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Digital art is art created on a computer in digital form.
Digital art can be purely computer-generated, such as fractals,
or taken from another source, such as a scanned photograph, or
an image drawn using vector graphics software using a mouse or
graphics tablet. The term is usually reserved for art that has
been non-trivially modifed by a computing process (such a
computer program, microcontroler or any electronic system
capable of interpreting an input to create an output); digitized
text data and raw audio and video recordings are not usually
considered digital art in themselves, but can be part of a
larger project.
The availability and popularity of photograph manipulation
software has spawned a vast and creative library of highly
modified images, many bearing little or no hint of the original
image. Using electronic versions of brushes, filters and
enlargers, these “Neographers” produce images unattainable
through conventional photographic tools. In addition, digital
artists may manipulate scanned drawings, paintings, collages or
lithographs, as well as using any of the above-mentioned
techniques in combination. Artists also use many other sources
of information and programs to create their work.
3D graphics are created via the process of designing complex
imagery from geometric shapes, polygons or NURBS curves to
create realistic 3 dimensional shapes, objects and scenes for
use in various media such as film, television, print and special
visual effects. There are many software programs for doing this.
The technology can enable collaboration, lending itself to
sharing and augumenting by a creative effort similar to the open
source movement, and the creative commons in which users can
collaborate in a project to create unique pieces of art.
The mainstream media uses a lot of digital art in
advertisements, and computers are used extensively in film to
produce special effects. Desktop publishing has had a huge
impact on the publishing world, although that is more related to
graphic design.
Nonetheless, digital art is yet to gain the acceptance and
regard reserved for “serious” artforms such as sculpture,
painting and drawing, perhaps due to the erroneous impression of
many that “the computer does it for you” and the suggestion that
the image created could be infinitly repeatable.
Computers are also commonly used to make music, especially
electronic music, since they present an easy and powerful way to
arrange and create sound samples. It is possible that general
acceptance of the value of digital art will progress in much the
same way as the increased acceptance of electronically produced
music over the last three decades.
Some say we are now in a postdigital era, where digital
technologies are no longer a novelty in the art world, and “the
medium is no longer the message.” [1] Digital tools have now
become an integral part of the process of making art.
Digital Photography and digital printing is now an acceptable
medium of creation and presentation by major museums and
galleries, and the work of digital artists is gaining ground,
through net art and software art. But the work of digital
painters and printmakers is still not widely accepted by the
established art community. It is not represented or collected by
any major institution. Only the Victoria and Albert Museum print
department has a reasonable but small collection of digital art.
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