View source for Digital art

{{Short description|Art created digitally with a computer}}
[[File:Boundaryfunctions_1.jpg|alt=Boundary Functions at the Tokyo Intercommunications Center, 1999.|thumb|''Boundary Functions'' (1998) interactive floor projection by [[Scott Snibbe]] at the [[NTT InterCommunication Center]] in Tokyo<ref name="bf2">{{Cite web |last=Snibbe |first=Scott |date=1998 |title=Boundary Functions - Interactive Art |url=https://www.snibbe.com/art/boundaryfunctions |access-date= |website= |language=}}</ref>]]
'''Digital art''', or the '''digital arts''', is [[art]]istic work that uses [[Digital electronics|digital technology]] as part of the creative or presentational process. It can also refer to computational art that uses and engages with digital media.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Paul |first1=Christiane |editor1-last=Paul |editor1-first=Christiane |title=A Companion to Digital Art |date=2016 |publisher=Wiley |location=Malden, MA |isbn=978-1-118-47520-1 |pages=1–2 |chapter=Introduction From Digital to Post-Digital—Evolutions of an Art Form}}</ref> Since the 1960s, various names have been used to describe digital art, including [[computer art]], [[electronic art]], [[multimedia art]],<ref>{{cite journal |author=Reichardt, Jasia |author-link=Jasia Reichardt |date=1974 |title=Twenty years of symbiosis between art and science |url=https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/pf0000009559 |journal=Art and Science |volume=XXIV |issue=1 |pages=41–53}}</ref> and [[new media art]].<ref>[[Christiane Paul (curator)|Christiane Paul]] (2006). ''Digital Art'', pp. 7–8. Thames & Hudson.</ref><ref>Lieser, Wolf. ''Digital Art''. Langenscheidt: h.f. ullmann. 2009, pp. 13–15</ref> Digital art includes pieces stored on physical media, such as with [[digital painting]], as well as digital galleries on [[website]]s. Digital art also extends to the field of [[visual computing]].

== History ==
In the early 1960s, [[John Whitney (animator)|John Whitney]] developed the first computer-generated art using mathematical operations.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Grierson |first=Mick |title=Creative Coding for Audiovisual Art: The CodeCircle Platform |url=https://ualresearchonline.arts.ac.uk/id/eprint/15056/3/Grierson_Chapter-%20revised%2BSE.pdf }}</ref> In 1963, [[Ivan Sutherland]] invented the first user interactive computer-graphics interface known as [[Sketchpad]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Sketchpad {{!}} computer program {{!}} Britannica |url=https://www.britannica.com/technology/Sketchpad |access-date=2022-12-01 |website=www.britannica.com |language=en}}</ref>
Between 1974 and 1977, [[Salvador Dalí]] created two big canvases of ''Gala Contemplating the [[Mediterranean Sea]] which at a distance of 20 meters is transformed into the portrait of [[Abraham Lincoln]] (Homage to [[Mark Rothko|Rothko]])''<ref name="Pitxot">{{cite book |last1=Pitxot |first1=Antoni |last2=Aguer |first2=Montse |author1-link=Antoni Pitxot |title=Guía - Teatro-Museo Dalí - Figueres |date=2022 |publisher=Fundació Gala-Salvador Dalí - Triangle Books |location=Barcelona |isbn=978-84-8478-714-3 |page=97 |language=es |chapter=Cúpula |quote=A la derecha llama la atención el inmenso óleo fotográfico "Gala desnuda mirando al mar que a 18 metros aparece el presidente Lincoln" (1975), nueva muestra anticipadora de Dalí que representa, en este caso, el primer ejemplo de utilización de imagen digitalizada en la pintura.|trans-quote=On the right, attention is attracted by the immense photographic oil "Nude Gala Looking at the Sea that from 18 Meters Appears as Lincoln (1975), new anticipating sample of Dalí that represents, in this case, the first example of the use of the digitized image in painting.}}</ref> and prints of ''[[Lincoln in Dalivision]]'' based on a portrait of [[Abraham Lincoln]] processed on a computer by [[Leon Harmon]] published in "The Recognition of Faces".<ref name="Harmon">{{cite journal |last1=Harmon |first1=Leon D. |title=The Recognition of Faces |journal=Scientific American |date=November 1973 |volume=229 |issue=5 |pages=70–82 |doi=10.1038/scientificamerican1173-70 |pmid=4748120 |url=https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/the-recognition-of-faces/ |access-date=4 September 2023 |language=en |bibcode=1973SciAm.229e..70H}}</ref>
The technique is similar to what later became known as [[photographic mosaic]]s.

