Procedural Drawings

Exhibited as part of EXPANDED.ART Gallery’s 'THE PATH TO THE PRESENT, 1954–2024' satellite exhibition, taking place on the occasion of the Generative Art Summit Berlin, 2024

Exhibition View, EXPANDED.ART Gallery, Berlin, 2024

Procedural Drawings are made of consistent structures, where each piece is part of a larger cluster of works, with similar image architecture, same resolution and pen width, with varying constellations of color palettes: each piece is monochrome, so the quality and density of the lines are the elements that create the dramaturgy over the scenes.

The drawings

The images of Procedural Drawings are the outcomes of operations where a system begins to rearrange an initial field of evenly distributed, parallel lines. The resulting wrinkles, repetitions, and overlapping forms produce organic patterns on one hand, while preserving the raw, machine-like line structures of the computer on the other. The shapes are then converted into vector line segments in order to be able to trace out with a plotter machine through a contemplative procedure that might take several hours. The transformations are irreversible, moving from order towards disorder, thereby increasing the level of entropy within the system.

Artwork #001 & #003 of the series

There is a natural shift from order to disorder, reflecting impermanence, chaos, and the passage of time. The artworks depict decay and transformation using algorithmic procedures that wear and change, that might resemble rusting metals or melting ice. Entropy also serves as a metaphor for ecological and societal issues, that might be associated with the inevitable transformation of all things.

The series consist of three different ink and paper color variants. The grey paper with black ink resembles a more traditional graphic appearance that might recall classical etching, mechanical sketches, typewriter drawings or architectural plans. The black paper with silver ink is a bit more immersive which brings forward chalk drawings, embroidery, circuit board layouts, but also reflects on the aforementioned temporary compositional structures like kolams, rangolis, yantras and other shapes of ritual geometries. The last variation is using blue paper which color is derived from the third channel of the RGB computer screen. This is the color of in-between states in the digital bardo. You usually see blue when an operating system crashes or an imaging device has no input signal.

Negative Space

There is a common element that takes an essential organising agency within all the drawings: empty space, or negative space (Japanese ma, 間, lit. 'gap, space, pause'). By applying a shape mask on the edges of the compositions, the lines in the foreground become entangled with the empty void of the background. Varying sizes of empty spots are reframing the overall structure of the image field, which adds a vivid and delightful visual rhythm to the composition. In modern interpretations of ma, it is often taken to refer to an artistic interpretation of the empty space, often holding as much importance as the rest of an artwork and focusing the viewer on the intention of negative space in an art piece. Though commonly used to refer to literal, visible negative space, ma may also refer to the perception of a space, gap or interval, without necessarily requiring a physical compositional element.

"The aura of the machine" - interview on the process by Anika Meier

Time

During my walks outside of the studio, I often think of these drawings as async in their nature. This would mean they have a special relationship with time. As opposed to regular, realtime digital media where the code you write immediately appears on the screen in sync with your intention, in the case of plotter drawings, you have to wait for the initial idea to take its final form. While evaluating the rules and unfolding the vectors that are encoded in the file using a slowly moving, contemplative machine you have time to observe the details and engage in a deeper conversation with the work itself.

Plotting process interface

This rhythmic pattern of creation also effects the curation process - there are many qualities and nuances that must be present in a work to have it selected to plot and sacrifice time, material and energy upon its making. The process of working with a slow, async apparatus can sometimes shift out from the mindset of measured time into one of unmeasured time. This often involves stepping out of time itself which can include periods of very purposeful, intuitive contemplations beyond the artwork. It is a unique mode of temporality, decoupled from the normal attachment to time, the opposite of being busy. This transition of shifting in time isn’t about moving around the blocks on your calendar — it’s about learning how to shift between different rhythms of temporality.

View all artworks at the gallery website. Special thanks to Anika Meier for the curation and for making the exhibition and the summit possible. There is also an interview on the in-depth process behind the making of the images that you can read here.