Create generative art without coding
Updated: Jun 12, 2021
You don’t need to be a coder to create generative art. There are different ways to create computer-generated patterns in a visual way. In this tutorial, I show you one way of doing this.
I start with creating a shape in Illustrator. For this, I use the pencil tool (N). In my opinion, drawing by hand has a kind of random factor that can help to create a special organic shape. After that, I use the pen tool (P) to make some adjustments on the shape.
You can double click on the pencil tool (N) icon to specify in the settings, how Illustrator should smooth the line you draw.
After drawing the shape in Illustrator, I copy and paste it to Sketch. Sures Kumar created the awesome Looper Sketch plugin that I use for the next step. In the settings of the plugin I choose the following values:
→ Number of copies: 100
→ Scale: X and Y, -4 px
→ Move: horizontally, 1 px
→ Rotate: sinusoidal, sin factor 4
After creating the pattern, I copy and paste it in Illustrator. Until now the shape looks like a “half nut”, but I want it to look like a “completed nut”. 🥜
That’s why I go back to Sketch and create another pattern with the Looper plugin. I use the same initial shape as for the first pattern. But the second pattern should align itself in a different direction. For this I choose the following values:
→ Number of copies: 100
→ Scale: X and Y, -4 px
→ Move: horizontally, 3 px
→ Rotate: sinusoidal, sin factor 3
I copy the shape and paste it again in Illustrator. Although both patterns are different, they still have the same initial shape. These both lines should lie on top of each other (marked green in the following screenshot). I delete one of the lines because I don't want the pen plotter to draw it twice.
After that, I open the file in Inkscape. Fortunately, it’s possible to just open the Illustrator file in here without converting it.
Now Axidraw can draw the pattern. For this tutorial, I created a black and a white version.
This is how the two final results look like:
My name is Anna Stumpf and I’m a designer living in Germany. I founded the project experiment now! when I felt that my full-time design job wasn’t training my creativity enough. This project offers me the freedom to create things with my hands without having to think about it before. I am in search of the random factor, which emerges between analog ↔ digital and currently experimenting with the pen plotter Axidraw. 🤖
This was a good article to come across. The content is clear and relevant, and I liked how the writer focused on useful information rather than unnecessary details.
veer games
I think this article does a good job of answering https://tirangagamei.it.com the basic questions readers may have about the subject. The explanations are written in simple language, making the content accessible even to beginners. I also liked the overall structure because each section focuses on a specific point. This makes the article easier to read and revisit later. The practical information adds further value. Overall, a useful and clearly written article with plenty of helpful details.
This article is a good example of clear and practical content. I liked how the writer kept the explanations simple and organized everything properly. There are several useful details here, and I found the overall discussion informative and easy to follow.
bdg game
This is a really interesting and beginner-friendly guide to creating generative art without coding. I like how it combines hand-drawn shapes with digital tools to create unique patterns. For anyone exploring creative ideas, the 7 Brew menu is another fun resource to discover different drink flavors and combinations.
I really enjoyed this tutorial on creating generative art without coding. The step-by-step process using Illustrator, Sketch, Looper, and Inkscape makes the technique much easier to understand, especially for beginners. I also liked the idea of using hand-drawn shapes to introduce a natural, random element into the artwork. The final pen-plotter results are impressive and show how simple variations can create interesting patterns. A very useful and inspiring guide for anyone exploring generative art.
I’m also working on a useful online tool for construction and material calculations: Bitumen Calculator.