Craig Hickman: Inductive Reasoning
Artist(s):
Title:
- Inductive Reasoning
Exhibition:
Creation Year:
- 1989
Category:
Artist Statement:
The first time I used a computer was in 1972. Up to that time, my attention focused exclusively on photography, but I knew the moment I used the computer that there was something absolutely “right” about it for me. Although you could, in a sense, “plug” other media into it, it was totally different from other media. For me, it was mostly an aesthetic research tool that could explore and materialize ideas that otherwise would never become real. Most of this required programming, which loved.
Much of my early computer work used database word search and a certain degree of “tamed” randomness. This produced two artist books and a series of works on paper. I became absorbed with user interface and program design, where I pursued maximum functionality and ultra-simplicity. If functionality and simplicity ever conflicted, simplicity always won.
With this in mind, I produced Kid Pix, which is used around the world and won the 1991 Software Publishers Association award for the best user interface. Kid Pix reflects my interest both in the computer as a visual research tool and in ultra-simple program design.
Today, I am focusing my attention more on the Web, developing small visual gadgets. Once I was having a discussion with a very serious designer. He strenuously made the point that the computer was nothing special but was simply a tool. My response was: “The computer is not a tool; as everyone knows, it’s a toy.”
