United States of America

Nat Sarkissian is a San Diego-based generative artist working with code, digital images, video, and print, exploring landscape, light, memory, and natural systems through custom algorithmic processes. He got his start in programming at twelve through game design, a path that led him into graphics and eventually the early Processing-era generative art scene. His California landscape work draws directly from time spent outdoors, sometimes recreating a specific hill or view, sometimes absorbed more subconsciously, alongside Armenian cultural memory that runs through the work as a second undercurrent. As he's described it, each iteration of his landscape algorithms feels like a glimpse out of a car window on a drive up the coast, a pause on a cool morning hike, or a memory of tearing through sharp underbrush with good company. Rather than aiming for precise representation, he breaks a subject down into simpler geometric forms and leans into what the medium itself brings to the image. For Sarkissian, the process of generation is as much a part of the artwork as the final result: many of his pieces are built to be watched as they render, offering viewers a glimpse into how the work was made rather than presenting them with something static.

Sarkissian transitioned to working on his art full-time in early 2022, after years spent as a software engineer. His projects have been commissioned and presented by organizations including Bright Moments, where he held one of his first solo showings in Venice Beach, as well as Davis Editions, reGen, Art Blocks, Bonhams, Christie's, and Samsung Art.


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Never the Same in Teal - Horizontal

Never_the_Same_in_Teal_-_Horizontal_Nat_Sarkissian_Generative_art.mp4

Every spring, the flowers bloom, and they sway in the breeze. Every spring, we go and see those flowers swaying in the breeze. And when spring is gone, we think about those flowers swaying in the breeze. And when spring returns, the flowers will bloom and sway again, in the breeze. Always the same, and never the same.

This work simulates a grassy meadow with wildflowers. Each flower has various properties, like species, age, etc. and some of these are functions of time. Every time you run this code, the output will be slightly different.

This project is part of the digital section of Cure³ at Bonhams, curated by Alex Estorick and Foteini Valeonti of reGEN.

technique

generative art

format

landscape

duration

01:00

year

2025

Transport

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More from Nat Sarkissian

More on digital art

Generative art
Generative art refers to a way of creating artworks using an autonomous system. In digital art, these are usually generated from code and algorithms created by the artist, often with certain predefined parameters or systems. Although these parameters guide the final outcome of the work, generative art is generally a surprising way to create artworks, as the results are often unexpected and the number of possible outcomes can be infinite.
AI
AI art is a branch of generative art that uses artificial intelligence. Unlike other generative artworks, AI artworks use specific complex algorithms and models derived from machine learning. The most common methods for creating AI art today are GANs (generative adversarial networks) or proprietary prompting platforms such as ChatGPT, Sora, Midjourney, or Dall-e.
3D
3D art uses 3D software such as Blender, Cinema4D, Houdini, or video game software such as Unity to create works of art. In 3D works, artists can either arrange assets (the 'objects' in a 3D artwork or world) that they have created themselves or purchased from other creators to create elaborate environments and scenes (an approach to 3D art called 'set dressing'), or specialize in sculpting, which involves creating their own objects and assets.
Photogrammetry
Photogrammetry is a specialized 3D technique that allows 3D objects to be created from numerous photographs taken of an object or scene from multiple angles. These photos are then compiled to determine the specific positioning, shape, and dimensions of the object in space, and then converted into a 3D model. Initially developed for engineering and urban planning, photogrammetry has become a way for artists to produce extremely accurate 3D models from real-life images.
Collage
An extension of the traditional, plastic approach to collage, digital collage involves searching for and cutting out multiple images, extracting them from their original context, and recomposing them in a new arrangement to create a work of art. Artists can use their own photographs or find images on the internet.
Illustration
Digital illustrations are created using software such as Adobe Illustrator, Photoshop, or Procreate. As with drawing on paper, the artist uses a stylus to sketch a figure or object, usually on a tablet, to construct a scene or artistic universe. Unlike traditional drawing methods, digital illustration is much more forgiving, as mistakes can be easily corrected and drawn elements and objects can be easily moved around within a scene.
Video
Video artworks primarily use a recording camera, but may sometimes include additional post-processing or editing to distort, modify or add additional elements to the image. Some artists use state-of-the-art recording equipment to create macro zoom-ins or time lapses, privileging fidelity to the subject matter. Others use additional softwares to significantly modify or warp the video, creating an alternative perspective on the world that surrounds us.

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