MARK J STOCK
Mark Stock’s work is to aleatoric art what virtual reality is to, well, reality. Extremely complex fluid dynamics simulation software capable of generating algorithms for multilayered patterns of interaction between physical forces allows Stock to create startling images of the surprisingly organic yet surreal quality which characterizes his unique brand of aleatoric art. The appearance of water boiling, for example, is a result of the effects of viscosity, inertia, baroclinicity, combustion, heat transfer, surface tension, reflection, and refraction, among others, all engaged in an elaborate ballet of interaction.
Mark Stock choreographs these physical forces in simulation, often experimenting with combinations that could not occur in the physical universe. By digitally imaging the resultant patterns Stock shows us forms that appear natural, yet we would otherwise never encounter in a million years of observation.
All of my work depicts imaginary scenes that derive their complexity from the deceptively simple behavior of large numbers of independent actors/agents/particles/elements. The rules governing the action of each element are often based on primary natural and physical forces and can be described in a single mathematical statement or a few lines of code. Alone, each element emits a trivial and boring solution, like a single star floating motionless in space. Together, though, these elements create massively-complex galaxies of shapes and forms inspired by, and reflecting, the natural origin of their rules. This is the way of computational science: to break complex, real problems up into many smaller and easily solvable problems such that the ensemble predicts the behavior of the real system. That was my education, and it is now the source of my artwork.
http://markjstock.com