The Draw-Nothing Machine: A Digital Canvas of Minimalist Art and Philosophy

The Draw-Nothing Machine is a unique and thought-provoking application that invites users to explore the boundless realms of minimalism and the concept of ’nothing‘ in a visual context. This innovative tool allows individuals to define and draw black and white shapes using a simple form-based interface, prompting them to ponder the essence of existence and non-existence through the lens of artistic expression. The app’s austere aesthetic is not merely a design choice; it is a reflection of the profound inquiry into the nature of reality that has captivated thinkers for centuries: how to visualize the „nothing“?

If you see a white circle you messed it up already! - Juan Petry

At the heart of the Draw-Nothing Machine is the ability to create using only the most basic geometric shapes: rectangles, triangles, and circles. By placing these forms on a canvas devoid of any other color, the artist is left with a stark binary palette of black and white. This binary is not merely a technical limitation but a deliberate nod to the duality present in our understanding of the world—where presence and absence interplay to construct meaning. The absence of color serves as a metaphor for the void or ’nothing‘ that the user is invited to contemplate.

The output of the Draw-Nothing Machine is particularly intriguing: the image is only considered complete when there are no green lines or red forms present on the canvas. This rule introduces an element of Zen-like simplicity, as the artist must carefully consider their strokes and the shapes they wish to create, ensuring that the final product adheres to the purity of the black and white palette. The lack of these colors symbolizes a form of digital minimalism, stripping the artwork down to its most fundamental elements and challenging the creator to express profundity through simplicity.

The process of creating with the Draw-Nothing Machine is deeply engaging, as it requires the user to engage with the principles of form and space. Defining white and black shapes involves a deliberate decision-making process, where each line drawn serves to either delineate or erase an area of ’nothingness.‘ This act of creation through negation echoes the philosophical concept of ‚via negativa’—the idea that true understanding can be achieved by describing what something is not, rather than what it is.

Once the masterpiece is complete, the app allows users to download their image and share it across various social media platforms. This act of sharing not only disseminates the artwork but also propagates the concept of ’nothing‘ as a theme for contemplation and discussion. The creators of Draw-Nothing Machine encourage users to send a link of their shared posts to [office/ a t /artsurprise.eu], thereby contributing to a collective exploration of the void within the digital realm.

Furthermore, the most compelling works generated by the Draw-Nothing Machine may be selected for an exclusive series in the international art project ARTSURPRISE.EU. This social sculpture is a plattform for contemporary art since more than 14 years. This series is dedicated to showcasing the diverse interpretations of ’nothing‘ from artists worldwide, offering a global stage for minimalist expression and reflection. The potential for one’s creation to be featured alongside other notable pieces adds an exciting layer of engagement and community to the user’s experience.

The Draw-Nothing Machine transcends the boundaries of a typical drawing application by providing a space for users to confront the philosophical underpinnings of their own creativity. It serves as a reminder that art is not merely the product of its medium but the manifestation of our deepest thoughts and emotions. The ’nothing‘ that is drawn is, in fact, something profound—a visual representation of the complex interplay between existence and non-existence, form and void.

By sharing these monochromatic meditations with others, participants in this digital art project contribute to a larger conversation about the nature of reality and the role of art in our understanding of it. Whether you are an experienced artist or a curious philosopher, the Draw-Nothing Machine offers a refreshingly minimalist canvas for you to explore the concept of ’nothing‘ and perhaps discover something extraordinary in the process.

Please feel free to download and share your creation on social media platforms, and remember to email the link to [office/ a t /artsurprise.eu]. Let’s continue the dialogue about ’nothing‘ and the power of minimalist art.

playwithme.artsurprise.eu

Important: This machine as a social artwork and all output is created and published under the CC BY-SA license. You explicetly agree in this. You might use your created images as you like and you are giving all other participants the same rights, including the autor of the draw-nothing machine Juan Petry and the project artsurprise.eu.

It is always time for networking. This is a show of selected pieces of art out of 15 years of the social art project ARTSURPRISE. As part of the social sculpture #buenavistacervera there was one bench transferred to a mobile showroom for featured artworks.

The showroom arrived in Museu del Ebre in Tortosa (Spain) and will be there till end of July.

Show up and have a closer look and join the social project ARTSURPRISE.EU. In the corner of the bench you find bags with all information and material to join one of the biggest social sculptures in the world (+30 nations, +300 artists, +30.000 works).

Catalan / English

Tu ets l’artista. Volem proporcionar una plataforma per a la teva creativitat.

