MARIUS WATZ
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ABOUT THE ARTIST
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INTRODUCTION
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C.V.
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LINKS
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ADDITIONAL CONTEXT
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WORKS
ILLUMINATIONS
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ABOUT THE ARTIST
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INTRODUCTION
Illuminations of the 21st Century
Marius Watz calls one of his prominent image sequences Illuminations. Even if art history doesn't necessarily intervene, one can see parallels with the rich, occidental decorations of late Antiquity, the Middle Ages, and the Renaissance. A visit to one of the ever more workshops for generative art, where mostly computer artists put their heads together for days and weeks at a time, reminds you of a monastery’s scriptorium, where monks brooded over their bible copies and codex.
The self-conscious illuminator in this case is a Norwegian who discovered the computer for himself at the age of eleven. Disciples of illumination were also introduced early in life to the art of extravagant ornamentation in order, over the course of their lives, to artistically fulfill their beliefs according to the basic rules, or program.
The text, entwined with the illumination, is the central yet invisible element of generative art. The work is the result of the implementation of a program written by the artist, be it of linguistic or musical nature, a mechanism or binary code – that is, a computer program. Marius Watz's images are mere numbers that bloom into dynamic forms of brilliant color. The virtual tools that replace the analog brushes and pens go by names such as Java, Processing, VVVV, and Flash. His area of work encompasses not only two-dimensional prints; with much energy he also creates animations, installations, and sculptures. In addition, Watz conveys his views of the world of aesthetic data in workshops – a tireless, globally itinerant preacher of digital art.
Horst Klöver
