968 when he declared "Sculpture has always reflected the technology of the time". If you think about it, 3D printing is indeed a good representation of the current state of our mainstream technological evolution.
Beyond his immense artistic legacy, Mallary was also an astute theorist and a great teacher. He taught non-stop for more than 48 years and finished his career at the University of Massachusetts.
To illustrate his engagement with his students, when he saw their frustration because of hand-punched cards he built himself in 1978 a software libraries using Fortran so they could have an "easier" experience learning computer graphics (how lucky we are today with p5js).
Robert Mallary's artwork has been exhibited in some of the most prestigious museums in the world. His immense contribution is being slowly discovered, for example, "Quad III" was acquired by the Tate in 2019
If you're curious about other pioneers of computer generative art you may find these threads interesting:

Joan Shogren:

Charles Csuri:

Attila Kovacs:
I love computer generative art and as an artist I believe it's important to share the history of the pioneers of our movement. They've been through the hardships of radical innovation so we can have a much easier time right now. I hope you enjoyed these threads!

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More from @Eko3316

Apr 16
1/ A quick thread about Joan Shogren, the secretary who convinced Chemists to create the very first algorithm to generate computer generative art.
2/ Joan Shogren (1932-2020) was a true pioneer in computer generative art. As soon as 1963, she believed computers should be able to create artworks if they were given "rules of art."
3/ Five years before Sol Lewitt and his "Wall drawing" Joan convinced a potential graduate student called Jim Larsen and Dr. Ralph Fessenden an assistant of chemistry, to convert her instructions into a computer program.
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Mar 24
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(🚨) A 30-second summary about Sonia Delaunay, a pioneer of abstraction and an endless source of inspiration for computer generative artists, a thread: 🧵🖖👇 Image
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Dec 27, 2021
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Dec 23, 2021
(🚨)A 30 seconds summary of computer and generative art pioneer Michael Noll, a quick thread:🧵🖖👇 Image
Michael Noll, born in 1939, was an engineer and professor emeritus at the University of Southern California. He is the author of the first computer artwork (1963). This world's first computer art creation was called "Gaussian-Quadratic." Image
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Dec 12, 2021
(🚨) 7 things you may not know about Desmond Paul Henry, one of the first computer art pioneers. A thread: 🧵👇🖖 Image
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During his career, he built five drawing machines; Three of them were built using bombsight analog computers spare parts—the last two used photochemical techniques. Image
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