Tyler Hobbs: Order/Disorder

Hobbs is the artist who made generative art undeniable. Fidenza alone changed how people think about algorithms and aesthetics. The monograph documents his thinking and process as much as the finished work, which is unusual in art books and more valuable. The argument that constraints produce freedom -- that a tight algorithm makes genuine surprise possible -- applies far outside generative art. One of those books where the subject matter is almost secondary to the quality of the thinking on show.