[[Andy Warhol]] created digital art using an [[Amiga]] where the computer was publicly introduced at the [[Lincoln Center]] in July 1985. An image of [[Debbie Harry]] was captured in [[monochrome]] from a video camera and digitized into a graphics program called ProPaint. Warhol manipulated the image by adding color using flood fills.<ref>'{{cite web |last=Reimer |first=Jeremy |date=October 21, 2007 |title=A history of the Amiga, part 4: Enter Commodore |url=https://arstechnica.com/hardware/news/2007/10/amiga-history-4-commodore-years.ars/4 |access-date=June 10, 2011 |work=Arstechnica.com}}</ref><ref>{{cite AV media |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3oqUd8utr14 |title=YouTube |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090507045347/http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3oqUd8utr14 |archive-date=2009-05-07 }}</ref>

== Art made for digital media ==
Artwork that is highly computational, presented through digital media, and explicitly engages with digital technologies are categorized as "art made for digital media". This differs from art using digital tools, which incorporate digital technology in the creation process but may exist outside the digital world.

Digital art historian [[Christiane Paul (curator)|Christiane Paul]] writes that it "is highly problematic to classify all art that makes use of digital technologies somewhere in its production and dissemination process as digital art since it makes it almost impossible to arrive at any unifying statement about the art form".<ref>{{Cite book |title=A companion to digital art |date=2016 |publisher=Wiley |isbn=978-1-118-47521-8 |editor=Christiane Paul |location=Chichester, West Sussex |pages=1–2 |oclc=925426732}}</ref>

== Art that uses digital tools ==
[[File:Graphics tablet.jpg|thumb|[[XP-PEN]] Deco 01V3 [[graphics tablet]] using [[Krita]] software]]
Digital art can be purely computer-generated (such as [[fractal]]s and [[algorithmic art]]) or taken from other sources, such as a [[Image scanner|scanned photograph]] or an image drawn using [[vector graphics]] software using a [[Computer mouse|mouse]] or [[graphics tablet]]. Artworks are considered [[digital painting]]s when created similarly to non-digital [[painting]]s but using [[software]] on a computer platform and digitally outputting the resulting image as painted on [[canvas]].

Despite differing viewpoints on digital technology's impact on the arts, a consensus exists within the digital art community about its significant contribution to expanding the creative domain, i.e., that it has greatly broadened the creative opportunities available to professional and non-professional artists alike.<ref>{{cite journal |author=Bessette, Juliette |author2=Frederic Fol Leymarie |author3=Glenn W. Smith|date=16 September 2019|title=Trends and Anti-Trends in Techno-Art Scholarship: The Legacy of the Arts "Machine" Special Issues|journal=Arts|volume=8|issue=3|pages=120|doi=10.3390/arts8030120|doi-access=free}}</ref>

== Art theorists and art historians==
Notable art theorists and historians in this field include:
[[Oliver Grau]], [[Jon Ippolito]], [[Christiane Paul (curator)|Christiane Paul]], [[Frank Popper]], [[Jasia Reichardt]], [[Mario Costa (philosopher)|Mario Costa]], [[Christine Buci-Glucksmann]], [[Dominique Moulon]], [[Roy Ascott]], [[Catherine Perret]], [[Margot Lovejoy]], [[Edmond Couchot]], [[Tina Rivers Ryan]], [[Fred Forest]] and [[Edward A. Shanken]].

=== Digital painting ===
Digital painting is either a physical painting made with the use of [[digital electronics]] and [[spray paint]] [[robotics]] within the digital art [[fine art]] context<ref>Christiane Paul, ''Digital Art'', Thames & Hudson World of Art, 2003, pp. 51-60</ref> or pictorial art imagery made with [[pixel]]s on a computer screen that mimics artworks from the traditional histories of [[painting]] and [[illustration]].<ref>[[Christiane Paul (curator)|Christiane Paul]] ''Digital Art'', Fourth Edition, Thames & Hudson Ltd, pp. 177-181</ref>

=== Artificial intelligence art ===
{{See also|Artificial intelligence art}}Artists have used artificial intelligence to create artwork since at least the 1960s.<ref>{{Cite book |last=McCorduck |first=Pamela |title=AARONS's Code: Meta-Art. Artificial Intelligence, and the Work of Harold Cohen |publisher=W. H. Freeman and Company |year=1991 |isbn=0-7167-2173-2 |location=New York |pages=210 |language=English}}</ref> Since their design in 2014, some artists have created artwork using a [[Generative adversarial network|generative adversarial network (GAN)]], which is a machine learning framework that allows two "algorithms" to compete with each other and iterate.<ref name=":3">{{Cite web |last1=Karpathy |first1=Andrej |last2=Abbeel |first2=Pieter |last3=Brockman |first3=Greg |last4=Chen |first4=Peter |last5=Cheung |first5=Vicki |last6=Duan |first6=Rock |last7=Goodfellow |first7=Ian |last8=Kingma |first8=Durk |last9=Ho |first9=Jonathan |last10=Houthooft |first10=Rein |last11=Salimans |first11=Tim |last12=Schulman |first12=John |last13=Sutskeyer |first13=Ilya |last14=Zaermba |first14=Wojciech |date=2016-06-16 |title=Generative Models, OpenAI |url=https://openai.com/blog/generative-models/ |access-date=2022-10-09 |website=OpenAI |language=en}}</ref><ref name=":2">{{cite arXiv |last1=Ramesh |first1=Aditya |last2=Pavlov |first2=Mikhail |last3=Goh |first3=Gabriel |last4=Gray |first4=Scott |last5=Voss |first5=Chelsea |last6=Radford |first6=Alec |last7=Chen |first7=Mark |last8=Sutskever |first8=Ilya |date=2021-02-26 |title=Zero-Shot Text-to-Image Generation |class=cs.CV |eprint=2102.12092 }}</ref> It can be used to generate pictures that have visual effects similar to traditional fine art. The essential idea of image generators is that people can use text descriptions to let AI convert their text into visual picture content. Anyone can turn their language into a painting through a picture generator.<ref name=":12">{{Cite web |last=Roose |first=Kevin |date=2022-09-02 |title=An A.I.-Generated Picture Won an Art Prize. Artists Aren't Happy. |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2022/09/02/technology/ai-artificial-intelligence-artists.html |access-date=2022-10-04 |website=The New York Times |language=en-US}}</ref>

