skip to main content
10.1145/2019342.2019345acmconferencesArticle/Chapter ViewAbstractPublication PagessiggraphConference Proceedingsconference-collections
research-article

Art and code: the aesthetic legacy of Aldo Giorgini

Published: 07 August 2011 Publication History

Abstract

In 1975 Aldo Giorgini developed a software program in FORTRAN called FIELDS, a numerical visual laboratory devoted entirely to art production. Working extensively as both artist and scientist, Giorgini was one of the first computer artists to combine software writing with early printing technologies, leaving an aesthetic legacy in the field of the digital arts. His individual process was innovative in that it consisted of producing pen-plotted drawings embellished by the artist's hand with painting, drawing, and screen-printing. This paper is the product of a multi-year study of Giorgini's primary source materials provided by his estate. The authors examine the methods used by Giorgini during the 1970s that allowed him to create computer-aided art, in the hope that publishing this work will ensure that future generations of digital artists, technologists and scientists can be educated in Giorgini's contribution to the history of the digital arts.

Supplementary Material

MP4 File (ap004_11.mp4)

References

[1]
M. Giorgini, Aldo Giorgini: 1934--1994. Unpublished manuscript.
[2]
Faculty and Staff, Giorgini, Aldo Vertical File, Archives and Special Collections, Purdue Libraries. Accessed October 2009.
[3]
A. Burbano, "Between Punched Film Stock and the First Computers: The Work of Konrad Zuse" (2010).
[4]
P. Trachtman, "Charles Csuri Is an `Old Master' in a New Medium." Retrieved December 8, 2010 from www.siggraph.org/artdesign/profile/csuri/index.html.
[5]
C. Csuri, "Charles Csuri," Artist and Computer, R. Leavitt, ed. (New York: Creative Computing Press, 1976) 85--87.
[6]
A. Giorgini and W. C. Chen, Interfaces, Computer-aided Art: The Program FIELDS (West Lafayette, IN: School of Civil Engineering, Purdue University, 1974) 3.
[7]
Ibid., p. 4.
[8]
Ibid., p. 3.
[9]
C. Reas, C. McWilliams, and J. Barendse, Form and Code in Design, Art, and Architecture (New York: Princeton Architectural Press, 2010) 21.
[10]
C. Reas, "{Software} Structures" (2004). Retrieved December 8, 2010, from artport.whitney.org/commissions/softwarestructures/text.html.
[11]
G. Garrells, ed., Sol LeWitt: A Retrospective (London: Yale University Press, 2000).
[12]
A. Giorgini, "Computer Art Symposium at Purdue" {tape recording} (Lafayette, IN: Aldo Giorgini's personal collection, March 24, 1975).
[13]
A. Giorgini and W. C. Chen, Interfaces, Computer-aided Art: The Program FIELDS (West Lafayette, IN: School of Civil Engineering, Purdue University, 1974) 1.
[14]
Ibid., p. 5.
[15]
A. Giorgini, "Aldo Giorgini," Artist and Computer, R. Leavitt, ed. (New York: Creative Computing Press, 1976) 9--12.
[16]
A. Giorgini and W. C. Chen, Interfaces, Computer-aided Art: The Program FIELDS (West Lafayette, IN: School of Civil Engineering, Purdue University, 1974) 6.
[17]
Ibid., p. 2.
[18]
M. A. Giorgini, personal communication, October 23, 2010.
[19]
L. Livermore, "My Last Column for Maximum Rocknroll," Maximum Rocknroll, No. 133 (April 1994).
[20]
A. Giorgini and W. C. Chen, Interfaces, Computer-aided Art: The Program FIELDS (West Lafayette, IN: School of Civil Engineering, Purdue University, 1974) 4.

Recommendations

Comments

Information & Contributors

Information

Published In

cover image ACM Conferences
SIGGRAPH '11: ACM SIGGRAPH 2011 Art Gallery
August 2011
101 pages
ISBN:9781450309646
DOI:10.1145/2019342
Permission to make digital or hard copies of all or part of this work for personal or classroom use is granted without fee provided that copies are not made or distributed for profit or commercial advantage and that copies bear this notice and the full citation on the first page. Copyrights for components of this work owned by others than ACM must be honored. Abstracting with credit is permitted. To copy otherwise, or republish, to post on servers or to redistribute to lists, requires prior specific permission and/or a fee. Request permissions from [email protected]

Sponsors

Publisher

Association for Computing Machinery

New York, NY, United States

Publication History

Published: 07 August 2011

Permissions

Request permissions for this article.

Check for updates

Qualifiers

  • Research-article

Conference

SIGGRAPH '11
Sponsor:

Acceptance Rates

Overall Acceptance Rate 1,822 of 8,601 submissions, 21%

Contributors

Other Metrics

Bibliometrics & Citations

Bibliometrics

Article Metrics

  • 0
    Total Citations
  • 287
    Total Downloads
  • Downloads (Last 12 months)8
  • Downloads (Last 6 weeks)2
Reflects downloads up to 12 Jan 2025

Other Metrics

Citations

View Options

Login options

View options

PDF

View or Download as a PDF file.

PDF

eReader

View online with eReader.

eReader

Media

Figures

Other

Tables

Share

Share

Share this Publication link

Share on social media