Flies (plotter drawing)

Name: Ragnar Digital, LLC
Price range: $

Charles "Chuck" Csuri

1967

Plotter Drawing

Description

In this plotter drawing from the Flies series, Charles Csuri examines how movement and spatial variation can be generated within the limitations of early computer graphics. Produced between 1966 and 1967, the work reflects his repeated use of the housefly motif as a test form for algorithmic distribution.

A hand-drawn image of a fly was digitized, then replicated and positioned by a plotter using blank ink. The flies are arranged along a meandering path, with the distance between each form determined by a random number generator. This process produces areas of clustering and dispersion across the surface. Without relying on color or shading, the drawing demonstrates how simple computational rules could organize repeated forms and suggest variation through placement alone.