== Digital art education ==
{{See also|List of 3D computer graphics software|Category:Animation software|l2=Animation software|Adobe Creative Cloud|
Artificial intelligence art|}}
[[File:Digital art classroom.webp|thumb|3D design of a digital art classroom with [[graphics tablet]]s, [[Tablet computer|tablets]], and [[stylus]]es at digital art workstations]]

Digital art education has become more common with the advancement of digital hardware and software. From hardware such as [[graphics tablet]]s, [[Stylus (computing)|styluses]], [[Tablet computer|tablets]], [[3D scanners]], [[virtual reality headset]]s, and [[digital camera]]s; to software such as [[Digital art#List of digital art software|digital art software]], [[List of 3D modeling software|3D modeling software]], [[List of 3D rendering software|3D rendering]],  [[digital sculpting]], [[List of 2D graphics software|2D graphics software]], [[digital painting]], [[Scenery generator#List of 3D terrain generation software|3D terrain generation]], [[List of 2D animation software|2D animation software]], [[List of 3D animation software|3D animation software]], [[Comparison of raster graphics editors|raster graphics editors]], [[Comparison of vector graphics editors|vector graphics editors]], [[List of mathematical art software|mathematical art software]], and [[List of video editing software|video editing software]].<ref>{{cite web | url=https://edtechmagazine.com/k12/article/2021/06/how-tech-reinventing-arts-education | title=How Tech is Reinventing Arts Education }}</ref><ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.rmcad.edu/blog/integrating-technology-in-art-education-tools-and-best-practices/ | title=Integrating Technology in Art Education: Tools and Techniques | date=17 October 2024 }}</ref>

== Scholarship and archives ==
In addition to the creation of original art, research methods that utilize AI have been generated to quantitatively analyze digital art collections. This has been made possible due to the large-scale digitization of artwork in the past few decades.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Lang |first1=Sabine |last2=Ommer |first2=Björn |date=2021-08-21 |title=Transforming Information Into Knowledge: How Computational Methods Reshape Art History |url=https://www.digitalhumanities.org/dhq/vol/15/3/000560/000560.html |journal=Digital Humanities Quarterly |volume=015 |issue=3 |issn=1938-4122}}</ref> Although the main goal of digitization was to allow for accessibility and exploration of these collections, the use of AI in analyzing them has brought about new research perspectives.<ref name=":1">{{Cite journal |last1=Cetinic |first1=Eva |last2=She |first2=James |date=2022-02-16 |title=Understanding and Creating Art with AI: Review and Outlook |journal=ACM Transactions on Multimedia Computing, Communications, and Applications |volume=18 |issue=2 |pages=66:1–66:22 |doi=10.1145/3475799 |arxiv=2102.09109 |s2cid=231951381 |issn=1551-6857}}</ref>

Two computational methods, close reading and distant viewing, are the typical approaches used to analyze digitized art.<ref name=":6">{{Cite conference |last1=Lang |first1=Sabine |last2=Ommer |first2=Bjorn |date=2018 |title=Reflecting on How Artworks Are Processed and Analyzed by Computer Vision: Supplementary Material |book-title=Proceedings of the European Conference on Computer Vision (ECCV) Workshops |url=https://openaccess.thecvf.com/content_eccv_2018_workshops/w13/html/Lang_Reflecting_on_How_Artworks_Are_Processed_and_Analyzed_by_Computer_ECCVW_2018_paper.html |via=Computer Vision Foundation}}</ref> Close reading focuses on specific visual aspects of one piece. Some tasks performed by machines in close reading methods include computational artist authentication and analysis of brushstrokes or texture properties. In contrast, through distant viewing methods, the similarity across an entire collection for a specific feature can be statistically visualized. Common tasks relating to this method include automatic classification, object detection, multimodal tasks, knowledge discovery in art history, and computational aesthetics.<ref name=":1" /> Whereas distant viewing includes the analysis of large collections, close reading involves one piece of artwork.

