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Randomness in art: make every piece one of a kind

Perfectly matching shapes can look a little boring. Sprinkle in some randomness — a surprise size here, a surprise color there — and your art comes alive.

The big idea

Random numbers let each shape have its own size and color, so no two look the same.

See it in code

1Start simple

Randomness means a surprise. random.choice(PALETTE) grabs a surprise color from our set. Here it colors one big star. We seed it so you see this pick:

python
import random
from art import Canvas, PALETTE, star

screen = Canvas.create()
Canvas.fill(screen)

random.seed(5)
color = random.choice(PALETTE)
star(screen, 250, 250, size=120, color=color)
Run it — one star, a surprise color:
A single large star drawn in a random color (violet here), centered on a dark canvas.

You didn't pick the color — the code did. Change the seed and the star changes color.

2A step further

Now a short row. Three stars, and each grabs its own random color. Same size, same spacing — only the color is a surprise:

python
import random
from art import Canvas, PALETTE, star

screen = Canvas.create()
Canvas.fill(screen)

random.seed(2)
for i in range(3):
    color = random.choice(PALETTE)
    star(screen, 110 + i * 140, 250, size=80, color=color)
Run it — three stars, three color picks:
A row of three stars in random colors on a dark canvas.

Three stars, three surprises. The row stays neat, but the colors keep it lively.

3In our world

Now surprise the size too. We draw nine stars in a row. random.randint(25, 70) picks a different size for each, and random.choice(PALETTE) picks a different color. Same row, all unique:

python
import random
from art import Canvas, PALETTE, star

screen = Canvas.create()
Canvas.fill(screen)

random.seed(8)
for i in range(9):
    size = random.randint(25, 70)
    color = random.choice(PALETTE)
    star(screen, 60 + i * 48, 250, size=size, color=color)
Run it — a row of stars, every one different:
A row of nine stars of varying sizes and colors across a dark canvas.

The stars line up in a neat row. But each one has its own size and color. Randomness gave you the variety — you didn't pick nine sizes and colors by hand.

The same idea, everywhere

A little randomness makes things feel real. Think of leaves on a tree, or stars in a sky. Real things aren't all the same. A bit of random variety makes your art look real, not stamped out.

Try it yourself

Add random y too, with y = random.randint(150, 350), so the stars bob up and down. Then narrow the size range to random.randint(40, 45) and see how much calmer it looks.

The common mistake

Randomizing so much there's no pattern left. Keep something steady — here the stars share a row and even spacing. A little randomness on top of order is what looks great.

What it unlocks

Random variety builds on the random module and RGB color, and is the heart of generative art.

Related concepts