A Philosophy of Computer Art

Book excerpt: What is computer art? Do the concepts we usually employ to talk about art, such as âe~meaningâe(tm), âe~formâe(tm) or âe~expressionâe(tm) apply to computer art? A Philosophy of Computer Art is the first book to explore these questions. Dominic Lopes argues that computer art challenges some of the basic tenets of traditional ways of thinking about and making art and that to understand computer art we need to place particular emphasis on terms such as âe~interactivityâe(tm) and âe~userâe(tm). Drawing on a wealth of examples he also explains how the roles of the computer artist and computer art user distinguishes them from makers and spectators of traditional art forms and argues that computer art allows us to understand better the role of technology as an art medium.