Interference : Phaust’s Visual Ode to Pure Generative Systems

Interference is a series of 236 abstract patterns and color palettes that we feel like we have seen before. The shapes are familiar and organic. The risograph printing technique reminds us of mass-produced leaflets and flyers. The works are joyous and easy on the eye. Hiding just beneath the surface of any one image is a depth that calls into question the seeming banality of the image. We recognize the shapes as familiar because they are familiar. Every shape in the series is derived from a mathematical model of natural sound waves. These shapes are ubiquitous because they are natural. Behind each work is mathematical purity, bounded color palettes reminiscent of the fauvist color theorists, and historical depth. Viewing multiple pieces reinforces the profoundness of the work. Each image is an output of a single generative instruction set, like 236 leaves of a tree that could make billions more, each one unique. Interference is a celebration of a pure generative system and also a game of hide-and-seek. The simplicity of the images is a red herring that hides the science and virtuosity that came before them. But the veil is paper-thin: even a mild dose of curiosity by the viewer reveals a path toward understanding the breakthroughs in science and math that enable such a system.] Ernst Chladni & Sophie Germain In 1787, Ernst Chladni took a violin bow and drew it against a metal plate lightly covered with sand. When the plate reached resonance the sand settled on particular nodal lines–leaving what is known as Chladni patterns. For the first time, sound could be visualized, and as the tone and various other factors were altered, the Chladni pattern changed too. <a href="https://medium.com/@tonic_team/interference-phausts-visual-ode-to-pure-generative-systems-c6cf94c11d4d">Read More</a>