Coded Designs

Java Formulated Compositions

These UC Davis design projects were all part of a course that taught students how to design compositions solely using lines of code. We worked on a software called Processing and used Java to create interesting and beautiful works of art. We started off simple and we asked to create three compositions that demonstrated rhythm, another three that explored positive and negative space, as well as three colored designs that exemplified balance, unity, and continuity. As we progressed further into the course, we were given more creative freedom and learned how to utilize code to quickly make beautiful repeating patterns.

In the beginning, a lot of time was spent getting used to this new style of designing, as my participation in this university course was my first exposure to the Java language, so a huge part of my learning curve was coming to understand my limitations and then proceeding to work around them to problem solve while still creating eye-catching designs that look professional enough to trick the viewer into thinking that they were made with Adobe programs.

Looking back on the results, it is hard to imagine that all of these compositions were made solely using lines of code. This design course and its expectations pushed me far out of my comfort zone and my experience with these coded compositions tested me in a unique way as a designer and undoubtedly strengthened my problem-solving skills. While I ran into far more errors using Processing than I am normally used to in my design process, I believe that I was able to still produce professional and thoughtful results that I am proud to present.

Processing Software

Twelve quality color prints, 500 x 500 pixels