Reservations open
Creative Coding: Art with Code
Learn to create generative and interactive artworks using JavaScript and p5.js.
- Level
- Beginner
- Price
- $185 or $160 concession
- Next class
- 4 Wednesdays from 3 February 2027
- Time
- 6.30–8.30 pm
- Location
- Blam Blam Place, Brunswick
- Places
- 12 places
No payment today. Reserve your place and we’ll confirm by email before the class goes ahead.
What you’ll learn
- Write simple programs that draw, using JavaScript and p5.js.
- Use rules, repetition and chance to make generative images.
- Animate shape and colour over time.
- Make work that responds to the mouse and keyboard.
- Export your work as high-resolution images, ready to print or share.
- Read and adapt other people’s code with confidence.
Who it’s for
Artists curious about code, programmers curious about art, and complete beginners.
No coding experience needed. We start with a blank canvas and a single line, and everything runs in your web browser, so there’s nothing to install.
“The idea becomes a machine that makes the art.”
Course structure
Each week pairs a coding technique with the artists who first explored it, long before laptops.
- Week 1Drawing with code: shapes, coordinates and colourLooking at Vera Molnár’s early computer drawings
- Week 2Rules and randomness: loops, chance and generative systemsLooking at Sol LeWitt’s wall drawings and Frieder Nake’s plotter works
- Week 3Motion and interaction: animation, the mouse and the keyboardLooking at John Whitney’s computer animation
- Week 4Making your own generative work, and a group critiqueLooking at each other’s work
Practical information
- Dates and times
- 4 sessions on Wednesdays, 6.30–8.30 pm, from 3 February to 24 February 2027.
- Venue
- Blam Blam Place, Brunswick VIC 3056. The full address and directions come with your confirmation email.
- What to bring
- A laptop with an up-to-date web browser, and its charger.
- Materials provided
- Starter sketches to remix, and printed reference sheets to take home.
- Accessibility
- We’ll share access details for Blam Blam Place before the first class. Tell us what you need when you reserve and we’ll do our best to make it work.
- Cancellations and refunds
- Full refund if you cancel 7 or more days before the first class. After that, we can move you to a future class. If we cancel, you’ll get a full refund.
- Concessions
- $160 for full-time students and holders of a Health Care, Pensioner Concession or Seniors card.
- Class size
- Up to 12 students.
About your teacher
I’m Alex Gibson, an artist and creative technologist with a Master of Fine Arts. I’ve made art with code for years: drawing machines, point clouds, generative landscapes and AI-made images.
How I teach
Short live-coding demonstrations, plenty of time to experiment, and patient help when things break. They will, and that’s often where the interesting work starts.
Book your place
$185 for four weeks of creative coding, or $160 concession. Up to 12 students.
Thanks, . Your place is reserved.
We’ll email you to confirm the dates and send a payment link once the class has enough students. You won’t be charged until then.
Reserving is free. We confirm dates and send a payment link once the class has enough students, and you can change your mind any time before paying.
Continue your creative journey
Enjoyed making art with code? We’re developing intermediate and advanced creative coding classes for students who want to take their practice further.
These classes aren’t scheduled yet, so there are no dates or prices. Registering interest is free and doesn’t commit you to anything.
Only your name and email are required.
Thanks, . You’re on the list.
We’ve noted your interest in . We’ll email you when a suitable class is scheduled, and there’s nothing to pay unless you choose to enrol.
- BeginnerThis courseNo prior experience required. Foundational skills, confidence, observation, techniques and experimentation.
- IntermediateComing soonFor students with foundational experience who want to deepen their skills, explore more complex techniques and develop an independent practice.
- AdvancedComing soonFor experienced students and practising artists seeking sophisticated techniques, critical feedback, mentorship and sustained artistic development.