Constraints and Creativity in the Digital Arts

When we refer to constraints in daily life we usually mean something that limits what we want to do or places boundaries around our choices. In the world of creative endeavour, the word has many interpretations. We think of constraints in creativity as both limiting and liberating. In our personal practice, they are used to impose boundaries upon the creative space we occupy and, at the same time, they enable us to grapple with inherent tensions between different demands, which, if successful, may lead to a new idea, direction or artefact. When we choose particular forms, materials and tools for our creative work, we are also choosing the kinds of constraints that will shape our process and its outcomes.