Nick Tavaniello, known as luckymothers, is a generative artist based in the North of England who brings together his fine art and ceramics background with an MSc in Software Development. His work is a fusion of structured coding logic and organic artistic exploration, with a focus on color, texture, light, and pattern — an interest first sparked by a Bridget Riley exhibition at age 14.

Exclusively coding in JavaScript, Nick embraces the unpredictable nature of generative art. He develops entirely in VS Code, avoiding traditional design software, and creates scalable vector-based images (SVG) that maintain clarity at any size. His process is rooted in discovery, often beginning with a spark of inspiration, whether a woven dog collar or a news broadcast, before translating ideas directly into code.

Before launching luckymothers, Nick’s career spanned diverse fields, from semi-professional boxing to ICU nursing and clinical informatics. Now, his focus is on making generative art more accessible, exploring coded creativity.

We asked Nick about his art, creative process, and inspirations.

Can you tell us about your background as a digital artist? How did you get started in this field?

After high school and inspired by seeing a Bridget Riley exhibition at age 14 I went on to study fine art & ceramics at art college, however I dropped out after a couple of years and eventually embarked upon a scientific career path, although I always retained my interest in art. I ultimately went on to do a MSc in Software Development and discovered JavaScript and more importantly its graphical capabilities.

I began to play around with the code, adopting some concepts I’d learnt at art school and started to create some interesting images, I was hooked without even knowing about generative art. It was only after I unknowingly started to create generative art that I became aware of it as a discipline, I started to research the field and expand my knowledge of the various JavaScript libraries and frameworks which has all led me to where I am now and the creation of ‘luckymothers’. I enjoy coding and love art so generative art is the perfect medium to allow me to combine the two.

What excites you most about using code as your artistic medium?

It is exciting to use code as a medium! and I find it preferrable over other mediums due to the unforeseen and often unanticipated results that code can generate; by including an element of randomness in the code you not only get unexpected results but get a different, unique piece of art each time you run the script or load a page. I only work in code, currently JavaScript and specifically the SvJs library which allows for scripting and contains generative functionality which makes the process of coding less repetitive.

What inspires your art? Are there any particular themes or subjects that you enjoy exploring through your artwork?

‘luckymothers’ is a relatively new and evolving venture, but the focus is on creating accessible images with the emphasis being on colour, pattern, texture & shape. Inspiration comes from a variety of sources, quite often just a pattern or colour, the ‘Shred’ collection was inspired by the orange woven collars worn by our dogs, ‘Small Boats’ was inspired by news footage. I may see or read something that grabs my attention and start to think how it could be interpreted in code and might make a few ‘physical’ sketches or just go straight to code but the current driving factors are colour, texture and shape/pattern.

What are some of the biggest misconceptions people have about generative art?

Using computer code as a medium to create art can be difficult for some people to conceptualise, especially coupled with the concept of autonomy. I think the biggest misnomer surrounding generative art is the idea that the computer/code or a program creates the work, and the human just hits a button with little input, wherein reality the artist/coder is the collaborative creator albeit though without complete control. The code is used like paint or clay to reproduce the artists idea but is autonomous in relation to creating chance and randomness in the work, too much and the concept can be destroyed, not enough and the collaboration is pointless.

What role do you see generative art playing in the broader digital art landscape?

Although generative art has been around since the 60’s I think the last 20 years or so has seen interest in the discipline grow substantially (arguably driven by Blockchain/NFT’s though I think the novelty of NFTs is waning). The sale of Dmitri Cherniaks Ringers#879 for $6.3 million proved generative art is now being taken more serious than ever and I think it will continue as a Tour de Force as artists become more innovative and experimental. Generative art distinguishes itself from the other digital arts by the inclusion of autonomous randomness and the relinquishing by the creator of complete control, I can’t think of any other discipline where this occurs?

Are there particular themes or patterns you’re eager to explore in upcoming works?

The focus on colour, texture, light & shape will continue, as demonstrated by the ‘Cascade’ collection I’m currently working on (see ‘luckymothers website) after which I have some vague thoughts regarding body systems so will spend some time developing those ideas and see where it takes me. Also, although JavaScript is a more than capable generative language, I have started to experiment with ‘Processing’ which I’ve found interesting as the output i.e. finished pieces are very different from my JavaScript outputs - this is something I’d like to investigate further so expect not so much a change to, but an additional style or amalgamation.

If you could collaborate with an artist or technologist outside your field, who would it be and why?

Music plays a big part in my life and has since I was a teenager, I always have something playing whilst I’m working, in fact I’ve started a ‘Pet Sounds’ (AKA studio playlist) blog on the ‘luckymothers’ website so I think it would have to be a musician/artist. I guess it would have to be Brian Eno and not just from a music perspective as I find his visual art both aesthetically interesting and innovative, he’s consistently pushed the boundaries in both music and art and seems to consistently re-invent his work.

What is a fun fact about you?

I was a semi-pro boxer - As a schoolboy I fought as an amateur boxer but travelled around Thailand when I was 18 and became fascinated with Muay Thai (Thai Boxing). I came back to the UK and learnt, trained, taught and fought as a Thai fighter for several years, retiring as British Thai Boxing Council No 1 rated Bantamweight.

What else fills your time when you’re not creating art?

Well, we have 2 dogs (Milo & Jess) and an amazing blind black cat (Little Richard) who can all take up a fair amount of time but I run marathons and distance to help keep me sane and away from the screen, like a lot of distance runners I tend to zone out on long runs which offers the perfect opportunity to brainstorm ideas.