Whilst 2D and 3D digital art is beneficial as it allows the preservation of history that would otherwise have been destroyed by events like natural disasters and war, there is the issue of who should own these 3D scans {{En dash}} i.e., who should own the digital copyrights.<ref>{{cite web |last=Sydell |first=Laura |date=21 May 2018 |title=3D Scans Help Preserve History, But Who Should Own Them? 2018 |url=https://www.npr.org/sections/alltechconsidered/2018/05/21/609084578/3d-scans-help-preserve-history-but-who-should-own-them?t=1612716311697 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220118183055/https://www.npr.org/sections/alltechconsidered/2018/05/21/609084578/3d-scans-help-preserve-history-but-who-should-own-them?t=1612716311697 |archive-date=2022-01-18 |access-date=7 February 2021 |website=NPR}}</ref>

=== Computer demos ===
{{See also|Demoscene}}
[[File:Debris. 04.jpg|thumb|An animation frame generated by demo "fr-041: debris." by Farbrausch, first released in 2007]]
Computer demos are based on computer programs, usually non-interactive. It produces audiovisual presentations. They are a novel form of art, which emerged as a consequence of the home computer revolution in the early 1980s. In the classification of digital art, they can be best described as real-time procedurally generated animated audio-visuals.

This form of art does not concentrate only on the aesthetics of the final presentation, but also on the complexities and skills involved in creating the presentation.  As such, it can be fully enjoyed only by persons with a relatively high knowledge level of relevant computer technologies. An example is that, as said by Hua Jin and Jie Yang, Using computer-aided design software to present the class content in art design teaching," is not to advocate computer-aided design instead of hand-drawn performance, but to make it serve the profession earlier through a more reasonable course arrangement."<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Jin |first1=H |last2=Yang |first2=J |date=2021 |title=Using computer-aided design software in teaching environmental art design |url=https://www.cad-journal.net/files/vol_19/CAD_19(S1)_2022_173-183.pdf |journal=Computer-Aided Design and Applications |volume=19 |issue=S1 |pages=173–183|doi=10.14733/cadaps.2022.S1.173-183 }}</ref>

On the other hand, many of the created pieces of art are primarily aesthetic or amusing, and those can be enjoyed by the general public.

=== Digital installation art ===
{{See also|interactive art}}
Digital installation art constitutes a broad field of artistic practices and a variety of forms.

Some resemble video installations, especially large-scale works involving [[Video projection|projections]] and [[Video capture|live video capture]]. By using projection techniques that enhance an audience's impression of sensory envelopment, many digital installations attempt to create immersive environments.

While others go even further and attempt to facilitate a complete immersion in [[Virtual reality|virtual realms]]. This type of installation is generally [[Site-specific art|site-specific]], [[scalable]], and without fixed [[dimensionality]], meaning it can be reconfigured to accommodate different presentation spaces.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Paul |first=Christiane |title=Digital art |publisher=Thames & Hudson |year=2023 |isbn=9780500204801 |edition=4th |location=London |pages=71}}</ref>

[[Scott Snibbe]]'s "Boundary Functions" is an example of augmented reality digital installation art, which responds to people who enter the installation by drawing lines between people, indicating their personal space.<ref name="bf2" />[[Noah Wardrip-Fruin]]'s "Screen"(2003) utilizes a Cave Automatic Virtual Environment (CAVE) to create an interactive, text-based digital experience that engages the viewer in a multi-sensory interaction.<ref>{{cite web |last=Wardrip-Fruin |first=Noah |date=2002 |title=screen |url=http://www.noahwf.com/screen/index.html |access-date=}}</ref>

=== Internet art and net.art ===
{{See also|Internet art}}

Internet art is digital art that uses the specific characteristics of the Internet and is exhibited on the Internet. The term "internet art" is included by "net art" for which artists assume that network will be refreshed through history. So the term "post-internet art" is used to exclude artworks outside of the internet media.<ref>{{Cite web |last=DANAE |date=2019-12-02 |title=Net Art, Post-internet Art, New Aesthetics: The Fundamentals of Art on the Internet |url=https://medium.com/danae/net-art-post-internet-art-new-aesthetics-the-fundamentals-of-art-on-the-internet-55dcbd9d6a5#f65b |access-date= |website=DANAE.IO |language=}}</ref>

A representative example is Protocols for Achievements, which is a digital photo frame that confronts the aesthetics of kitsch, and inserts individual artistic dynamics within institutional media.<ref>{{Cite web |last=GCC |date=2013 |title=Protocols for Achievements |url=https://artsandculture.google.com/story/MgUxxWs5PRkA8A |website=Art Post-Internet}}</ref>

