#18 Tribute to Vera Molnár: Bridging Generations in Digital Art
#18 Tribute to Vera Molnár: Bridging Generations in Digital Art
👋 Hello, we are Julian and Marcel, and welcome to our weekly edition of The Curious Collector. Each week we humbly curate what’s happening in the digital art realm. ✨
It is a subscriber-only newsletter, delivered every Sunday, highlighting mainly digital and sometimes physical art news.
Welcome to our latest edition, where we pay tribute to Vera Molnár, a pioneer of computer and generative art.
Explore with us the evolving realm of digital art, featuring highlights from innovative artists and great works that continue to shape the art landscape.
Vera Molnár Tribute
Vera Molnár, born in 1924 in Budapest, Hungary, and a pivotal figure in the Paris art scene, passed away at the age of 99. Her death was announced on Thursday by Paris's Centre Pompidou.
A pioneer in computer and generative art, Molnár's influential career spanned decades, beginning in the 1960s with her innovative use of algorithms and plotters. She significantly impacted digital and generative art, culminating in her latest project of creating NFTs for Sotheby's in 2023, which brought in $1.2 million.
Her work at the Sorbonne and her involvement in the Groupe de Recherche d’Art Visuel are landmark contributions to modernist abstraction and the digital art movement. Molnár, a female icon in a male-dominated field, not only influenced generations of artists but also paved the way for women in digital art.
Chosen Insight
“In spite of their advantages, computers, no more than other simpler tools, do not guarantee that a work of art of good quality will result, for it is an artist’s skill that is the decisive factor.”
News Digest
AGH: A digital art collective by Kim Asendorf, Andreas Gysin, and Leander Herzog, launched with AGH 1 on December 7th in Berlin, showcasing abstract, technology-driven art.
On December 13th, they will each unveil a new work, continuing their exploration of innovative digital expression and challenging traditional art paradigms.
alignDRAW: Elman Mansimov's alignDRAW, the first text-to-image model from 2015, generated 2,709 images from 36 text prompts, a significant development in digital art. These unique images, classified as “Paper” or “Process” prompts, are being released as fully on-chain NFTs and prints, with auctions scheduled between December 12th and 14th through Fellowship.
Izanami Islands: A series by Richard Nadler draws inspiration from the Japanese creation myth of Izanami and Izanagi, who formed the Japanese islands.
These AI-crafted artworks, each representing a unique “island” in a digital landscape, will be featured in a ranked auction with a rebate on Dec 14, where the top 128 bids will receive the artwork, and all winning bidders will only pay the amount of the lowest winning bid.
Digital Highlight
Noper's objective is to explore the tangible and intangible facets of life through technology. Drawing inspiration from global journeys and life experiences, Noper infuses his creations with unique depths and perspectives.
By utilizing symbolism and technology as a canvas for storytelling, Noper invites us to observe contemporary life through an analog lens of childhood wonder and nostalgia.
Sale Spotlight
Spanish artist Harto is a multidisciplinary designer and artist who has moved from art installations and street exhibitions to digital creations and NFTs, gaining international recognition with exhibitions in New York, Miami and Hong Kong.
"The Golden Ratio" was released as Bitcoin ordinal and is one of the few generative collections on the Bitcoin blockchain.
Artist to Watch
DeltaSauce, an artist from Dallas, Texas, specializes in AI art that uniquely blends the essence of traditional illustrations and paintings. Beginning his artistic journey in 2021, he has developed a distinctive style that utilizes AI to create captivating cinematic landscapes and nostalgic scenes.
His latest release „Views“ sold out in under 2 minutes on Braindrops (500 pieces for 0.1 eth)
Closing Remarks
We honor Vera Molnár, a visionary who seamlessly blended art with technology, deeply grateful for the paths she paved. Her enduring legacy inspires continual innovation in digital art. Thank you for joining us in celebrating her remarkable contributions.