Gabor Papp

Interview

Generative Art + Data

Working at the intersection of motion, code, and perception, Gabor Papp is a brilliant and innovative artist, whose practice explores the expressive potential of algorithmic systems and real-time technology. In this conversation, Gabor reflects on his philosophy of art and technology, his use of real-time systems, and his ongoing exploration of how structured frameworks can give rise to openness, intuition, and discovery.

How would you describe your artistic practice?
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My practice centers on motion, algorithmic systems, and experimentation. I work across both independent and collaborative contexts: sometimes through commissions, where there is a defined framework or problem to respond to, and sometimes through self-initiated projects that begin with a question, a visual idea, or a technical process I want to explore. All my work involves motion in some way. Sometimes the movement is generated through code and algorithmic behaviour. Other times it comes from human input, especially from dancers or performers, whose motion introduces complexity and unpredictability that purely synthetic systems can't produce. In both cases, I use motion not just asmaterial, but as a way of thinking - it guides how I build, evaluate, and shape the work.

What interests you about working with data and generative technologies?

What interests me is the range they offer between analysis and expression. On one level, generative methods can help reveal patterns, structures, and relationships in data that would otherwise remain invisible. They can function as tools for both comprehension and aesthetics.At the same time, I think of data quite broadly. It can mean a large data set, but it can also mean body movement, depth information, sound, or other live signals. Those forms of input bring irregularity, nuance, and human texture into a system, which makes the generative process more alive and less predetermined. Or in reverse, layering generative visuals onto a dance performance creates a totally new experience. What I enjoy most is when those two sides overlap, when a work begins as an investigation into a system or dataset and gradually becomes something more visual, sensory, or performative. For me, the analytical and expressive dimensions are not opposites, they often strengthen each other.

What is your philosophy on art and technology?

I’ve never seen art and technology as separate fields. Technology is simply one of the materials I work with, in the same way anotherartist might work with paint, stone, or sound. It shapes what ispossible, but it is still a medium for artistic thinking rather thanan end in itself.What matters to me is how technical systems can produce space forintuition, play, and discovery. I design frameworks, but I’m notinterested in total control. I want the work to retain a sense ofopenness, where something unexpected can happen through the process.That balance between structure and unpredictability is central to howI think about both art and technology.

How are you working with real-time?

Real-time is central to my practice because it allows the work to stay responsive and alive. I build systems that can render generative visuals at interactive speeds, so the output can react immediately to live input, whether that comes from a performer, a participant, or another dynamic source. That responsiveness is important both artistically and experientially.In interactive installations, the immediacy of the feedback helps people understand that they are part of the work - that their presence or movement is actively shaping what they see. In performance contexts, real-time processing allows the visual system to become more than a backdrop, an active partner in the event.I’m especially interested in how live human motion interacts with artificial systems. Real-time makes that exchange visible, and it often reveals behaviours and relationships that wouldn’t emerge in a fixed or pre-rendered work.

What do you want the viewer to take away from your work?

That depends on the context. In commissioned or client-based work, Iwant to offer a perspective that feels genuinely specific to the material - something that helps people see a subject, system, ordataset in a new way through generative means.In my own practice, I usually don’t begin with a fixed message that Iwant to deliver. The work tends to start with exploration: a questionabout motion, behaviour, structure, or interaction, and a desire tosee where that process leads. But that doesn’t mean the viewer isunimportant. What I hope to create is a space for attention,curiosity, and encounter - where someone can experience a systemunfolding and find their own way into it.