Elektronische Computergrafik

Name: Ragnar Digital, LLC
Price range: $

Otto Beckmann Alfred Graßl

1968

Oscilloscope/Light Photo

Computer-Generated Phototpe
13"x10"
Print on aluminum plate
Stamp on verso (Prof. Otto Beckmann)
Felt pen on verso by archiver ́s hand catalogue no and "Otto Beckmann 1968“

Description

Otto Beckmann viewed the computer as an extension of himself, a partner in the creation process. Alfred Graßl was an engineer whose research focused on the behavior of complex systems and the role of chance in structure. Working together at the Technical University of Vienna, they created some of the first computer-based images in Austria, transforming electrical signals into visual compositions that bridged art and scientific experiment.

_Elektronische Computergrafik _was created through an experimental setup at the Technical University of Vienna, where Beckmann and Graßl visualized electrical signals on a Tektronix 564B storage oscilloscope. Graßl used an analog Markoff generator that produced voltage patterns through simple probabilistic transitions to create fluctuating waveforms. He adjusted the oscilloscope’s brightness and focus, while Beckmann guided the process by choosing the probability settings and deciding which moments on the screen were recorded. The resulting images were photographed directly from the oscilloscope, translating random signal behavior into structured compositions.

A dense blue outline runs across a pale surface with an almost painterly quality, as the pigment settles unevenly and traces each contour. Elektronische Computergrafik turns the flow of an electrical signal into an image.