When I watched Casey Reas’ Eyeo talk on Chance operations, I started thinking differently about how i use control in my art. Reas explains that the computer is not just a tool that follows orders, but a creative system that can use chance in a planned way. One part that really stood out to me was when he talked about artists like Sol LeWitt, where the instructions are the artwork and the final image is just one version of many possibilities. That made me realize that art does not always need to be fully planned to be meaningful. I noticed that in my own work I usually avoid randomness, especially when I paint portraits. I like to control the faces, expressions, and details, and I feel like adding random elements could ruin the image I worked hard on. I like knowing what the final result will look like and follow the structured plan of how it’s suppose to turn out. But Reas helped me see that even when a system creates something unexpected, it still comes from the artist’s ideas and decisions. Making me realize even when mistakes are made, sometimes it still helps us see that it can turn the thing we are creating better (whether it’s planned or not).
Before watching the talk, I thought randomness mostly made things messy and out of control. Now I understand that randomness can be planned and guided by rules. Reas explains how simple systems can create complex behaviors, and that really changed how I think about art. If I use chance in my own projects, I want to start with movement. Movement creates emotion and makes the artwork feel alive, and letting it behave in a slightly unpredictable way can make it more interesting. I also think randomness can make my projects more unique instead of looking repetitive. At the same time, I believe there needs to be a balance between chaos and structure. If a project is formal or important, too much randomness can feel a bit overwhelming, confusing or disrespectful. For me, the best balance is when I control the main rules but let chance decide small details, like position or scale. After watching Reas’ talk, I see chance not as something that ruins my work, but as something that helps me explore new ideas and think differently when working with projects, art, assignments, writing and etc.