=== Digital art and blockchain ===
{{See also|NFT|Generative art}}

Blockchain, and more specifically Non-Fungible Tokens(NFTs), have been a common tool for digital arts since the NFTs boom of 2020-2021.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Sestino |first1=Andrea |title=Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs). Examining the Impact on Consumers and Marketing Strategies |last2=Guido |first2=Gianluigi |last3=Peluso |first3=Alessandro M. |date=2022 |publisher=Palgrave |isbn=978-3-031-07202-4 |page=26 f |doi=10.1007/978-3-031-07203-1 |s2cid=250238540}}</ref> By minting digital artworks as NFTs, artists can establish provable ownership.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Kugler |first1=Logan |date=2021 |title=Non-Fungible Tokens and the Future of Art |journal=Communications of the ACM |volume=64 |issue=9 |pages=19–20 |doi=10.1145/3474355 |s2cid=237283169 |quote=There is nothing stopping someone online from viewing, copying, and sharing a digital art file, but thanks to NFTs, they cannot fake possession of the art. NFTs make it possible to have exclusive ownership of digital art — something that was previously impossible. |doi-access=free}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Trautman |first=Lawrence J. |date=2021 |title=Virtual Art and Non-fungible Tokens |url=https://www.ssrn.com/abstract=3814087 |journal=SSRN Electronic Journal |language=en |doi=10.2139/ssrn.3814087 |issn=1556-5068 |quote=Trautman references Zittrain, Jonathan; Marks, Will (7 April 2021). "What Critics Don't Understand About NFTs. The complexity and arbitrariness of non-fungible tokens are a big part of their appeal". The Atlantic. Retrieved 11 January 2023. The buyer is not, however, acquiring anything that they alone can use. (...) an NFT buyer is not purchasing a work, but rather a publicly available token that links to a work. (...) The token itself is visible to all, as is the work to which it points, so anyone else can look at the work and download it. And most NFT transactions don't purport to convey copyright or other intellectual-property interests regarding the work in question (...) By these terms, many NFT purchases are akin to acquiring a piece of art that nevertheless remains in the gallery where it was sold, open all the time to members of the public, who may grab a free print of the work after their visit.}}</ref> However, the technology received much criticism and has many flaws related to [[plagiarism]] and fraud (''due to its almost completely unregulated nature'').<ref>{{Cite web |last=Lu |first=Fei |date=2022-01-06 |title=Does NFT Art Have A Place In The Museum In 2022? |url=https://jingculturecommerce.com/pamm-nfts-the-next-500-years-takeaways/ |website=Jing Daily Culture |language=}}</ref>

Furthermore, auction houses, museums, and galleries around the world have started to integrate NFTs and collaborate with digital artists, exhibiting their artworks (''associated with the respective NFTs'') both in virtual galleries and real-life screens, monitors, and TVs.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Trautman |first1=Lawrence J. |date=2022 |title=Virtual Art and Non-Fungible Tokens |journal=Hofstra Law Review |volume=50 |issue=361 |pages=371 |doi=10.2139/ssrn.3814087 |s2cid=234830426}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2021-06-03 |title=Natively Digital: A Curated NFT Sale |url=https://www.sothebys.com/en/digital-catalogues/natively-digital-a-curated-nft-sale |website=sothebys.com |language=}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Kastrenakes |first=Jacob |date=2021-03-11 |title=Beeple sold an NFT for $69 million |url=https://www.theverge.com/2021/3/11/22325054/beeple-christies-nft-sale-cost-everydays-69-million |website=theverge.com |language=}}</ref>

In March 2024, [[Sotheby's]] presented an auction highlighting significant contributions of digital artists over the previous decade,<ref>{{Cite web |date=2024-03-15 |title=Evolutionaries Digital Art Through The Decade |url=https://www.sothebys.com/en/auction-catalogue/2024/revolutionaries-digital-art-through-the-decade?s=intro |website=sothebys.com}}</ref> one of many record-breaking auctions of digital artwork by the auction house. These auctions look broadly at the cultural impact of digital art in the 21st century and feature work by artists such as [[Jennifer & Kevin McCoy]], [[Vera Molnár]], [[Claudia Hart]], [[Jonathan Monaghan]], and [[Sarah Zucker]].<ref>{{Cite web |last=Tremayne-Pengelly |first=Alexandra |date=2023-10-27 |title=Traditional and Digital Art Will Merge in Sotheby's ThankYouX Show |url=https://observer.com/2023/10/thankyoux-sothebys-exhibition/ |website=The New York Observer}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Escalante-De Mattei |first=Shanti |date=2022-04-13 |title=Sotheby's Is Launching Another Digital Art Auction, This Time on the Art Before NFTs |url=https://www.artnews.com/art-news/news/sothebys-announces-third-natively-digital-auction-generative-art-1234625167/ |website=ARTnews}}</ref>

=== Computer-generated visual media ===
[[File:Inkscape.png|thumb|Digital drawing of a car on Inkscape]]
{{See also|Computer art}}
[[Digital data|Digital]] [[visual art]] consists of either [[Plane (mathematics)|2D]] visual information displayed on an [[electronic visual display]] or information [[mathematics|mathematically]] translated into [[Three-dimensional space|3D]] information viewed through [[perspective projection]] on an electronic visual display. The simplest form, [[2D computer graphics]], reflects how one might draw with a pencil or paper. In this case, however, the image is on the computer screen, and the instrument you draw with might be a tablet stylus or a mouse. What is generated on your screen might appear to be drawn with a pencil, pen, or paintbrush. The second kind is [[3D computer graphics]], where the screen becomes a window into a [[virtual environment]], where you arrange objects to be "photographed" by the computer.

