Why use computers to make drawings?

ABSTRACT

In the field of art and design, there are some circumstances in which the use of computers for drawing would seem to confer few tangible benefits; and in situations where computers are productively employed, usage is often tightly bound by convention. Consequently, some practioners doubt whether the technology has anything new to offer them. In this paper, a wide-ranging review of contemporary, computer-mediated drawing leads the author to conclude that such scepticism is unfounded - that computers are not only enabling artists and designers to extend the scope of drawing, but that they are also helping us to understand aspects of the drawing process itself.

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INDEX TERMS

Primary Classification:
  H. Information Systems
  H.5 INFORMATION INTERFACES AND PRESENTATION (I.7)
      H.5.2 User Interfaces (D.2.2, H.1.2, I.3.6)
          Subjects: Interaction styles (e.g., commands, menus, forms, direct manipulation)

Additional Classification:
  J. Computer Applications
  J.5 ARTS AND HUMANITIES
      Subjects: Fine arts

  K. Computing Milieux
  K.4 COMPUTERS AND SOCIETY
      K.4.3 Organizational Impacts
          Subjects: Computer-supported collaborative work

General Terms:
Algorithms

Keywords:
collaborative art, computer aided design, computer art, creative programming, digital tools, drawing