ARTSURPRISE.EU és un projecte d’escultura social. Hi participen més de 300 artistes de 30 països. El projecte ha estat en marxa des del 2011. S’han creat més de 30.000 obres que estan en circulació o venudes. Les obres s’ofereixen en petites caixes en màquines expenedores de cigarrets convertides. Cada caixa conté un original i informació sobre l’artista, el seu lloc web i un text que presenta l’obra de l’autor. Els artistes participants reben una compensació.

Visita el lloc web d’ARTSURPRISE.EU. Busca la caixa número 30919. Aquesta és una obra típica i una descripció típica inclosa amb l’obra a la caixa.

T’invitem a participar a ARTSURPRISE.EU. Agafa els cinc fulls (A6) i treballa-hi: dibuix, gravat, fotografia, collage, tècnica mixta, pintura. Tot està permès. No treballis més gran que el format especificat. Tingues en compte que al final només s’utilitzaran 80 x 50 mm.

Un cop hàgiu completat les vostres propostes, envieu-nos un missatge. En aquest missatge, heu d’explicar-nos alguna cosa sobre vós, per què us interessa ser artista i què us agrada del nostre projecte. Envieu-nos les vostres cinc obres. Utilitzeu el sobre preimprès. En enviar-nos la vostra obra, accepteu explícitament que la puguem publicar (en línia i en sales d’exposició i galeries) i també utilitzar-la per al projecte ARTSURPRISE.EU.

English

You are the artist. We want to provide a platform for your creativity.

ARTSURPRISE.EU is a social sculpture project. More than 300 artists from 30 countries participate. The project has been running since 2011. More than 30,000 works have been created that are in circulation or sold. The works are offered in small boxes in converted cigarette vending machines. Each box contains an original and information about the artist, their website and a text presenting the author’s work. Participating artists receive compensation.

Visit the ARTSURPRISE.EU website. Look for box number 30919. This is a typical work and a typical description included with the work in the box.

We invite you to participate in ARTSURPRISE.EU. Take the five sheets (A6) and work on them: drawing, engraving, photography, collage, mixed media, painting. Everything is allowed. Do not work larger than the specified format. Please note that in the end only 80 x 50 mm will be used.

Once you have completed your proposals, send us a message. In this message, you should tell us something about yourself, why you are interested in being an artist and what you like about our project. Send us your five works. Use the pre-printed envelope. By sending us your work, you explicitly agree that we can publish it (online and in exhibition halls and galleries) and also use it for the ARTSURPRISE.EU project.

ARTSURPRISE is expanding its portfolio. Artist Books are now also available. The workflow was tested in the spring with an initial print run of 120 copies. „The secret book“ is a collection of paper fragments from the artist’s environment, a conceptual text on the subject of living communities, and a message to the art lover who can count themselves lucky to receive one of the few copies.

After printing, the stack was aligned and cut with the professional paper cutting machine.

Afterwards, the individual pages were mixed with the paper fragments.

Finally, three books were bound and pressed at a time. The provisional use of the clamps is to be replaced by work aids that are yet to be built.

The first copies were given a cover and then cut. The individual volumes measure 81 (h) x 51 (w) x 10 (d) mm. The first edition of 120 copies will be produced in the next few weeks.
Each book is unique! The compilation of the fragments between the text pages is always unique. The fragments depict the last few years in the CASAdelDRAGON environment. There are parts of graphics, texts, documentation and handwritten notes.

This makes each volume a carrier of contemporary history and is closely linked to the history of the ARTSURPRISE project and its protagonists.

From the beginning, the art genre literature was intended for the social art project ARTSURPRISE. Literature is a central component of contemporary art. Literature also cross-overs many areas of contemporary art, often paving the way between visual and performing arts.

In June 2023, the first two booklets were published in the format 8 by 5 centimeters in the art genre COMIC. Booklets in the art genres LITERATURE and OBJECTS (artist books) are also expected in the near future.

„At the art museum“ is a humorous examination of the communication between man and woman. The scene is a contemporary art museum. The displayed works speak for themselves, the two visitors about it, maybe also with each other.
The language is greatly reduced, as is the setting. In contrast to this are the exhibited works (all of them pictorial references to real contemporary art in the context of CASAdelDRAGON, an artist residence in eastern Spain), colorful, lush, central, eye-catching. That is why the sparse dialogue develops. The depth lies in the notion about what is not said.
S.Cape also plays with the layers of reality. The reader of the booklet looks into an exhibition space through the eyes of an imaginary viewer and observes the protagonists as they deal with an object of contemporary art. The readers own perception converts to the perception of the perception of others.

The visual languages overlap. There is the comic as an art form, there is the image of a contemporary work of art. S.CAPE curates, and the connection develops into a puzzle.

