Transformation Investigation

Dictionary
transformation |ˌtransfərˈmā sh ən|nouna thorough or dramatic change in form or appearance : its landscape hasundergone a radical transformation.• a metamorphosis during the life cycle of an animal.• Physics the induced or spontaneous change of one element into another by a nuclear process.• Mathematics & Logic a process by which one figure, expression, or function is converted into another that is equivalent in some important respect but is differently expressed or represented.• Linguistics a process by which an element in the underlying deep structure of a sentence is converted to an element in the surface structure.• Biology the genetic alteration of a cell by introduction of extraneous DNA, esp. by a plasmid.• Biology the heritable modification of a cell from its normal state to a malignant state.ORIGIN late Middle English : from Old French, or from late Latintransformatio(n-), from the verb transformare (see transform ).Thesaurus transformationnounthe transformation of the sales department has been dramatic: change,alteration, mutation, conversion, metamorphosis, transfiguration,transmutation, sea change; revolution, overhaul; remodeling, reshaping, redoing, reconstruction, rebuilding, reorganization, rearrangement, reworking, renewal, revamp, remaking, remake; informal transmogrification, morphing.

http://www.spiritualhealing-now.com/image-files/transformation.jpg

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/44/Transformation.JPG

http://hypebeast.com/image/2008/01/koi-klub-transformation-sculpture-2.jpg

http://www.celestial-art.net/wallpaper-digital-art-fractal-cosmic-transformation-apophysis.jpg

http://www.wired.com/images_blogs/gadgetlab/table_chair.jpg

Transformation starts off in nature, though we may see it as evolution or growth. For example, plants transform from seeds, expanding arm like lines (roots and shoots) in outer directions, the process of expanding continues until the shape has changed completely (a tree is formed). However, from a design perspective we can take the idea of natural transformation and make it unnatural. An example of this can be seen in the picture where the red, black and white fish transforms into a shoe design. There is unquestionably many different ways of conveying transformation in both nature and design, which is what makes it such an interesting design topic to investigate.  

This sketch I found on open processing was one of the first I looked at but definitely represented transformation extremely well. What I liked in particular was how gradual the change is in some parts of the sketch, so much so that its hard to remember if it has changed at all. I also liked how the shapes and colours are unnatural but the way in which they transform into other colours and shapes appears completely natural and shouldn't be done in any other way.
Understanding the code was another thing entirely. Though there are a number of parts that I recognize, like different variables, a number of parts seemed completely cryptic, like if statements containing strange symbols and colour sum commands using the only letters R, G and B.