Beautiful Chaos
Posted on in Strange Attractors
Beautiful Chaos is an experimental art app that I’ve been working on a lot this year. It’s my first time releasing an application in an app store, which is business model I am interested in exploring as an independent fine artist.
An infinite variety of futuristic, abstract shapes are produced by the mathematical formulas underlying this exciting app that blends art and science. With the Leap Motion Controller, you will have an unprecedented sense of immersion in this simulation, and you will see new and exciting forms and movement every time you play with it.
What is an experimental art app, you might ask? Good question. It’s experimental because it doesn’t have as much of a defined goal as most apps do (e.g. get something productive done, play a game, take and edit a photo, etc). If this is a new “category” of app for you, I would recommend you check out Creative Applications Network, which covers a lot of apps that could be described this way.
Experiential might also be a good word… my hope is that you have an artistic experience with the app. The name embodies the essence of this experience, with the juxtaposition of “beautiful” and “chaos.” The motion and images you see and create with the app are beautiful, but they are also chaotic and can be difficult to control. To me, this sounds like life 🙂
My app currently runs on OS X (Mac laptops and desktops), although I have a Windows version that’s almost ready, and I plan on creating a version for iOS and possibly Android as well.
Also, the current version of the app is designed to use a new input device called the Leap Motion Controller. If you haven’t heard of this device, check it out – it’s the future! It allows you to interact with your computer using your hands, without touching anything. You can buy one for $80 at Best Buy or online. It’s certainly not a perfect device, but I think it has a huge amount of potential, and I think we’ll see this type of technology incorporated into all sorts of devices (including phones) in the next 5 years, just like we saw touchscreens and multi-touch proliferate over the last 5 years.
You can see some images generated with Beautiful Chaos here, or if you have a Leap Motion Controller, you can buy the app for $1.99 here. Let me know what you think!
P.S. Check out this thread in the Cinder forums for some mathematical and technical insight into this app, if you’re interested.