Getting Edgy with Polygons

Objective

After completing this lesson, you will be able to write your own custom command blocks while creating generative computer art.

Content

Video summary:

The video demonstrates how to use Snap!'s Pen blocks to create generative art. It covers pen down/up, changing pen color and size, building a reusable square block (abstraction) with a size parameter, adding randomness (position, size, hue/saturation/brightness), and loops to draw many shapes, and generalizing the idea into a polygon block with a sides parameter to produce varied, unpredictable artworks.

Key points:

  • Pen basics: pen down/up, set/change pen color and size to draw traces on the stage.
  • Build custom blocks (abstraction) like a square with parameters to reuse and simplify scripts.
  • Use randomness and loops for generative variation: random positions, sizes, and HSB color components.
  • Generalize to polygons by adding a sides parameter (turn = 360 / sides) to create varied shapes.