GENERATIVE SISTEMS 1971-73


At the School of the Art institute of Chicago
The copier's artistic movement started back to the 70´s mainly in Generative Systems. Was Sonia Sheridan who created the GS department, to offer students a platform to investigated with her through her research, the intellectual, conceptual and artistic content and magnitude, from using new technologies to create art escaping from the "just a copy" idea. The new machines just invented for the communication and reproduction changed the concept of time and space. The first Color copier ever invented in the world, the 3MColor in color machine, was incorporated by Sonia to the just new GS department, offering to the students a new tool that changed the concept of the practice of art. This new tool was a window to all the next coming machines generations applied to develop a new art language. The speed at which machines returned the processed image (duly filtered according to the specific features of each machine) inciters the mind to create a new image ant to consider another solution. The possibilities multiply and variations follow. When capturing an image and exploring the metamorphosis of a sequence with the help of the copiers, images generate new images, to a new metamorphosis, until the cycle is completed. The image is manipulated through light as light generates color, and in many cases the color is treated manually with conventional pigments. The composition of a painting is a dialogue between one image or a series, between the sequential rhythm and static movement (see the Sonia Sheridan text about Generative Systems for the exhibition's catalogue La Fábrica by Fundación Telefónica in Madrid 2.000).




Her main piece from that period was the work " at the end"; it has 4 color copies in one panel. It was exhibited in several spaces, the last one with Sonia Sheridan at the exhibition " What happens to the pioneers" in Montreal, Canada,1995.

We can resume de different technics used:

Color and B/W Photocopies

Monotipes

Interactive papers

Color Retransfer