Pioneer Charles Csuri is known as “The Father of Digital art and Computer Art” (Smithsonian Magazine, 1995; ARTnews, 2022). As a professor, fine artist, and computer scientist, his research and artistic vision led to advances in software that created new tools for 3D computer graphics, computer animation, gaming, and 3D printing—long before these technologies saw widespread commercial use. Since the 1960s, Csuri experimented with computer-based multimedia, including plotters, canvas and screen prints, milling machine sculpture, holograms, animation, and, more recently, NFTs. His art reflects the progress of the digital artistic movement and marks a unique historical milestone in the intersection of art and computer technology.

Csuri created digital art until the age of 99. He will be remembered as a true renaissance man: an athlete, professor, artist, and revolutionary innovator who merged art, science, and technology as one of the earliest pioneers. Renowned worldwide as an influential educator and visionary, Csuri was a key figure in the art world’s embrace of technology as a transformative force, and he played a historic role in the evolution of digital art.

Photo painting of Csuri by Michael Collery, 2022

Biographical Sketch

  • Charles A. Csuri (Chuck) was born to Hungarian immigrants in Grant Town, West Virginia. He grew up in Cleveland, Ohio.

  • Earned a football scholarship to Ohio State University (O.S.U.), where he became an All-American and captain of the First National Championship team.

  • Served in World War II and received the Bronze Star for heroism in the Battle of the Bulge.

  • Obtained a B.F.A. in Art and an M.A. in Art from O.S.U.

  • Joined the Faculty of Art Department at O.S.U. and married professional artist Lee Csuri.

  • Became a full Professor of Art and exhibited as a professional artist with solo exhibits in New York City.

  • Csuri saw a grey scale raster image made by computer and was determined  to generate art by computer.

    He created procedural drawings that allowed him to envision creating art by machine. He further begins creating analogue computer drawings as seen in his "After the Artist Series”.

  • Begun experimenting with computer graphics using IBM 7094 with Fortran programming language and IBM 1130 to control his plotter print output.

  • Begun creating computer animated films.

    • Csuri's "Hummingbird," the first-ever computer animation, entered the permanent collection of the Museum of Modern Art in New York City in 1968.

    • Awarded first prize for animation at the 4th International Experimental Film Festival, Brussels, Belgium.

  • Csuri’s digital art is highlighted in the groundbreaking exhibition "Cybernetic Serendipity" at the Institute for Contemporary Art in London, England.

  • Awarded a National Science Foundation grant; first grant awarded to an artist; grants continued through 1987.

  • Spearheaded the development of the Real Time Art Object and organized and curated "Interactive Sound and Visual Systems," a major exhibition on technology and the arts at O.S.U. that included cutting-edge artists.

  • Secured a second grant from the National Science Foundation and established the Computer Graphics Research Group (CGRG) and the Advanced Computing Center for Art and Design (ACCAD); co-founded the Ohio Supercomputer Center; and mentored over 40 PhD students who went on to work at major companies like Pixar, Disney, Industrial Light and Magic, and Blue Sky Productions.

  • Was the keynote speaker at Nicograph in 1984, Tokyo, Japan. After spearheading 15 years of development in the field of computer graphics, he created one of the first computer animation companies in the world, Cranston Csuri Productions. The company produced groundbreaking animation in the fields of scientific visualization, medical imaging, aerospace engineering, dance (with one of the first motion capture labs), visual communication, film, television, and commercials.

  • Exhibited at the 42 Biennale de Venezia, Venice, Italy.

  • Developed proprietary software to create his artistic tools for producing 3D digital art and animation.

  • His digital work gained international acclaim, including awards from the International Experimental Film Festival and Ars Electronica. His art was showcased in exhibitions, books, and magazines worldwide and became part of renowned collections.

  • The retrospective exhibition  “Beyond Boundaries”, including over 90 works of Csuri's art, traveled internationally and was exhibited at the Kaohsiung Museum of Fine Arts in Taiwan.

  • "Coding the World", Centre Pompidou, Paris France

    • Minted “Face of Change,” his first NFT, which was auctioned at Sotheby’s.

    • Csuri passed away at the age of 99. He will be  remembered as a world-renowned artist, influential educator, and visionary who played a pivotal role in shaping the tech-driven digital art movement.

    • Exhibited at “Coded: Art Enters the Computer Age 1952-1982” at LACMA, Los Angeles, California.

    • Had his first solo auction at Tribul, featuring physical artworks tethered to an NFT.

  • Exhibited at “Electric Dreams: Art and Technology Before the Internet” at Tate Modern, London, England.