Essay: on Creative Coding

I think, there is no such thing as Creative Coding.
Putting instructions into code, in order to let them be excuted, is just a means to an end.
It is just automation, regardless of the nature of the output, or the process of coding.

Of course, we can consider writing code to be a process of creation.
That all depends on the skills of the coder, or the size of his toolbox...

Being an artist means, that you have the skills to perform Art, regardless of the tools at hand.
Whether you are a painter, a sculptor, a writer, a poet, a musician or a carpenter, you first have to master your chosen trade. By hand, if you must...
A computer program can be a usefull extra tool, in all of those fields.
But that's it, apart from chance, or lucky shots; there is also beauty to be found in 'chaos'.

Unless of course, like me, you consider writing code to be an Art in it's self.
And then, if the program produces pretty output, we might call this Computer Generated Art.
But that, in it's turn, again depends on the the skills of the coder.
Not the size of his toolbox...

A good carpenter can make a nice table, with only a saw, and a sharp chisel, and some sandpaper...
Any good photograper can make awesome pictures with a snap-and-go camera...
Good sculptors, can see an image, while we see nothing but a piece of rock, or a stump of a tree...
Truly gifted painters seem to just throw their paint upon the canvas, making it look easy...

This list is endless; the process of being creative, is about the process.
Some parts of this process might be put in computer code, to make things easier.
But that's all there is...