MacPaint Art from the Mid-80s Still Looks Great Today

Post by egypturnash » Sat, Jul 12, 2025, 4:50 PM UTC

andai wrote: post #107

When I was a kid, I used to think that better tools would automatically make me good at art. For example, I was making animations with EasyToon, and I only had a mouse, while the really good animators were using graphics tablets. Clearly, if I bought a tablet, my own animation skills would drastically improve! I guess I still kinda believe that, when I look at how fancy some of the newer computers are. If only I had…

Post by mattbettinson » Sat, Jul 12, 2025, 4:51 PM UTC

seabombs wrote: post #21

There's a term I read about a long time ago, I think it was "aesthetic completeness" or something like that. It was used in the context of video games whose art direction was fully realized in the game, i.e. increases in graphics hardware or capabilities wouldn't add anything to the game in an artistic sense. The original Homeworld games were held up as examples. Anyway, this reminded me of that. Making these picture…

Post by libraryatnight » Sat, Jul 12, 2025, 4:53 PM UTC

timoth3y wrote: post #52

seabombs wrote: post #21

There's a term I read about a long time ago, I think it was "aesthetic completeness" or something like that. It was used in the context of video games whose art direction was fully realized in the game, i.e. increases in graphics hardware or capabilities wouldn't add anything to the game in an artistic sense. The original Homeworld games were held up as examples. Anyway, this reminded me of that. Making these picture…

The same holds true for everything from cave paintings to Roman frescos. It's part of human expression. The tools of that expression shape it. For example, Bach's music was shaped by the fact that the harpsichord had no sustain. The piano changed that, but "upscaling" Bach's work to take advantage of this new technology would destroy them. You use the new technology to play them as they were written for the old. The…

Post by sovietswag » Sat, Jul 12, 2025, 4:56 PM UTC

dahart wrote: post #70

timoth3y wrote: post #52

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The same holds true for everything from cave paintings to Roman frescos. It's part of human expression. The tools of that expression shape it. For example, Bach's music was shaped by the fact that the harpsichord had no sustain. The piano changed that, but "upscaling" Bach's work to take advantage of this new technology would destroy them. You use the new technology to play them as they were written for the old. The…

Switched on Bach is one of my favorite albums of all time.

Post by TacticalCoder » Sat, Jul 12, 2025, 5:04 PM UTC