Glossary and Articles
Ieva
This project aims to show the complexity behind the apparent simplicity. Minimalism that is not minimal. I also tried to comply with all the canons of long-form generative art:
- Huge variability.
- Strict concept.
- 100% recognizability.
This is the first project that was fully formed in my mind before I started programming it. I already knew all the details when I started the work.
I've always wanted to do something simple, but I gravitate toward complex, overloaded pieces, so I had to combine the two entities.
In creating this piece, I had several goals in mind:
- To slow down the almost exponential complication of visual forms and effects in generative art, which is now being seen everywhere.
- To evoke an emotion in collectors and artists that takes them back to the beginning of 2021, when many of us were starting on our journey, the future seemed beautiful, and when most arts on Art Blocks were geometrically simple and memorable.
- To imprint in art the name Ieva, which has become a noun for me. That name lived in my head for months next to the question “Why”? Why am I being treated like this? Why do law enforcement officials hate me without even knowing me? Why does no one want to communicate with me? This is the name of the investigator who initiated the criminal case against me. They have already resigned. Maybe it wasn't their initiative to start it. But that was the only name I knew at the time.
How Ieva was created
This algorithm is based on a straightforward concept. On a grid of dots, a figure is created this way: select a random point and try to add neighboring points on all sides: left, right, up, down, and diagonally.
Then, based on this “skeleton,” the shape of the future element is created using squares.
After that, the algorithm bypasses all the vertices of these squares on the edge of the future figure and connects them, smoothing out the "gaps." And then rounds the corners, giving the final shape to the element.
The grid size limits the maximum number of steps if the side is two or three points or equal to nine - this limitation is made to preserve aesthetics and balance.
Several such elements are created, and then they are overlapped on top of each other. Some are filled, some are transparent, and each has different outline parameters.
All the parameters and dimensions of the constituent parts of this piece of art are calculated in such a way as to maintain a balance between them. One of the balancing elements is the circles located partly on the grid and partly on the "corners" of the forms.
But some elements are also designed specifically to upset the balance and make the picture less than ideal.
Such a combination of elements gives endless variations of the final result. I could make an art-QR code for all earth's inhabitants, or at least for admirers of generative art, but I will have to limit it to 500 pieces for true connoisseurs.
I hand-picked all the 22 color palettes. Some have a special meaning, but it's not something worth publicly telling. It's just one of the things an artist puts into their art.
In any case, when you purchase an Ieva, you become part of a union. There are only five unions - by the number of dots on the side of the grid. I am currently a member of Union 4 because that is my mint #0. What could this all mean? Nothing.
I made an effort to make this release interesting for those who like to collect rare items, but I will not disclose their features and meaning here. I will only say that in addition to the prescribed features, there is one hidden.
To summarize, this is not just a release. This is my action. To bring the situation to utter absurdity of the case. I will do what I am accused of doing at the time I am accused of doing it. I hope I will be able to shake some foundations.
My weapons are honesty, transparency, and art. If that's not enough to win, let me be an eternal loser!
How to make complete use of Ieva and why generative art on-chain is so cool.
Ieva is not just static art. Although even in this form, it can be seen as a finished piece of art. But it is a full-fledged work of generative art with its concept revealing additional possibilities for interpretation. This art is interactive. Each click on it removes one of the layers - the top shape. This way, you can get to the lowest layer without any shapes and then do the reverse process. This can also be automated by pressing the space bar.
In this way, the following concept related to the name of the art is realized: Ieva is an investigator - and this is art: a layering of different elements overlapping each other. And by clicking on it, you "investigate" how it was created.
Each owner of one of the 500 Ieva owns the final/initial art and all its iterations. This allows the collector to be creative. You can display this art as a cycle as shown above or make an evolution composition or come up with something else (don't forget to show me)
I hope that many of my collectors will be able to demonstrate to uninitiated people the concept and main benefits of generative art with my creation.
And a minor technical detail: if you need to download Ieva in high resolution, add /?pd=PixelDensity at the end of the browser string and press "S" or right-click-save.