Genetic Images by Karl Sims

Genetic Images, a groundbreaking media installation conceived by Karl Sims in 1993, explored the concept of interactive evolution within virtual environments. As with his work Panspermia (1990), Genetic Images can also be thought of as proto-AI art. It inspired the work later in this decade of Scott Draves, a machine-learning art pioneer. Displayed on an arc of screens, this installation allowed visitors to actively participate in the evolution of abstract images. By standing on sensors and selecting aesthetically pleasing images, viewers determined which visuals would survive and reproduce, guiding the course of artificial evolution. It was thus an important example of public interactive art as well in the spirit of GRAV. Exhibited at renowned venues like the Centre Georges Pompidou in Paris and Ars Electronica in Linz, Austria, Genetic Images sparked discussions about the intersection of art and technology while challenging traditional notions of creativity and design in some of the mainstream art world’s most prestigious institutions. That is beside the impact it had on the “evolution” of AI art.