Vera Molnár (1924, Budapest – 2023, Paris) was a pioneer of generative and computer art. From the late 1950s, she used simple algorithms to compose abstract paintings and drawings, calling her process an ‘imaginary machine’. In 1968, she gained access to a computer and, after learning the FORTRAN language, produced the Interruptions series of works on paper, one of which is presented here. Taking a grid as her starting point, the artist applied a random rotation to each of the lines from which it is composed, creating an irregular composition of contradictory forces. Molnár then instructed the program to randomly erase certain zones, causing interruptions in the composition. In 1974, she collaborated with her husband, François Molnár to create their own software, Molnart. During this time, she produced Hypertransformation (1974), based on a square motif, substituted its straight lines with undulating ones and played with the principles of doubling and repetition. Lettres à ma mère (1988, displayed in a vitrine) employs a computer to reinterpret the artist’s mother's handwriting. Molnár describes it as ‘regular, strict, Gothic, but as the line moved towards the side of the page, . . . more and more nervous, worried, almost hysterical’ (1). Over the years, she noticed that the letters became more and more tormented. When her mother stopped writing to her, the artist simulated the letters ‘for herself’, using computer programming to imitate her distinctive handwriting.

(1) Lettres à ma mère (1981-1990), artist’s text, Le Hôme-sur-Mer, Summer 1991
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