„When we were offered the first volume by the media-shy artist in 2022, I had no other choice. That was exactly the right topic for Artsurprise. A condition for publication was publication under a pseudonym. I agreed and asked about this. S.CAPE was the answer.

The author is a friend of the house, a welcome guest in the exhibitions and very interested in visiting the artists present in the CASAdelDRAGON at their workplaces. He’s a real (!) philanthropist, occasionally buying works by the artists on display, and doesn’t really have an ego to pay too much attention to. He is modest and steps back behind his message, which is: celebrate contemporary art, then you celebrate culture. The question of permission to use scans and copies of the original artworks digitally was answered in the affirmative, but hardly any attention was paid to it. But then the colleagues realized this art multiplication. Now I am asked again and again by colleagues: Am I there too? Did he also use something from me?

S.CAPE is a contemporary, one who enjoys spending time with the artists around this Artist Residence CASAdelDRAGON. I can’t imagine anything better than bringing this important form of creative expression – books – to life in the social art project ARTSURPRISE with his amazing works (Juan Petry, Founder of ARTSURPRISE).“

You are an author and have a book suggestion, you are an artist and have an idea for an artist book edition, then download The contemporary Bookkeeping (PDF, 3MB). We look forward to your suggestions.

This is the story about a social experiment, about 36 people in a room inside of a Cologne gallery space, about an international film festival, success and swarm intelligence and it is a story about passion and love.

In 2011 we started the project ARTSURPRISE. In 2012 it was still a challenge to show new artists samples of possible artworks.

Especially the condition to work out 100 (nowadays 120 pieces) multiples for one series was hard for some to cover.

At this point in time, I received an invitation to take part in a film festival in southern France. I had always wanted to make an animated film. Now there was the opportunity to put three projects into practice at the same time.
Firstly, the task was clearly defined, to produce a film of a maximum of one minute in length, in memory of the Lumiere brothers, the first filmmakers on this planet.
Secondly, I wanted to use the intelligence of the swarm in a social experiment to make a good contribution to this film festival.
Thirdly, it should give me the opportunity to show my colleagues how, on the one hand, one can produce truly unique art and, on the other hand, formulate an adequate offer for the art market by producing multiples.

So 36 friends and acquaintances were invited to a Cologne art gallery. The Kulturbunker Mülheim had kindly made the premises available to me exclusively for a week. Before that I had created the scenery and all the figures in the artist residence CASAdelDRAGON. After two days, the stage design, lighting and props were ready. Camera, software, data backup programs, backups, everything was wired and tested.

The invited guests had no idea what I would ask of them, the production of a short film, without instructions, in complete self-organization. Only the cameraman, my friend Peter Schmitz, as a dedicated photographer and IT technician, was familiar with the hardware and software.
The group had to fill: director, assistant, light, technology, animators (responsible for a limited number of characters each) as well as a documentary team (interviews, film, photography).
The roles were distributed and work began. On the first day of shooting, 5 seconds were shot, the next 45 followed in the next three days.

A great seriousness spread. It was clear to everyone that there was no going back and, above all, no repetition. Dealing with the characters on stage was unique and one of a kind.

Errors in the movement could not be corrected, there was only one shot!

A routine was established, only the directly active people were close to the set. As soon as a job was completed, the person would step back into the second row and wait for their next assignment.

The director gave the signal for the „take“, a photo. Then everything started all over again.

The first film on this planet was about a train entering the station of a French city. From a technical point of view, it was therefore necessary to implement how a train would enter a station at a given speed and then slow down and finally come to a standstill.

As expected, the passengers would start to look for the boarding positions on the platform when entering the station that would be advantageous for them.

The special role of the animators for the train was flanked by the special role of the „locomotive driver“ who was allowed to put the finishing touches to the simulated braking process as far as the accurate positioning of the train segments was concerned.

Slowly everyone involved became aware of the extent of this project. At the same time, a team spirit set in that made all of us forgetting the time.

After a few hours, other interested people came along, had the current state of affairs and the implementation explained to them and were ready to familiarize themselves.

The team even organized and recruited the replacement of individuals who could no longer work on the set.

Meanwhile, my job in the background was to monitor the data backup, serve the drinks and be available for interviews and discussions.

When the train stopped, the animators had to be redeployed as it would now be a matter of realizing the boarding and alighting of the passengers.

Each animator had to move a limited number of characters and memorize their positions. Mistakes to non-own figures, forgotten further movement, tipping over of several figures, all that would have been a mistake that could not be erased from the video.

Of course there was great relief when „everything was in the box after 4 days“.

