Csuri’s early work helped to set the standards commonplace in today's computer graphics industry. Glorious Grass Frame 28 from bush series (2006: Unix environment and AL. Giclee. 97 x 132 cm [38 x 52 in.]). © Charles A. Csuri.

A trained fine artist, Csuri taught art and exhibited paintings in New York for 10 years before he got into the computer. He became fascinated with computers in the early 1950s when they were rare and room-sized. A good friend, an industrial engineer on the faculty of Ohio State University, began answering Csuri’s questions about what a computer was, what it did and how it worked. Through their on-going dialog about the computer, Csuri learned about programs and algorithms. He discovered the implications for science and research.

In those days, as they were drinking their martinis, Csuri says, “We would talk about the computer as the Grand Philosopher. We thought of the computer as an intelligence, but it never occurred to us that there was a way to make pictures out of all of this. When I saw my first computer graphic, I absolutely exploded because I saw the implications immediately. I knew it had potential and offered new possibilities. I signed up for computer programming and that’s how it began.”

From then on, Csuri rode the wave of the future. As he began to understand the technology and talk about scientific visualization, his science colleges suggested he write a proposal about visualization and the arts for the National Science Foundation. In 1968, he received his first $100,000 grant, which began a 20-year career in the field of computer graphics and character animation. He put aside his impulse to create fine art.

In the ‘80s, he was going to retire from the University, so he went back to the computer and began to explore it as an art form. Since then Csuri has been working as an artist full-time, but his research background gave him insight into what he could do with technology. “I was fortunate to have a dynamic environment in which to work,” shares Csuri. “This gave me opportunities to do experiments that most artists would not be able to do. I was able to do explorations with phscolograms, a technique that uses a three-dimensional display of an image that has a holographic quality. More recently, I’ve been working with printing techniques that can be done with canvas and light jet printing.”

“I’ve had the opportunity to do a variety of things, not only stills, but also animation. My animation has not been seen for a long time,” continues Csuri. “I will be showing it at SIGGRAPH for the first time.” While he has interest in what is being done in the film industry, his personal interest is in making animation more of an art form. He is not particularly fascinated by narrative. His focus has been on aesthetics. As technology gets closer to realtime feedback in animation, Csuri believes the art form will take off.

SIGGRAPH will be the first time many will see Csuri’s work, as it’s been out of the public eye for a while. Sine Curve Man (1967: Ink on paper; IBM 7094 and drum plotter. 104 x 104 cm [41 x 41 in.]). © Charles A. Csuri.

Thus, Csuri sees the computer as a tool. Procedural approaches to problem solving are now assigned to the computer. It opens up possibilities that are harder to achieve with other methods. The challenge he faced with creating art on the computer was to shift from the tactile background of a painter working with brushes and paint and overcome the inherent linear thinking and coldness of the computer. What works best for him is to set-up a situation where an object is assigned behaviors. He then plays with a degree of randomness. The art is discovered as a consequence of the environment that he established.

“I set up a kind of game where I don’t know where I am going,” explains Csuri. “I respond to accidents and circumstances along the way. If I have a playful attitude about creativity, I have a higher probability of discovering something good. That is a battle and continues to be a battle. I have a love-hate relationship towards the computer. Everybody laughs at me because the name of my computer is Stupid. That’s to remind me it’s just a damn machine. I’m in charge.”

The Csuri retrospective fits into Mitchell’s interest in the evolution of digital art over the years. It is an interest that Mitchell brings to all parts of the 2006 exhibition. “Computer art has become mainstream… almost,” says Mitchell. “You’re seeing it in major museums and galleries. People can’t deny that it is an art form, nowadays. In the ‘80s, you were constantly questioned… that’s not really art.” Nevertheless, what has become mainstream and what hasn’t piqued her curiosity. She noticed digital 2D artworks have become acceptable, while 3D installation artworks, maybe by the very nature of their impermanence and maintenance issues, were passed over by the larger institutions. Based on her observations, Mitchell decided on areas that she wanted to incorporate into the show.