Brendan Dawes
The Art of Form and Code

Press Any Key To Escape

Real-time patterns inspired by a former work-life

    2022
  • Bespoke Software, Computer (colour, 60 fps)
  • Size responsive to display
  • Contract: 0xb932a70A57673d89f4acfFBE830E8ed7f75Fb9e0
  • Token ID: 36132
'

From 1988 to 1996 I worked in a factory making printed circuit boards. Just the boards themselves, without any of the more interesting electronic components. Much of that time was spent operating the CNC drilling machines, drilling tiny holes in fibreglass. I knew I had to find a way out, so in my spare time I was continuing to learn the craft of code, which I had been doing since 1981. I thought maybe typing instructions into these simple computers, complete with all the possibilities it offered, might be my escape from the drudgery of the factory.

This work is a visual response to my time at that factory, inspired by the aesthetic of electronic circuits and composed of ever changing patterns made with code.

Together with the video of this work, @art_pleb – the successful collector – received a physical real-time generative machine which can be attached to any display with HDMI input whereupon it will create these patterns of possibility for the rest of time.

Shown at the Ghost in the Machine group show, curated by Mika Bar-On Nesher at SuperRare, New York in 2022.