Recursus, Latin: a “return”, a “retreat”, but also “the power to bring back an image” (Perseus). Excursus: a “detailed discussion” or a “digression” (Oxford). Recursion: “the repeated application of a recursive procedure or definition” (Oxford). Lastly, curse: those issues, forms, words, that come back to haunt, doom and delight. This modular, metastatic project of computational literature currently contains ‘WordSquares’, squares of letters where rows, columns and diagonals are words; ‘Subwords’, decompositions of (longer) words into splintered, shorter subwords, with no letter left unaccounted for; and ‘AIT’, inchoate steps into neural text generation, based on yet to be unearthed series of texts known as ‘it I-VI’.

This site contains the thoughts and meanders that arose in the process of elaboration of these pieces, during the Summer term of 2018 of the MA of Computational Arts at Goldsmiths College, London.

Prints were manufactured by digitalarte in Greenwich. Technical specifications and costs can be found here.

My gratitude to all the people who followed and supported me during this year and before, and without whom I wouldn’t be who I am today. My parents, first of all, who spoil me far too much! Neil Forsyth and Michael Kunkel, whose recommendation helped me get into the program. The support and input received at Goldsmiths by my tutors, Theo Papatheodorou, Rebecca Fiebrink, Atau Tanaka, Helen Pritchard, and Jane Prophet, as well as Aonghus O’Kelly, whose help in the setting up of the exhibition was invaluable. On the personal side, the list is lengthy! My lovely gang of flatmates, the 49ers, including the unforgettable alumni Alaena, Richie and Fabiano. The Irish scoundrels and wandering wordsmiths Alan and Mark. The infamous Oxonians Phil, Anne-Claire and Cecilia. My Crew back in my hometown, and especially Emanuel, the everlasting friend, as well as mathematical Clément, whom I made jealous for the first time. The RIP group of political cogitators, without forgetting Zsófi and Timea, and especially Jake & Brooks for their computational advice. The whole pack of Kammer Klangers, Serge & Nef, Emily, Dani & Ilze, and all the team, as well as my good friend and oftentimes collaborator composer Davor Vincze. The really cool people I met this year, Julia, Yunny, Beste, Guy, Luke, Sam, Becky, James, Daniah, Jesse, Mat, Freya, Elias, Danny, Megan, Sabrina, Eevi, Joe, Panja, Jana, Petros, Sara, Taoran, Friendred, there are too many of you! And, of course, all those I forget, please forgive me!

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Jérémie Wenger, born 1983 in Lausanne, Switzerland, lives in London. Mostly text.