Looking Outwards 06: Randomness

Self-Dividing Line, J. Tarbell, 2003
http://www.complexification.net/gallery/machines/selfdividingline/

This project constructs unique works by recursively dividing initially defined lines. With each subdivision, the algorithm randomizes where the line will fold in and divide. As the line divides, the system tracks this by adding a level of depth and value with each fold, as though you were observing a piece of paper being folded or a fractal pattern being drawn.

These features of the subdividing line, too, serve to prevent the structure from becoming too complex for the system to process. I think the artist does a great job of employing randomness to produce generative work which reflects both arbitrariness and the inevitability of an end, as the initial lines can only divide so many times before they become too complex. While very simple, the aesthetic of these pieces serves to juxtapose the unlimited possibility for subdivision offered by the algorithm.