Digital art is art created on a computer in digital (that is, binary) form. The term is usually reserved for art that has been non-trivially modifed by the computer; text data and raw audio and video recordings are not usually considered digital art, in themselves but can be part of a larger project, since the computer is merely the storage medium or tool which is used to create the work.

Digital art can be purely computer-generated, such as fractals, or taken from another source, such as a scanned photograph or an image drawn using vector graphics software, using either a mouse or graphics tablet.

The availability and popularity of photograph manipulation software has spawned a vast and creative library of highly modified images, many bearing little or no hint of the original image. Using electronic versions of brushes, filters and enlargers, these "Neographers" produce images unattainable through conventional photographic tools. In addition, digital artists may manipulate scanned drawings, paintings, collages or lithographs, as well as using any of the above-mentioned techniques in combination. Artists also use many other sources of information and programmes to create their work.

3D graphics are created via the process of designing complex imagery from geometric shapes, polygons or nurbs to create realistic 3 dimensional shapes, objects and scenes for use in various media such as film, television, print and special visual effects. There are many software programmes for doing this.

The mainstream media uses a lot of digital art in advertisements, and computers are used extensively in film to produce special effects. Desktop publishing has had a huge impact on the publishing world, although that is more related to graphic design.

Nonetheless, digital art is yet to gain the acceptance and regard reserved for "serious" artforms such as sculpture, painting and drawing, perhaps due to the erroneous impression of many that "the computer does it for you". But this only is reasonable in a few cases as many 'digital artists' come from a traditional art background and are using computers in their practice to realise their ideas.

Their traditional background still forces them to take into account the basic principles of design such as balance, repetition, movement and other aspects that all forms of art bind to to some degree as well.

Digital artists have a wide range of above-mentioned techniques - arguably more extensive than those of other modes of art - at their disposal with which to creatively express themselves.

Computers are also commonly used to make music, especially electronic music, since they present an easy and powerful way to arrange and create sound samples. It is possible that general acceptance of the value of digital art will progress in much the same way as the increased acceptance of electronically produced music over the last three decades.

We are now in a postdigital era, where digital technologies are no longer a novelty in the art world, and "the medium is no longer the message." [1] (http://www.anechoicmedia.com/twiki/pub/Main/RandomSystemWorkshop/CMJ24_4Cascone.pdf) Digital tools have now become an integral part of the process of making art.

Fields of digital art

Visual digital art falls into 5 main categories:

Computer Generated (Artwork rendered from models created by the artist.)

• Computer-generated art
• CG artwork
• Computer graphics

Illustration (Artwork created using, generally, vector-based tools.)

• Digital illustration

Photography/Cinematography Related (Artwork created through a camera which may then be manipulated.)

• Digital photography
• Movie Special effects
• Digital imaging
• Photo manipulations

Painting (Artwork created in similar fashion to non-digital paintings by means of software.)

• Digital painting

Game Related (Artwork that relates to computer games.)

• Video game design
• Artistic computer game modification
• Demoscene (A subculture that concentrates on making digital art.)
• Computer art scene (Another subculture with many parallels and ties to the Demoscene.)

Other (Aside from visual digital art, there are also other forms of digital art.)

• Electronic music
• Code poetry

Galleries

• Renderotica (http://www.renderotica.com/) 3D and 2D erotic art
• digital blasphemy (http://www.digitalblasphemy.com), Hi-res original 3d-rendered computer desktop wallpapers
• digital salon (http://www.digitalsalon.com), Virtual gallery of fine art
• computer fine arts (http://www.computerfinearts.com), online netart collection
• deluxe gallery (http://www.deluxe-arts.org.uk), Now closed but was considered one of the main galleries for new media in the UK, the site is a good reference to many new media exhibitions. Contact can also be made through the site to many digital artists.
• Digital Art Museum (http://www.dam.org), An online archive of the Pioneers in history of Digital Art. With archives of artists work, biographies and writings. (There is also a phyisical space in Berlin).
• The Power Of Beauty (http://www.maverdigitalarts.de), Digital scifi fantasy photo manipulation art.
• DigitalArt.Org (http://www.digitalart.org), Digital Art forum and gallery.

External links

• Ars Electronica (http://www.aec.at), Worlds longest festival of New Media and Digital Art.
• furtherfield.org (http://www.furtherfield.org), Internet art
• rhizome.org (http://www.rhizome.org), Internet art
• Pilgrimage (USA) (http://pilgrimage.scene.org), Computer graphics festival and demo party held annually in Salt Lake City, Utah
• turbulence.org (http://www.turbulence.org) Internet art

Communities

• deviantART (http://www.deviantart.com/), Where art meets application
• PGN Community (http://www.portalgraphics.net/oc/index.asp?reqLang=en), Japanese artist community surrounding a popular graphics program named openCanvas. Images and Painting Event Files.
• SkinBase (http://www.skinbase.org/), Community for artist with huge archive
• GFXartist (http://www.gfxartist.com/), The Digital Art Community
• digitalart.org (http://www.digitalart.org), Expression through technology
• Epilogue (http://www.epilogue.net/), Fantasy and Sci-fi at their best
• CG Channel (http://www.cgchannel.com/), Artists from the computer graphics industry
• Webism (http://www.artingrid.de/) Webism Group of Worldwide Artists
• renderosity.com (http://www.renderosity.com/) Renderosity Art Community
• Yessa (http://www.yessa.com/) Buy and sell artwork
• SITO - Internet art collective with special focus on collaborative art experiments
• Sijun.com (http://forums.sijun.com/) Dhabih Eng's digital-art forum

Further reading

• Paul, Christiane (2003). Digital Art (World of Art series). London: Thames & Hudson. ISBN 0500203679.