User:Stin

Stijn Zijlstra

Stijn Zijlstra
0928745
Graphic Design

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Mimicking Calligraphy

Calligraphy (from Greek: καλλιγραφία) is a visual art related to writing. It is the design and execution of lettering with a broad tip instrument, brush, or other writing instruments. A contemporary calligraphic practice can be defined as, "the art of giving form to signs in an expressive, harmonious, and skillful manner" ^[1]

The Japanese calligraphy (Shodo) is one of the most popular fine arts of Japan. Calligraphical works are appreciated not less than products of painting. But this kind of the fine arts possesses also philosophical sense. In the simplest understanding the calligraphy is an art to write beautifully. The master creates a work of art by bamboo brush and inks on the rice paper. It transfers harmony and beauty. The parity of simple and graceful is embodied in calligraphical works as one of main principles of Japanese aesthetics wabi sabi. There is nothing casual in Japanese calligraphy. The beginning, the direction, the form and the ending of lines, the balance between elements are important for each line and point, and even the empty space testifies about many things. The hieroglyphs are harmonious, proportional, balanced.^[2]

But as technology is advancing does that mean that algorithms will be able to analyse art and replicate it? Even creating their own variants and showing a degree of originality resulting in the traditional craftsmen being superfluous?

In CGP Grey's video Humans Need Not Apply he talks about the revolution of mechanical muscles making human muscles less in demand. And how developers of automation are constructing mechanical minds to make human minds less in demand as well. There is a notion that mechanical minds will eventually be able to do creative work as well. Just as the fact that before people assumed playing chess was a uniquely human thing that computers couldn't do, we might be surprised by the development in this field.

Just like Emily Howell.

Emily Howell is a computer program created by David Cope during the 1990s. Emily consists of an interactive interface that allows both musical and language communication. By encouraging and discouraging the program, Cope attempts to "teach" it to compose music more to his liking. The program uses only the output of a previous composing program called Experiments in Musical Intelligence (Emmy) as a source database for its musical choices.

How would it be possible to emulate calligraphy, an art form requiring years of experience, by a mere robot?

In a certain sense it's an insult to the art form, which is practiced with great discipline and intuition.