Typically 2D computer graphics use [[raster graphics]] as their primary means of source data representations, whereas 3D computer graphics use [[vector graphics]] in the creation of [[immersive virtual reality]] installations. A possible third paradigm is to generate art in 2D or 3D entirely through the execution of [[algorithm]]s coded into computer programs. This can be considered the native art form of the computer, and an introduction to the history of which is available in an interview with computer art pioneer Frieder Nake.<ref>{{cite journal |author=Smith, Glenn|date=31 May 2019|title=An Interview with Frieder Nake|journal=Arts|volume=8|issue=2|pages=69|doi=10.3390/arts8020069|doi-access=free}}</ref> [[Fractal art]], [[Datamoshing]], [[algorithmic art]], and real-time [[generative art]] are examples.

=== Computer-generated 3D still imagery ===
{{Main|3D computer graphics}}

3D graphics are created via the process of designing [[image]]ry from [[geometry|geometric]] shapes, [[polygon]]s, or [[Nonuniform rational B-spline|NURBS]] curves<ref>Wands, Bruce (2006). ''Art of the Digital Age'', pp. 15–16. Thames & Hudson.</ref> to create three-dimensional objects and scenes for use in various media such as film, [[television]], print, [[rapid prototyping]], games/simulations, and special visual effects.

There are many [[software]] programs for doing this. The technology can enable [[collaboration]], lending itself to sharing and augmenting by a creative effort similar to the [[Open-source model|open source]] movement and the [[creative commons]] in which users can collaborate on a project to create [[art]].<ref>{{Cite web|last=Foundation|first=Blender|title=About|url=https://www.blender.org/about/|access-date=2021-02-25|website=blender.org|language=en}}</ref>

=== Computer-generated animated imagery ===
{{Main|Computer-generated imagery}}

{{See also|Computer animation}}
Computer-generated animations are [[animations]] created with a [[computer]] from digital models created by 3D artists or [[Procedural generation|procedurally generated]]. The term is usually applied to works created entirely with a computer. Movies make heavy use of computer-generated graphics; they are called [[computer-generated imagery]] (CGI) in the film industry. In the 1990s and early 2000s, CGI advanced enough that, for the first time, it was possible to create realistic 3D computer [[animation]], although films had been using extensive computer images since the mid-70s. A number of modern films have been noted for their heavy use of photo-realistic CGI.<ref>[[Lev Manovich]] (2001) ''The Language of New Media'' Cambridge, Massachusetts: The MIT Press.</ref>

==== Generation Process ====
Generally, the user can set the input, and the input content includes detailed picture content that the user wants. For example, the content can be a scene's content, characters, weather, character relationships, specific items, etc. It can also include selecting a specific artist style, screen style, image pixel size, brightness, etc. Then picture generators will return several similar pictures<ref name=":2" /> generated according to the input (generally, 4 pictures are given now). After receiving the results generated by picture generators, the user can select one picture as a result he wants or let the generator redraw and return to new pictures.

==== Awards and recognition ====
In both 1991 and 1992, [[Karl Sims]] won the Golden Nica award at [[Prix Ars Electronica]] for his 3D AI animated videos using artificial evolution.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Golden Nicas |url=https://ars.electronica.art/center/en/golden-nicas/ |access-date=2023-02-26 |website=Ars Electronica Center |language=en-US}}</ref> In 2009, [[Eric Millikin]] won the [[Pulitzer Prize]] along with several other awards for his artificial intelligence art that was critical of government corruption in Detroit and resulted in the city's mayor being sent to jail.<ref name="Detroit Free Press IRE">"Mayoral reporting: Free Press wins top honor". (April 1, 2009). ''Detroit Free Press'', p. 5A.</ref><ref name="Detroit Free Press Pulitzer">"Free Press wins its 9th Pulitzer; Reporting led to downfall of mayor". (April 21, 2009). ''Detroit Free Press'', p.1A.</ref> In 2018 [[Christie's]] auction house in New York sold an artificial intelligence work, "Edmond de Bellamy" for US$432,500. It was created by a collective in Paris named "Obvious".<ref>{{Cite news |last=Cohn |first=Gabe |date=2018-10-25 |title=AI Art at Christie's Sells for $432,500 |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2018/10/25/arts/design/ai-art-sold-christies.html |access-date=2022-10-04 |issn=0362-4331}}</ref>

