For our 3rd year in a row, we’ll be taking part in London Craft Week, this year exploring Beautility in the digital age with CODE/CRAFT/CHAOS.

Inspired by the sweet spot where human craftsmanship and machine intelligence collide, this exhibition will showcase a selection of generative works designed by code and soulfully curated by hand.

In a time where digitally generated art is thought of as an alien output, lacking depth and meaning, we’ll ask instead, what if code could be crafted? What if art doesn’t need to be made by hand to be human?

The exhibition will pay homage to the artist Vera Molnar, known as the pioneer of Generative Art. Molnar famously said “the machine, thought to be cold and inhuman, can help to realise what is most subjective, unattainable, and profound in a human being”.

CODE/CRAFT/CHAOS will spotlight the space between man and machine; merging art and technology to generate art that has a pixel, and a pulse.

In keeping with our ongoing commitment to Beautility, each of our exhibits was made of good choices.

For our carbon-clever screenprints, we used algae ink and paper made from plant and waste materials to capture patterns digitally generated by machine but collaged into art by man. By using these innovative but not yet readily available materials, we challenged creatives and suppliers to employ sustainable solutions on a large scale.

We also created 3D-printed multi-use ceramics from extruded versions of our favourite digitally generated patterns. Each vase could be assembled and then disassembled again into bowls, demonstrating how creating for life is just as important as creating with end of life in mind. While most ceramics are imported from the Far East, our alternatives showcase how infinite variety in ceramics can be achieved from right at our doorstep without a large carbon footprint.

From the same coded patterns, we also made a tapestry with waste fabrics donated by responsible cashmere manufacturer Alex Begg. Working with ReWeave, a textile design studio exploring the possibility of circular fashion on an industrial scale, we handwove our collage of random patterns into a one-of-a-kind tapestry.

The tapestry wasn’t the only fabric item we designed from code. Together with creative textiles platform Byborre, we digitally knit throw blankets using responsibly sourced sustainable thread. As elsewhere, a collage of assorted generative art informed the look of our unique quilts made from 70% recycled polyester, Byborre’s most sustainable material on offer.

For our last two exhibitions, we wanted to do something a little more abstract. Pixel Poetry randomly recycles words from short stories created by our own writers to be used in poetry of your own. Have a play here. Codes of Note features a triptych of animations that move in response to melodies generated in collaboration with machines but composed and arranged by man into music. Have a listen (and a watch!) here.