The first week (preparation and shooting) was followed by another week of post-production (film editing, soundtrack).
Another week later, all participants were invited to the location of the recording to celebrate the premiere.

After an introductory speech and a few excerpts from the event documentation, the lights in the projection room went out, Totenstimme.

Everyone was spellbound for a short minute of film that passed like an eternity, realizing that you yourself had just become part of something much bigger, forever.
Then there was unbridled joy, applause. Hug. And a little melancholy in parting.

Then the scene was dismantled, the figures were collected. And a new story began…
All objects were not coincidentally 8 x 5 x 1.6 cm. This size was exactly the maximum size available for art in the ARTSURPRISE box.

So the prop and all the animated figures went into the black box and began their journey to the fans and collectors of Artsurprise, to those who heard about it later and would have loved to have been there, to those who like films, who like trains , to those who want to understand and experience what contemporary social sculpture means, how it works and what it can do.
A few objects can be purchased in the Sassen Gallery (Germany) or DeSouza (England) or in the CASAdelDRAGON (Spain).

If you’re lucky, you can still get one of these boxes from one of the machines, and with it you get one of the originals from the set, a one-off, real „ARTSURPRISE“.

And it’s the story of a great love. She was there and she will read these lines and she will know that she is meant now. She had written history right into the heart and the pen is still there to continue writing.

This is a story of Art and this is a story of AI. In Artsurprise we want to experience new contemporary color palettes to paint. Canvas is shifting to screen. Tempera is shifting to AI. This will of course redefine the creator and the process of creating. How does the contemporary artist position himself when the AI slowly slides between hand and palette. What does it mean for the art market when AI creates unique pieces on the assembly line. Where is there room for the producer, the retailer, the market?

There’s a lot of talk about art these days. But what is art, really?

Is it the big paintings that sell for millions of dollars at auction? Is it the quirky pieces that line the walls of hip galleries? Is it the stuff you see hanging in your dentist’s office waiting room?

In short, art is anything that someone creates with the intention of expressing themselves. And while some people may scoff at the idea of dentist office art being on par with a Monet or a Picasso, the truth is that all art is valuable – both emotionally and financially.

Just take a look at the contemporary art market. In recent years, prices for top-tier artists like Warhol, Beuys, and Haring have gone through the roof. In fact, Haring’s „Untitled (Boxer)“ recently sold for $62.1 million at Christie’s, making it one of the most expensive works by a Contemporary artist ever sold at auction.

But it’s not just blue-chip artists who are experiencing a boom in value. The entire Contemporary art market is red hot right now, with new records being set left and right. In 2020 alone, global sales of Contemporary art totaled $13.6 billion – an all-time high.

So, why exactly is Contemporary art so popular? Well, there are a few reasons…

For one, Contemporary art is seen as a more accessible investment than traditional assets like stocks and real estate. It’s also incredibly easy to store and transport, which makes it an ideal way to diversify one’s portfolio.

But perhaps the biggest reason for Contemporary art’s popularity is its ability to shock, surprise, and provoke thought. In a world that feels increasingly chaotic and uncertain, Contemporary art provides a much-needed escape – even if only for a little while.

So, whether you’re looking to invest in the next big thing or simply surround yourself with beautiful things, remember that Contemporary art is always worth considering. Convincing story:

Art has always been a passion of mine. As a young man, I would visit art museums with my family and be awestruck by the beauty and creativity of the paintings and sculptures. I knew then that I wanted to be involved in the art world somehow.

I started my career as an art dealer in Europe, and I quickly realized that the contemporary art market was booming. I was seeing more and more interest in contemporary art, and I knew that this was where the future of the art world was headed.

I decided to start my own contemporary art gallery, and I called it CASAdelDRAGON. I wanted to create a place where people could come to discover new and exciting artists, and I wanted to make contemporary art more accessible to everyone. After a few years i started the european art project ARTSURPRISE. More than 30.000 artworks on stock or sold, we we expand the space for art production, participation and perception.

Since opening my gallery, I’ve been thrilled to see the response from the community. People are really embracing contemporary art, and I think it’s because they can see that it’s not just something for rich people or art snobs. Contemporary art is for everyone, and it’s something that can truly enrich our lives.

I’m so proud to be able to share my love of contemporary art with all of you, and I hope that you’ll continue to support ARTSURPRISE in the years to come. Thanks for everything!

After reading this post, you may be wondering what this has to do with AI. The answer is: a lot. This text is not written by „me“, it is generated by AI, except for the green lines.
ARTSURPRISE uses the know-how from merchandise management and logistics to give contemporary art new impetus. AI is fact. AI will also change the art market, regardless of traditional role models. ARTSURPRISE is in the course of this, are you too?