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Aesthetic Computing Dagstuhl Workshop Reading List

Compiled by Jon McCormack. E-mail: jonmc@csse.monash.edu.au.
Website: http://www.csse.monash.edu.au/%7Ejonmc.
Received 21 February 2003.

About this Bibliography

The aesthetic computing Dagstuhl workshop, held in July 2002, brought together a diverse group of researchers, theorists and practitioners interested in the intersections of aesthetics and computing.

One thing that quickly became apparent at the workshop was the varied and differing thinking on the topics of ‘aesthetics’ and ‘computing’, no doubt due to the diverse backgrounds of each of the participants.

The idea behind assembling this bibliography was to foster an appreciation of each other’s perspective. Each participant at the workshop was asked to list a small number of seminal texts or resources that they considered the most influential to their understanding of the field, or as a background for their understanding. They were also asked to (optionally) provide a brief comment on the significance of the text. It was hoped that this relatively small collection of texts and web sites would provide a suitable entry point for appreciating the intellectual and practical knowledge behind the investigation of aesthetic computing. It is pleasing to note that several of the titles were suggested by more than one person, and that there was considerable agreement on the inclusion of a number of the texts by many members of the group.

‘Aesthetic computing’ is a formative concept, but is still developing its scope and finding its niche. Whether your background is in art, computing, or somewhere in between, it is hoped that this bibliography will provide a useful resource for understanding aesthetic computing and its intellectual heritage.

--Jon McCormack


Item Comments (by recommender unless stated). Recommended by
Manovich, L. (2001), The Language of New Media, MIT Press, Cambridge, Mass. ; London. [amazon] "A good bridge between art, design and computing"(A.B.) Annick Bureaud, Jay Bolter
Leonardo Bibliographies [web site] "General and specialized bibliographies on art / science / technology field" Annick Bureaud
Ronell, A. (1991), The Telephone Book: Technology, Schizophrenia, Electric Speech, Univ of Nebraska Pr. (Reprint edition). [amazon] "Brings Philosophy and technology together in an innovative way" Jörg Müller
Software Visualization web site "Links to workshops, books, etc. in the area of software visualization" Stephan Diehl
Wilson, S. (2002), Information Arts : A Survey of Art and Research at the Intersection of Art, Science, and Technology, MIT Press, Cambridge, Mass. [amazon]   Roger Malina

Fishwick, P. (2002), Aesthetic Programing: Crafting Personalized Software, Leonardo,
MIT Press, 2002, 35(4), pp. 383-390

See also Paul's aesthetic computing web page.

  Paul Fishwick
Popper, F. (1968), Origins and Development of Kinetic Art, Studio Vista, London. [amazon]   Roger Malina
Tollis, I. et. al. (1998), Graph Drawing: algorithms for the visualization of graphs, Prentice Hall, NJ. [amazon]   Aaron Quigley

Penrose, R. (1989), The Emperor's New Mind : Concerning Computers, Minds, and the Laws of Physics, Oxford University Press, Oxford ; New York. [amazon]

"Computers, maths, philosophy, beauty" Willi Bruns

Beardsley, M.C. (1968), Literature and Aesthetics, Bobbs-Merrill, Indianapolis.

Beardsley, M.C. (1975), Aesthetics from Classical Greece to the Present : A Short History, University of Alabama Press, Alabama.

  Jane Prophet
Dunne, A. (1999), Hertzian Tales: Electronic Products, Aesthetic Experience and Critical Design, Royal College of Art, London. "Fun" (O.B.)

Olav Bertelsen
Jon McCormack

Laurel, B.(1986), Interface as Memesis, in Norman, D.A. and S.W. Draper (eds.) User Centered System Design : New Perspectives on Human-Computer Interaction, Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Hillsdale, N.J. "New idea of a time still unfulliled" Olav Bertelsen

Goodman, N. (1968), Languages of Art; an Approach to a Theory of Symbols, Bobbs-Merrill, Indianapolis.

(See also John's uber-comprehensive Goodman bibliography:
http://www.hcrc.ed.ac.uk/~john/GoodmanBib.html).

  John Lee
Yates, F.A. (1966), The Art of Memory, Routledge and Kegan Paul, London [England].   Richard Merritt
Welsch, W. (1991), Ästhetisches Denken (Aesthetic Thinking), P. Reclam, Stuttgart. "Writes about aesthetic perception" Angelika Schulz
"Practically anything written by A. Berllant" "Novel points within aesthetics" Kristiina Karvonen
Schön, D.A. (1987), Educating the Reflective Practitioner, Jossey-Bass, San Francisco. "Powerful understanding of creative practice" Jonas Löwgren
Benjamin, W. and H. Arendt (1968), Illuminations, Harcourt Brace & World, New York. (Specifically: "The Work of Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction")   Florian Dombois
Aicher, O. (1994), Analog and Digital, Ernst & Sohn, Berlin.   Boris Müller
Kepes, G. (1944), Language of Vision, P. Theobald, [Chicago]. Kepes was a visionary in his attempts to congeal art, science, and technology. But ultimately, it was a vision that failed because art cannot be the 'handmaiden of science'. Jon McCormack
Coyne, R. (1999), Technoromanticism : Digital Narrative, Holism, and the Romance of the Real, MIT Press, Cambridge, Mass. ; London. Presents a grounded view on the path of technology and technoculture, and its roots in western society. Provides an alternative view from which to consider current associations of art and technology. Jon McCormack

Mullet, K. and D. Sano (1995), Designing Visual Interfaces: Communication Oriented Techniques, SunSoft Press (A Prentice-Hall Title), Englewood Cliffs.

 

"Visual design attempts to solve communication problems in a way that is at once functionally effective and aesthetically pleasing." Though on interfaces only and offering much rather traditional material, an inspiring introduction to the aesthetics of interfaces by two sensitive authors. Frieder Nake

Packer, R. and K. Jordan (2001), Multimedia : From Wagner to Virtual Reality, W.W. Norton, New York.

Collection of 32 seminal papers from the arts, literature, and digital media by very famous authors putting the topic of aesthetics and computing into a tremendous perspective. Stuff for a challenging seminar to chew on. Frieder Nake
Bolter, J.D. and R. Grusin (1999), Remediation : Understanding New Media, MIT Press, Cambridge, Mass. Beautiful, thought provoking, bold. Theory of (digital) media, insight into art of the second half of the 20th century, treatise of current digital media developments from the aesthetic point of view. Exceptionally intelligent. Frieder Nake
Johnson, S. (1997), Interface Culture : How New Technology Transforms the Way We Create and Communicate, HarperEdge, [San Francisco].   Neora

Gelernter, D.H. (1998), Machine Beauty : Elegance and the Heart of Technology, Basic Books, New York.

  Neora
Flusser, Vilém (1999) Ins Universum der technischen Bilder. Göttingen: European Photography [amazon] Flusser differentiates in a very interesting way between traditional and technical pictures. He says, traditional pictures are mirrors of the world, technical pictures are projections onto the world.
We look-at traditional pictures, but we must look-at and to look-in technical pictures. To look-in pictures means, to read the idea of the program behind the picture. The problem of determining meaning of pictures can no longer be formulated as, “What does it mean?" It must rather be states as, “From where does it mean?"
Susanne Grabowski

 

Last modified: 21.02.2003