2026-01-19

Self-imposed restrictions

I have imposed the following restrictions on myself:

• The canvas must be square.
• For works that use a grid, the tiles must be square as well. That is, the same number of tiles horizontally and vertically.
• I have to be able to describe the algorithm, the idea, in one relatively short paragraph. The description must be scientific, not poetic.
• The works do not have poetic names; rather the names are sequential by date or number.
• The shapes should be minimal—lines, rectangles, triangles.
• Two-dimensional flat drawings if possible.
• Not figurative, just abstract.
• Short algorithms are better because they are more likely to show the complex geometric patterns that arise from simple mathematical and algorithmic relationships.
• Not iterative. If possible, avoid "first draw this part, then draw that part." The whole picture should emerge from a single idea, a single algorithm. (This is not always possible.)
• No text or emoji. Individual letters, kanji or other Unicode characters that are abstracted are possible.
• No external resources like images or fonts. The source code must be completely standalone and independent.
• No data visualization such as charts; no infographics.
• No user interaction with the mouse, trackpad or camera.
• No animations. But different stages of an algorithm can be shown in adjacent tiles, thereby transforming time into space.
• No gradients.
• No AI image generators.