Vermont Fest 2022

In this presentation, middle and high school teachers will learn how to create algorithms and use computational thinking to generate abstract images in the styles of Wassily Kandinsky and Josef Albers. These Op-Art pioneers used geometrical shapes and patterns to form their art, which lend themselves to computers' strengths and built-in functionality. Computational thinking represents a formalization of human creative expression, just as art does. Through blended art and coded learning activities, participants exercise computational thinking methods and use abstraction and algorithmic processes in creating works of art. Art created on a computer is different from other art media in two ways: the computer uses code to create art, and the art is displayed mainly via light from a computer screen. We create programs that produce different works of art each time the program is run (without changing the code), which creates the coded masterpieces! During this flash session, Lisa Dion and Maureen Neumann will present an example art activity from their book "Teaching Computational Thinking".