Dance of Electrons

Herbert W. Franke (1927–2022), Austrian physicist, science-fiction author, and founding figure of computer art, created the series 'Tanz der Elektronen' (Dance of the Electrons) in the late 1950s to early 1960s by photographing the screen of a cathode-ray oscillograph whose signals were generated by an analog computer built by Viennese physicist Franz Raimann. These camera-recorded electron traces — fine luminous line structures produced entirely by programmed electronic circuits — are among the earliest works of computer-generated art, predating digital plotter graphics, and were later editioned as prints. The three prints here derive from that series; individual images from it carry dates ranging from 1958/59 (Franke Foundation) to 1962 (V&A, Buffalo AKG). 3 Herbert W Franke prints of the series "Dance of the Electrons, no. 1,2 3", each an edition of 10, signed and numbered no. 6/10 on the back Sources: https://art-meets-science.io/en/herbert-w-franke-dance-of-the-electrons/ · https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O192847/analog-grafik-d2-dance-of-print-franke-herbert-w/ · https://spalterdigital.com/artworks/435/ The date is an estimate: Franke made his 'Tanz der Elektronen' oscillograph photographs in the late 1950s to early 1960s. Note: the Franke tribute site captions "Tanz der Elektronen" 1962, and daDA dates the analog oscillograph works to about 1961/62 — so c. 1961–62, not 1960 as previously recorded. This is analog work: a photograph of the oscilloscope screen, pre-dating his digital phase (1969 on). Sources: http://dada.compart-bremen.de/item/agent/188