Whitney Brothers’ mechanism and the creation of “mechanical analog computer,” which utilizes the remains from WWII warfares. They definitely marked down a cornerstone of the history of visual music. Their pioneer works also greatly influenced other artists. Belson is also a very significant figure in the experimental animation and cinema field, including the legendary Vortex concerts. I think their visual aesthetics share the same touch since they practiced around the same time around the late 50s – 70s. Their two-dimensional animation and visual music often both involve repetitive dots/lines/shapes, a black background, and similar reactions from the sound to the visual.
What’s different about their visual language, on the other hand, is that the Whitney brothers’ visual music is more about patterns and movement. They utilize the whole screen as their canvas to create the movement and changes in different patterns. They also thought about the cultural context of visual language and musical composition. One of their representative works – Arabesque, really speaks about creating a harmony between visual style and the music. By adopting some of the symbology of what’s considered “Arabic” in its visual creation, it represents an exotic, mysterious, yet harmonious feeling.
Belson is more articulate in creating sophisticated and complex kaleidoscope visuals in his works. His works are very exquisite from my perspective. I also admires his technical craftsmanship.
They are perfect statements that mechanics and digital tools won’t kill the authorship of the artists. In fact, their works speak for their style, aesthetics, and artistic choices.
Artists like them created amazing works using the technology back in the 50s. Today, software and technology became much more accessible and easy to use. They can be great empowerment if used wisely. But more importantly, the radical and experimental spirits to challenge the concept of visual art, music, cinema, and the visual experience should remain unchanged.
This is a contemporary interpretation of the Whitney brothers’ Arabesque: