How does technology inspire artists? In this feature, an artist explains.
Text Marjolein van der Veldt
© Photos Sam Rentmeester
Lars Geluk
Artistic Algorithms
“Art need not always have meaning. What’s wrong with beauty alone?, asks Lars Geluk, a master’s student applied physics and an artist. For Geluk – an engineer at heart – art is an instrument to explore mathematical and physical theories. While his academic pursuits revolve around explaining phenomena, Geluk’s extracurricular exploits are more geared towards pure, visual experiences. This philosophy is manifested clearly in his latest work, an ode to the Fast Fourier Transform (FFT), Veldta mathematical algorithm used to process signals such as audio and images. A particularly well-known application is the .jpeg file format, which filters high frequencies to reduce file size.
“It’s a highly functional theory, but it’s also extremely complicated”, says Geluk. In a metre-high diptych, specially made for the KunstParade at Museum Prinsenhof Delft, he explores the aesthetics of this mathematical principle. “I explore symmetry and beauty without explaining the formulas,” he says. The idea sprang from curiosity pure and simple: a quest for ways to visualise the underlying theory. Geluk himself compares the process to building a violin, likening the instrument to the code he developed to produce visual representations of the theory. “The code lets me create visuals, but actually playing the instrument requires an artist’s touch. It’s a fragile process, he admits, and it has been a struggle at times. Like a novice violinist learning to play the right notes, Geluk is learning to master his own mathematical instrument.
The infinite possibilities of technology are the foundation, and a work of art is the end result. Geluk is hesitant to attribute meaning to his work, arguing that beauty is as good a reason as any. “My work is entirely open to interpretation.”
In the Kunstparade exhibition (until 5 January), Museum Prinsenhof is showing 38 works by established and emerging artists who have a special connection with Delft. Several artists with TU ties also feature: student Lars Geluk, alumni Willem van der Hoed, Theo Jansen, Tony Monsanto and Frank van der Salm and artist in residence Mette Sterre. Readers of Delft Matters will receive a 30 percent discount on an entrance ticket to De KunstParade upon presentation of this article. Prinsenhof Museum, Sint Agathaplein 1, Delft