In the mid-1950s Swiss artist Jean Tinguely (1925--1991) began the production of a series titled Meta-Matics: machines that produced art works. Tinguely not only problematized the introduction of the robotic machine as interface in our society, but also questioned the role of the artist, the art work, and the viewer.

Recently the Metamatic Research Initiative in Amsterdam mounted a competition to explore the potential of drawing machines for art today. Ten selected projects prove the continued relevance of the theme, amongst them a performance-pavilion by Marina Abramovic, a large environment by Thomas Hirschhorn, and an installation by Jon Kessler.

Artists include Marina Abramovic, Ranjit Bhatnagar, John Bock, Olav Breuning, Thomas Hirschhorn, Aleksandra Hirszfeld, Jon Kessler, Pors & Rao, Joao Simoes, and Brigitte Zieger.