The fx(hash) team asked me to curate nine artworks that I admired. A near impossible challenge as there are frankly hundreds I could consider. A common thread between the artworks helped me focus my gaze. I present.

# fx(gentext)

Generative art has a long history of using text and symbols to form art. In 1967, Leon Harmon and Ken Knowlton used an algorithm to recreate a nude of Deborah Hay with text symbols.

![© Victoria and Albert Museum, London/ Ken Knowlton](ipfs://QmQvMx8s39D1X8ucyZ22MEAUvwtDmLLFMGmW8j6xdaxN4V)

In the 1960s, Alison Knowles collaborated with James Tenney to create some of the first-ever computer-generated poems.

![Alison Knowles and James Tenney, The House of Dust, 1967–71, Courtesy of Alison Knowles and James Fuentes, N.Y.](ipfs://QmY4i5ziRtRAxhq7YBWfYDbHBNBgXGN9cDVoBKoSz6H4vx)

With the idea that text can make generative art. What art can be made? Is it abstraction, poetry or something completely new?

**Poems in the Public Domain by hieroglyphica and Ana Maria Caballero**

The first piece is "Poems in the Public Domain". Released in October 2022 by hieroglyphica and Ana Maria Caballero. Homer appears. The letters slowly float away on an invisible breeze. This iteration is currently owned by artist [Sarah Ridgley](https://www.fxhash.xyz/u/Sarah%20Ridgley) (see below).

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**0RAL B1NARY: “BINARY ODE” by Sasha Stiles & nathaniel stern**

A generative ode to binary with thumping beats and robotic poetry. Yes really. This piece is currently owned by the artist [Kevin Abosch](https://www.fxhash.xyz/u/ABOSCH).

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**A Clock by Ross Goodwin**

It's a clock! But made from public domain text where the time is displayed through this. This piece is currently owned by [Sasha Stiles](https://www.fxhash.xyz/u/Sasha%20Stiles).

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**Towers by ertdfgcvb**

A never-ending tower of babel rendered in ASCII symbols. This piece is currently owned by [lonli lonli lonli](https://www.fxhash.xyz/u/lonli%20lonli%20lonli%20). This is a rare purple edition.

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**ASCII-SMOLSKULL by markknol**

The cult [Smolskull](https://www.fxhash.xyz/generative/slug/smolskull) now re-rendered using ASCII. This piece is currently owned by [galaxyRGB](https://www.fxhash.xyz/u/galaxyRGB).

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**FSM by julian hespenheide**

This piece is built around a finite-state machine. It cycles in the most marvellous of ways. This piece is currently owned by the artist - [julian hespenheide](https://www.fxhash.xyz/u/julian_hespenheide).

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**ASCII-SCAPE by toxi**

Keeping with the theme of ASCII breathing new life into older works. A rewrite of the incredible [`C-SCAPE`](https://www.fxhash.xyz/u/toxi) by [toxi](https://www.fxhash.xyz/u/toxi). An ever-evolving exploration into cellular automata. This piece is currently owned by the artist [Ira Greenberg](https://www.fxhash.xyz/u/Ira%20Greenberg).

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**GRAPHEME by Sarah Ridgley**

A tribute to the late pioneer of Generative Art - [Herbert W. Franke](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Herbert_W._Franke). Bringing in letterforms and warping these through image processing techniques. This piece is currently owned by the artist [Casey Reas](https://reas.com/) under their [Caesuras](https://www.fxhash.xyz/u/Caesuras) pseudonym.

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**Cosmic Type by Mark Webster**

The final in my selection of text-based generative artworks - **Cosmic Type**. Inspired by the early pioneering work of concrete poets such as Dom Sylvester Houédard, Ian Hamilton Finley and Steve McCaffe, the project is a play with letters, words and graphic form in the computational and generative space. This piece is currently owned by [thefunnyguys](https://www.fxhash.xyz/u/thefunnyguys).

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A selection of nine projects on fx(hash) that rely on text as their visual foundation.

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