“Generative art refers to any art practice in which the artist uses a system, such as a set of natural language rules, a computer program, a machine, or other procedural invention, that is set into motion with some degree of autonomy, thereby contributing to or resulting in a completed work of art.” - Peter Galanter
Generative art can be traced back to the modern avant-garde art movements of the twentieth century. In particular with Conceptualism: engaging with chance, unpredictability and automatic processes. For example, Sol LeWitt's Wall Drawings in the 1970's, were generated by a team of art installers following a set of instructions. Then in the 1960s digital computers allowed artists to develop these characteristics into new forms. Artistic pioneers, including Helbert W.Franke and Vera Molńar, wrote code generating a series of instructions that the computer would follow to produce the final piece.
Contemporary Generative Art is located on the blockchain. This means that the generative script (algorithmic set of rules) is written 'on-chain' or to the blockchain. Unlike before, the artist does not have control over the final outputs. The output space of the algorithm therefore must be varied enough to justify the set of 100, 500, or 1000 iterations generated from it. The greatest long-form pieces have breadth - they are both unique yet are unified to the wider collection.
Breakdown of process
A new model for art collection
Generative Art means that (at the primary transaction) the collector has an active role in the art creation process, the work is generated at the transaction. Nobody - including the artist - knows precisely what will be generated when the script is run. The unpredictability and uniqueness of each output (each one is uniquely yours) add a sense of gamification and excitement to art collection.
Following generation, what makes the resulting artwork valuable is the relationship to the algorithm—the key trait and characteristics that define each piece.
What collectors look for: primary market / secondary market
Secondary market
Rarity is determined by
1) Traits
Each work in a long-form generative collection receives traits/features from the algorithm’s parameters. For example: background colour, body colour, extra colour. These explicit traits are defined by the artists on chain-metadata. Each of these different traits determines its rarity. ie there are 1000 works in a collection and only 2 are blue - they are instantly valuable.
“In generative art, the artist dictates the relative probability of any particular attribute appearing in an artwork, but the artist is only dictating the probability, not the actual number of times a particular attribute appears,” Kate Hannah, Art Blocks
2) Emergent properties
The unintended outputs that remind you of things.
What value look like practice
Artist description: “There are an almost infinite number of ways to wrap a string around a set of pegs. On the surface it may seem like a simple concept but prepare to be surprised and delighted at the variety of combinations the algorithm can produce... Feature variations include peg count, sizing, layout, wrap orientation, and a few colourful flourishes for good measure.”
Intrinsic value
Feature variations
Background Colour (this is the space around the shape)
White: 802 have these backgrounds
Yellow: 68
Red: 54
Beige: 47
Black: 16
Blue: 11
Green: 2
Other features include
Body Colour
Extra Colour
Peg Count
Peg Layout
Peg Style
Grid Size
Why Ringers #109 sold for $7.1 million and Ringers #879 (The Goose) sold for $6.2 million?
Ringers#109 is the most valuable from the collection. The artwork's composition immediately sets it apart from the symmetry and the harmony of the rest of the set -this work is much busier and totally unique. Despite the most common background colour, it has very rare traits; the additional red colour found only in 0.31% of the collection, the high peg count, the variations of pegs style (bullseye and black), the wrap orientations and wrap style.
Ringers #879 (The Goose) improbability of an animal shape- emerging from the generative randomness highlights the allure, visual identity, and rarity. It is remarkable and shows the real joy of what the algorithm can produce.
Mainstream Market Overview
Art Blocks
Sotheby’s
Sotheby’s sale results make it clear there is a growing demand. Responding to this market strength they have launched a dedicated program to Generative Art powered by Art Blocks. It will feature highly curated long form series (3 releases per year).
The first of these was: "Themes and Variation" by Vera Molnar in collaboration with Martin Grasser achieved 631 ETH ($1.2 Million) selling out all 500 pieces in under an hour. On the secondary market there are currently over 4 million sales.
GRAILS Sale Series (3AC collection)
Christie’s
Overall
On-chain generative art is redefining the art collecting experience by putting the collector at the centre of the experience. It is introducing an element of unpredictability, rarity, and creativity that resonates with collectors worldwide. Whilst also creating highly aesthetic and harmonious works of art. It undoubtedly represents the future of art collecting, offering a dynamic and ever-evolving landscape for both artists and enthusiasts that is backed by consistently strong sales in recent months.
