Untitled from Drawing Machine Two (b&w)

Name: Ragnar Digital, LLC
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Desmond Paul Henry

1964

Machine/Robot Drawing

30.7" × 20.5"

Description

Desmond Paul Henry built Drawing Machine II in autumn 1962, further refining a system he had developed for its predecessor. Like Drawing Machine I, this device was built from components of a World War II analogue bombsight computer—originally designed to calculate curved trajectories and the precise release of bombs—which Henry repurposed by attaching a motor-driven pen arm working in concert with a moving drawing table. Constructed in his Manchester home workshop, Drawing Machine II offered greater pen stability and control, allowing for more intricate and densely layered line patterns.

Despite these refinements, Henry continued to relinquish direct authorship of the final image, embracing what he described as the “mechanics of chance.” The machine functioned as a collaborator rather than a tool, advancing Henry’s investigation into the relationship between human intention and mechanical autonomy.

A 1964 untitled work is a dynamic drawing of white ink on black paper, composed of tightly interwoven lines that suggest both rhythmic order and energetic movement. A 1963 drawing made with tube pens on cartridge paper presents a vibrant composition in which overlapping lines accumulate into areas of depth and visual harmony. Together, these works exemplify the distinctive formal language produced through Henry’s collaborative process with his machines.

Drawing Machine II was featured in the groundbreaking exhibition “Cybernetic Serendipity” at the Institute of Contemporary Arts in London in 1968. This exhibition helped a new wave of technologically mediated art processes, such as Henry’s collaboration with his drawing machines, reach a wide audience.

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Untitled from Drawing Machine Two Desmond Paul Henry 1963 Machine/Robot Drawing

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Untitled from Drawing Machine One Desmond Paul Henry 1961 Machine/Robot Drawing

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