In Class VII Technology class, students have been exploring how to make artwork using geometry and algorithms. They used the Scratch programming language to teach a computer to draw simple shapes like circles, squares, triangles, or any regular sided polygons. Looking at Islamic Tiling patterns for inspiration, they learned how to use repeating patterns of simple shapes, translating and rotating around a Cartesian coordinate plane, to create complex patterns. The culminating project for this unit had two parts. Students had to fabricate a physical piece of art that they coded using algorithms. Students were allowed to use the laser cutter, 3D printer, and plotting or embroidery machines to realize their code into physical objects. The second part of the project was more open-ended. Students were allowed to create dynamic animations or other artwork using code. One student created a digitally augmented dance performance by using the Kinect sensor to detect the positions of a dancers joints. She wrote a program that draws moving triangles on a screen that follow and respond to the dancer’s movements.

Scroll down to see more examples of screenbased art and physical objects that were designed using algorithms.