Generative Art Timeline · Chapter 2: Modern Era (1850–1949)
1920
Obstruction by Man Ray

Along with Constructivists Rodchenko and Tatlin, Ray pioneered the use of mobiles (this one composed of 63 coat hangers), paving the way for future kinetic art and eventually all electronic art. This moment serves as a key example in art’s impulse towards kineticism in the early twentieth century. Artists, in an attempt to break free from the restraints of the static canvas, pushed to make art more dynamic and interactive, a huge leap along the path towards digital art.
Text by Peter Bauman. Generative Art Timeline, Le Random.
Sources
- Popper, Frank. Art of the Electronic Age, 12. New York: Thames and Hudson, 1997.
People
Alexander Rodchenko, Man Ray, Vladimir Tatlin
Movements
Constructivism, Dadaism
Filed under
- Ideas
- Constructivism, Dadaism, interactivity, movement
- Technologies
- kinetic art, kinetic sculpture
- People
- Alexander Rodchenko, Man Ray, Vladimir Tatlin
- Works
- Electronic Art, Obstruction
Echoes across time
- 1970 · The Senster by Edward Ihnatowicz
- 1965 · Four Self-Distorting Grids by François Morellet
- 1968 · Sound Activated Mobile by Edward Ihnatowicz
Le Random editorials
- Operator on Human Unreadable, Peter Bauman, November 21, 2023
- Casey Reas on the History of Generative Art - Part 1, Peter Bauman, June 22, 2023
Le Random podcast
- Timeline Ch 2—Modern Era with Kate Vass — listen with transcript on Le Random (20 Jul 2023, 58 min). Transcript mentions Man Ray. Chapter 2’s episode. Apple Podcasts · Spotify