On Computational Ecosystems in Media Arts

This research is an exploration of issues surrounding the artistic production of Computational Ecosystems. A Computational Ecosystem is a system of agents designed to emulate, in the computer, biological systems where autonomous individuals are organized in a hierarchical food chain and interact by trading units of energy. This thesis maps out this field and examines the modes of production and functions of these systems. The central claim is focused on how the narratives normally associated with these systems and their functioning are two complementary, but separate entities. By virtue of considering these separately the computational ecosystem is argued to be an abstract generative engine for heterogeneity, spontaneity, and even novelty. It is contended that the set of methods of production developed by exploratory artists using these artefacts might be instrumentalized as generative methods for the animation of general purpose non-player characters in virtual worlds.