The Mind Creative | Page 21

The Mind Creative

In January 1984, Apple released a software package called
MacPaint and in the process revolutionised the computer painting
process, known today as ‘digital painting’. It was a watershed
moment for both, computers and the artist.
Today, the omnipresent Wikipedia defines digital art as “a method
of creating an art object (painting) digitally and/or a technique
for making digital art in the computer. As a method of creating
an art object, it adapts traditional painting medium such as acrylic
paint, oils, ink, watercolour, etc. and applies the pigment to
traditional carriers, such as woven canvas cloth, paper, polyester
etc. by means of computer software driving industrial robotic or
office printers. As a technique, it refers to a computer
graphics software program that uses a virtual canvas and virtual
painting box of brushes, colours and other supplies. The virtual
box contains many instruments that do not exist outside the
computer, and which sometimes gives a digital artwork a different
look and feel from an artwork that is created with traditional
methods.”

Steve Jobs, Bill Atkinson, (author of
MacPaint)
1984 Macintosh © Norman Seeff

Early MacPaint drawing
by
Susan Kare
Credit: Apple, Inc.
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