Archives of Computers and Automation's 1966-1969 Computer Art Contests Resurface

AI culture researcher Merzmensch published a series of posts on November 12, systematically documenting the computer art competition archives of the 1960s American magazine Computers and Automation, presenting key historical materials on algorithmically generated art from 1966–1968.

Confirmed

• In the May 1966 issue's reader forum, L. Mezei of York University in Toronto summarized observations across projects in visual arts, music, literature, archaeology, and experimental aesthetics, proposing a three-tier framework for computer art: artistic creation, study of the artistic process, and academic research.
• The first prize in the August 1966 computer art special issue went to Stuttgart researcher/artist Frieder Nake, whose work won with a "regular irregularity" grid of squares.
• The August 1967 competition was won by Charles Csuri, with participants including Kenneth K. and others.
• The September 1968 issue reported that Dr. Don Mittl (name as given in the post), director of the computing center at Notre Dame, used a UNIVAC 1107 with FORTRAN programs to automatically produce oil paintings—showing that computer-assisted oil painting existed nearly 60 years ago.
• The August 1968 issue held the 6th annual computer art competition, with the top prize going to Kerry Strand and Gary C… (post truncated); the entries also included works from Bell Labs and Japan's CTG.

Why it matters

• These archives show that as early as the 1960s, the creators, tools (FORTRAN, mainframes), and theoretical frameworks (the three-tier division of activities) of generative art were all in place, offering first-hand material for understanding the historical roots of today's AI-generated art.
• Prize winners such as Nake and Csuri later became iconic figures in the history of computer art, and the journal records these early milestones of their recognition.

2026-11-12 ~ 2026-11-13 · 6 related posts

• [source] A 1966 magazine already mapped three levels of computer art, from creation to scholarship — Merzmensch · 2026-11-12
• [source] August 1966: Frieder Nake wins the first Computer Art Contest, an early milestone of generative art — Merzmensch · 2026-11-12
• Archive dig: 1967 'Computers and Automation' contest and the turning point of computer art — Merzmensch · 2026-11-12
• 1968 magazine pages show early computer art: IBM 7090 plotters and Japan's CTG pioneers — Merzmensch · 2026-11-12
• 1968 magazine reveals UNIVAC 1107 auto-painting oils from FORTRAN tapes — Merzmensch · 2026-11-12
• [source] August 1969: the computer art contest that predicted we'd learn to love machine art — Merzmensch · 2026-11-13