I’d finally arrived in Senegal. The weather was hot, and I was flustered. When I started this project, there was no aim. I wanted to develop ideas and improve my technicality, but I no longer had the motivation. So I took a few days off to reset and gather my thoughts.
One morning, whilst showering, I remembered the dutch wax material and how my mother and her friend wore it. The patterns repeated throughout the fabric; the palette of colours was rich & vibrant. So I set out to replicate that vibe. The following commits are my initial attempts at making more complex patterns.
Having spent a few days in Mexico City surrounded by fellow artists, I fell in love with the city. I reached a new technical level where I could be more expressive. Architecture, people, and culture were potent and aesthetically inspired me, so I adopted a new colourway. The following outputs are from the four commits I added to the project over my week there.
I worked on ‘nth culture’ for three months - the longest I've worked on a single project. It had a lot of ups and downs, both on a technical and an emotional side. I was trying to represent my heritage whilst pushing myself technically. I was happy with the result, I had learned a lot, so It was time to push myself further. These outputs come from 3 commits I made while travelling to Mexico. There wasn't a particular style or direction in mind - just vibes.
Generative art is a fascinating medium. I see it as a nonverbal yet emotionally charged conversation between myself and a machine. I write code, and the computer replies with outputs. These interactions mirror much of my life, a series of nonverbal conversations with individuals via the blockchain.
As I near my 30s, so much of what I value in life seems not to matter. Instead, I'm learning it's the little things, the small gestures, the things we take for granted that matter. After years of working in various technical roles across multiple industries, I've learned to be flexible with my creativity. However, I still lack understanding.
I like being challenged & finding new ways to do things. It keeps my work exciting, but I also want to share my mental state during the process, as it's a significant factor in my decisions. Nontechnical people see code as colourful lines of gibberish. But if they could see the steps and understand the frustration, happiness, anger & imposter syndrome that comes with it - I could achieve my goal of being 'understood'.
After conversations with collectors of my last generative project, ' nth culture', I was inspired to do this. I walked them through each step, its outputs and the personal & technical issues I faced.
I can read through most of my code from the past few years and tell you precisely how I felt when making a particular decision. A scream of joy or feelings of anguish usually follows every commit.
Over the next few days, in partnership with @refraction.lens I'll share outputs from commits I've made to a project during my travels.