The Definitive Guide to Modern Generative Art by @ragnar_meta

This gallery is all about generative art and serves as a showcase for my personal collection. For people new to the genre, there's background information, thoughts on how to understand generative art, and plenty of 'grails' to enjoy. For experienced collectors, there are a few relatable stories and (hopefully!) several series you've never seen before and will want to collect.

Mostly, though, there's art. Lots of art.

So what is generative art? Generative art is, simply, art created by the partnership of an artist and a system. The artist sets up the system (in our case, programs a computer) - then releases the system to create the art autonomously.

It's a man/machine symbiosis.

Generative art has been around since the 1960s - but in this gallery I am going to focus on digital generative art stored on a blockchain, where the artist is a programmer, the system is a computer, and the art is stored as a digital token commonly called an NFT.

In this generative art the artist must program the computer to create something meaningful, beautiful, with an eye towards color, layout, form, light, etc ... but at the same time in the end give up control to the computer, allowing a set of variables and randomness to create the art, and hopefully the unexpected.

The beauty comes not only from the talent and knowledge of the artist but also in the system the artist programs to create the art. Generative art is about both the final content and an exploration of what the system can do.

Erik Snofro, Chromie Squiggle #2463

(Best viewed on a big screen. Don't use a phone.)

Be sure to also check out my Definitive Guide to AI Art