About this collection
Is mathematics a discovery or an invention?
This question was ever-present in my mind not only as I created Ars Fractalia but in fact, in all my work over the last 10 years. Long before I started coding creatively, I was making art using fractals - insanely beautiful patterns found everywhere in nature, that follow relatively simple mathematical rules.
But then, that question begs a further question: If the doubt about mathematics exists, then surely the same question can be asked of art created using mathematics..? Is it created, or discovered?
My personal conclusion is, it is both. We are Life - the universe itself having found a way to experience itself, and we are the discoverers/creators of all meaning.
When I began my artistic journey over 10 years ago, I saw the crazy, beautiful, psychedelic fractal patterns that others generated and questioned: "Are those really their own creations, though?" .. This always pushed me to use fractals in original ways. I didn't want to simply generate a pretty pattern, give it a title, and call it art. I wanted my mind to be the main "generator", and the patterns only a form of paint and brush.
Which is why I now feel such deep gratification with the creation of Ars Fractalia. I coded it myself: These Julia fractals are my Julia fractals - each given a unique personality with my own creative algorithm.
And now it is my great pleasure to present them to you.
Display Notes
With this work, I wanted to give you not only something beautiful to look at, but also something you can explore. Every piece contains thousands of other pieces, which you can display at virtually any resolution.
Here are the keys. Happy exploring, fractalnaught!
w - Zoom In
s - Zoom Out
r - Toggle Rotation
e - Faster Rotation
q - Slower Rotation
d - Rotate Clockwise 22.5º
a - Rotate Anti-Clockwise 22.5º
x - New Center of Rotation
c - Toggle Un/Follow Mouse
i - Increase Iterations
k - Decrease Iterations
o - Increase Color Cycle Speed
l - Decrease Color Cycle Speed
p - Save PNG (with Inv. # and Hash Seed)
z - Invert Julia
Spacebar - Reset
Easter egg? Sometimes ;)
Mandelsage
Mandelsage is an artist who creates beauty and meaning out of chaos. Inspired by the astounding fact of our existence and the lack of innate meaning in the universe, he uses fractal geometry, code and (recently) A.I. to explore and discover unique patterns and forms. Driven by randomness and pareidolia, he describes his process as a joyful march of blind discovery, extracting beauty and meaning from the chaos of complex forms extrapolated from simple ones, similar to how evolution by natural selection shapes complex life. That said, he has recently begun attempting to create work with very specific intention, telling unique stories that leave little room for interpretation.
He sees ℈ℽ⍷-ᚤက, his pilot gen-art project, as a blend of these two creative approaches - specific intention in process and concept, yet the completed work enables varied understandings, depending on not only the observer but also (because the work is constantly evolving) the point in time of observation.