In 2019, [[Stephanie Dinkins]] won the [[Creative Capital]] award for her creation of an evolving artificial intelligence based on the "interests and culture(s) of people of color."<ref>{{Cite web |title=Not the Only One |url=https://creative-capital.org/projects/not-the-only-one/ |access-date=2023-02-26 |website=Creative Capital |language=en}}</ref> In 2022, an amateur artist using [[Midjourney]] won the first-place $300 prize in a digital art competition at the [[Colorado State Fair]].<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |title=2022 Fine Arts Placings of the Colorado State Fair |url=https://coloradostatefair.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/2022-Fine-Arts-First-Second-Third.pdf }}</ref><ref name=":12" /> Also in 2022, [[Refik Anadol]] created an artificial intelligence art installation at the [[Museum of Modern Art]] in New York, based on the museum's own collection.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Refik Anadol: Unsupervised {{!}} MoMA |url=https://www.moma.org/calendar/exhibitions/5535 |access-date=2023-02-26 |website=The Museum of Modern Art |language=en}}</ref>

==List of digital art software==
{{See also|Comparison of raster graphics editors|Scenery generator#List of 3D terrain generation software|l2=List of 3D terrain generation software|Digital sculpting#Sculpting programs|l3=List of digital sculpting software|List of mathematical art software|List of 2D animation software|List of 3D animation software|Procedural modeling#Procedural modeling suites|l7=Procedural modeling suites|Creative coding#List of creative coding software|l8=List of creative coding software}}
{| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center; width:100%;" 
! colspan="4" | List of digital art software<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.g2.com/articles/free-drawing-software | title=15 Best Free Drawing Software for 2024 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.parblo.com/blogs/guides/7-best-software-for-drawing-tablets | title=7 Best Software for Drawing Tablets }}</ref><ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.clipstudio.net/how-to-draw/archives/155465 | title=Best Drawing Apps and Software in 2024 (Free & Paid) | date=4 September 2019 }}</ref>
|-
! Software !! Developer !! Platform !! License 
|-
| [[3D-Coat]] || Pilgway || Windows, macOS || {{Free|Trialware}}
|-
| [[Adobe Fresco]] || [[Adobe Inc.]] || Windows, iOS, [[iPadOS]] || {{Free|Freemium}}
|-
| [[Adobe Photoshop]] || Adobe Inc. || [[Microsoft Windows|Windows]], [[macOS]] || {{Nonfree|Proprietary}}
|-
| [[Adobe Illustrator]] || Adobe Inc. || Windows, macOS, iPadOS || {{Nonfree|Proprietary}}
|-
| [[Adobe Substance 3D Modeler]] || Adobe Inc. || Windows, macOS || {{Nonfree|Proprietary}}
|-
| [[Affinity Designer]] || [[Serif (company)|Serif]] || Windows, macOS || {{Nonfree|Proprietary}} 
|-
| [[ArtRage]] || Ambient Design Ltd || Windows, macOS, iOS, Android || {{Nonfree|[[Proprietary software|Proprietary]] [[EULA]]}}
|-
| [[Artweaver]] || Boris Eyrich Software || Windows || {{Free|[[Freemium]]}} 
|-
| [[Autodesk SketchBook]] || [[Autodesk]] || Windows, macOS, iOS, Android || {{Free|[[Freemium]]}} 
|-
| [[Blender (software)|Blender]] || [[Blender Foundation]] || Windows, macOS, Linux || {{Open source|GPLv2}}
|-
| [[Corel Painter]] || [[Corel Corporation]] || Windows, macOS || {{Nonfree|Proprietary}} 
|-
| [[Clip Studio Paint]] || Celsys, Inc. || Windows, macOS, [[iOS]], [[Android (operating system)|Android]] || {{Nonfree|Proprietary}} 
|-
| [[GIMP]] || [[GNU Image Manipulation Program]] || Windows, macOS, Linux || {{Open source|GPLv3}}
|-
| [[Inkscape]] || Inkscape Developers || Windows, macOS, Linux || {{Open source|[[GPLv2]]}}
|-
| [[Krita]] || Krita Foundation || Windows, macOS, Linux || {{Open source|[[GPLv3]]}}
|-
| [[Mudbox]] || [[Autodesk]] || Windows, macOS || {{Nonfree|Proprietary}}
|-
| [[MyPaint|My Paint]] || MyPaint Contributors || Windows, macOS, Linux, [[BSD]] || {{Open source|GPLv2}}
|-
| [[Pencil2D]] || Pencil2D Team || Windows, macOS, Linux || {{Open source|GPLv2}}
|-
| [[Procreate (software)|Procreate]] || Savage Interactive || [[iPadOS]] || {{Nonfree|Proprietary}} 
|-
| [[Terragen]] || Planetside Software || Windows, macOS || {{Free|[[Freeware]]}} 
|-
| [[ZBrush]] || Pixologic || Windows, macOS  || {{Nonfree|Proprietary}} 
|}

