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An exhibit of early digital art encourages viewers to explore the history of new media
An elliptical path of light, composed of regularly spaced dots, interrupts the deep black of a photograph. It spirals around itself, making a shape reminiscent of beating wings or a dancer's moving arm. But this abstract composition, by Ben Laposky and dated circa 1952, has a concrete origin: It's a time-lapse exposure of an oscilloscope's screen.
The photograph is the earliest example of computer art in a current exhibit focused on early computer art. "Drawing with Code," at the DeCordova Sculpture Park and Museum in Lincoln, Massachusetts, runs from January 29 to April 24 and includes visual art by more than 20 artists, along with a few examples of animation art. The show includes recent works but its emphasis is these initial - and often overlooked -experiments in using computer technology for artistic purposes.
"Many of these original people were either programmers or mathematicians enamored with what they could do visually with computers," says George Fifield,...