Enter the maze

Computational Creativity

Front cover of issue 22 on Creative Computing

Computers and their art

Is creativity a unique ability of humans? Does it make any sense at all to talk about a machine creating art? Could a machine ever be creative in any way? Ada Lovelace suggested in the 1800s that one day they might, and now computational creativity researchers are making it happen. We look at the first attempt at a creative algorithm for writing love letters and more recent programs that generate novel stories and funny tweets. Machines also create music: from programs that evolve better music to ones using it to improve their relationships with humans. We even look at programs that intend to paint portraits and artificial intelligences trying to create magic tricks. Whatever kind of art we may want to create, the computers are having a go at creating it.

Issue 18 of the cs4fn magazine was on computational creativity. Issue 22 was also on creative computing. you can download the pdfs.

Can a machine be creative?

What is creativity?

A rainbow swirl of paint Is it something only geniuses do?

Expecting Inspiration

A vortex of music Surprisingly surprise may be important for creativity

Tlahcuilo, a visual composer

A design by Tlahcuilo Understanding creativity with a program that creates visual designs

Scéalextric Stories

A female archer A kit for computers creating stories

The Fittest Slogans Survive

Big fish eating smaller fish Creating slogans by natural selection

Manufacturing Magic

A magic jigsaw Using artificial intelligence to create magic tricks

Body Art

A wire frame girl jumping Athletes' performances with generative art

Storms in Ballet

A ballet dancer leaping in a cloud of chalk Combine dance, art, and electronics

The Hive at Kew

The Hive at Kew Art combining electronics and zoology

Ant Art

An ant Breeding virtual ants to paint

Algorithm: Explain Yourself

A hooded figure in front of swirling data Algorithms that run our lives need to explain why

Employ the best or Bust

A hooded figure in front of swirling data An example of why trusting an algorithm blindly might go wrong

The movie star, the player piano and the torpedo

A woman with mobile phone and cityscape body Hedy Lamarr: her contribution to computing

Standup Robots

Dominos Can robots invent and tell there own jokes

I wandered lonely as a mass of dejected vapour

A fluffy cloud Computers as poets

AI film director

Lots of android heads An artificial intelligence makes a whole film

Playing with robots

A kitten playing with wool What has play to do with creativity?

Ada Lovelace: visionary

Cogs and cloud nebula She saw machines could be creative

Diamond Dogs

Scribbled Heart David Bowie's creative program helped him with lyrics

The algorithm that could not speak its name

Scribbled Heart Machines writing love letters

The Painting Fool

A painting by the Painting Fool The program that intends to paint portraits

Yeah, but is it?

A robot being creative Creativity is like art - no one agrees

The Judge of a Good Story

Mexica face Algorithms trying to work out how good a story is

Can a computer tell a good story?

Jaguar Knight A computer that invents novel stories about ancient Mexico

Music-making mates for Mortimer

Mortimer playing the drums The robot drummer using its music to make friends

Composing from Compression

Music in the Head Computers that compress files to create music!

Breeding art

DNA How you can evolve works of art

Music that has sex

A swirl of musical notes How you can evolve music

Tours of Babel

Shredded Paper Twitterbots generating funny tweets

Dangerous Curves

Red Square at night Using mathematical curves to tell better stories

The Sorceror’s Apprentice 2.0

A globe of magic smoke held in three hands Computers improving magic tricks

The rise and fall of the living dead!

Evil Dead rising from grave A new game of zombies honed by an AI

Aaron and the art of art

A globe of magic smoke held in three hands A robot that is a successful painter

Rules of Engagement

Cake gone wrong Is creativity about breaking rules?

Back (page) chat

Lots of android heads Creative quotes from famous people

This area and much of the research described in it has been supported by EPSRC and This issue and/or the research in it has been supported by the projects: CONACYT-México, project number 181561, and WHIM (611560), Lrn2Cr8 (610859), ConCreTe (611733), PROSECCO (600653) and COINVENT (611553) funded by the European Commission, Framework Program 7, the ICT theme, and the Future and Emerging Technologies FET program. It has also been supported by the Department of Education and Mayor of London through LSEF project teachinglondoncomputing.org, a Computing Match fund grant from the Department of Education and Google.