{{image key|{{legend|#FFCCEE|[[Proprietary software|Proprietary]]}}|{{legend|#9EFF9E|[[Open-source software|Open source]]}}|{{legend|#DDFFFF|[[Freeware]]/[[Freemium]]/[[Shareware#Trialware|Trialware]]}}
}}

===List of 2D digital art repositories===
Repositories for 2D and vector digital art offer pieces for download, either individually or in bulk. Proprietary repositories require a  purchase to license or use any image, while those operating under freemium models like Flaticon, Vecteezy, etc., provide some images for free and others for fee based on tiers.<ref name=":4" /><ref>{{Cite web |date=2022-05-18 |title=10 Best Websites For Free Graphics & Vector Designs - PageTraffic |url=https://www.pagetraffic.in/blog/10-free-vector-graphic-websites/ |access-date=2024-08-25 |language=en-US}}</ref>
{| class="wikitable"
! colspan="3" |List of 2D digital art repositories<ref name=":4">{{cite web | url=https://geekflare.com/platforms-to-get-icons/#geekflare-toc-pngtree | title=13 Platforms to Get Icons for Your Website &#91;Free and Paid&#93; | date=26 July 2020 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Estefani |first=Nikka |date=27 July 2023 |title=10 Best Free Vector Websites for Designers |url=https://uigarage.net/blog-post/10-best-free-vector-websites-designers/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240523160627/https://uigarage.net/blog-post/10-best-free-vector-websites-designers/ |archive-date=23 May 2024 |website=UI Garage}}</ref>
|-
! Repository !! Company !! License
|-
| Vecteezy || Eezy LLC || {{Free|Freemium}}
|-
| [[Freepik|Flaticon]] || [[Freepik|Freepik Company]] || {{Free|Freemium}}
|-
| [[The Noun Project]] || Noun Project Inc. || {{Free|Freemium}}
|- 
| [[Openclipart]] || Community-driven || {{open source|[[Public domain]]}}
|-
| [[Pixabay]] || [[Canva]] || {{open source|[[Free use]] (Pixabay Content License)}}
|-
| [[Shutterstock]] || Shutterstock, Inc. || {{Nonfree|Proprietary}} 
|}

==Subtypes==
{{div col|colwidth=22em}}
* [[Art game]]
* [[ASCII art]]
* [[Chip art]]
* [[Computer art scene]]
* [[Computer music]]
* [[Crypto art]]
* [[Cyberarts]]
* [[Digital illustration]]
* [[Digital imaging]]
* [[Digital literature]]
* [[Digital painting]]
* [[Digital photography]]
* [[Digital poetry]]
* [[Digital sculpture]]
* [[Digital architecture]]
* [[Electronic music]]
* [[Evolutionary art]]
* [[Holography art]]
* [[Fractal art]]
* [[Generative art]]
* [[Generative music]]
* [[GIF art]]
* [[Immersion (virtual reality)]]
* [[Interactive art]]
* [[Internet art]]
* [[Motion graphics]]
* [[Music visualization]]
* [[Photo manipulation]]
* [[Pixel art]]
* [[Artistic rendering|Render art]]
* [[Software art]]
* [[Systems art]]
* [[Texture map|Textures]]
{{div col end}}

==Related organizations and conferences==
* [[Artfutura]]
* [[Artmedia]]
* [[Austin Museum of Digital Art]]
* [[Computer Arts Society]]
* [[EVA Conferences]]
* [[Los Angeles Center for Digital Art]]
* [[Lumen Prize]]
* [[onedotzero]]
* [[Rhizome (organization)|Rhizome]]
* [[V&A Digital Futures]]

==See also==
{{portal |Art |Technology}}
<!-- New links in alphabetical order please -->
* [[AI art]]
* [[Algorithmic art]]
* [[Computer art]]
* [[Computer graphics]]
* [[Electronic art]]
* [[Generative art]]
* [[Graphic arts]]
* [[Graphic art software]]
* [[List of 2D graphics software]]
* [[New media art]]
* [[Theatre of Digital Art]]
* [[Vector graphics]]
* [[Virtual art]]

==References==
{{Reflist|30em}}

==External links==
{{Library resources box|by=no|onlinebooks=no|wikititle=digital art}}
*{{Commons category-inline}}
* Dreher, Thomas. [http://iasl.uni-muenchen.de/links/GCA_Indexe.html "History of Computer Art"]
* Zorich, Diane M. [http://journalofdigitalhumanities.org/1-2/transitioning-to-a-digital-world-by-diane-zorich/ "Transitioning to a Digital World"]
* Chitrakala [https://www.chitrakalaart.in/art-and-technology-exploring-the-impact-of-digital-art-in-the-modern-world/ "Digital Art"]

{{Digital art}}
{{Computer science}}{{Branches of the visual arts}}{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Digital art| ]]
[[Category:Graphics software]]