February 10, 2026
Ctrl+Art+Delight
Show HN: Sol LeWitt-style instruction-based drawings in the browser
Your browser just became a museum wall—fans cheer, purists miss the massive vibes
TLDR: A web tribute turns Sol LeWitt’s instructions into fresh art with every reload. Commenters loved it, plugged MASS MoCA, and staged a mini debate: big-wall “immersiveness” versus browser-friendly fine details—making this a fun clash of museum purists and digital fans alike.
Hacker News rolled out a retro-chic art flex: a browser project that follows Sol LeWitt’s famous instruction-based wall drawings and spits out unique variations with every reload. Think museum wall, but in your tab. The crowd’s first vibe? Pure love—damon_c practically throws confetti and urges everyone to make the pilgrimage to the Sol LeWitt collection at MASS MoCA.
Then came the spicy mini-drama: scale versus detail. acomjean praises the project but points out it “loses a little of the immersiveness” you get from giant walls wrapped in lines—while also admitting the browser version makes up for it in the fine details. That kicked off a gentle split between purists who crave the real-life wall experience and the pixel crowd who are thrilled to curate a museum from their couch. Bonus flex: one commenter dropped the humblebrag that their profile photo is literally in front of a LeWitt wall. Iconic.
With every refresh acting like a new exhibit, the vibes are “Ctrl+R as curator.” If you want the IRL blockbuster scale, the community says go to North Adams, MA; if you want the nerdy how-it-was-built breakdown, check the dev write-up: how this was made. Either way, it’s art you can click—and argue about.
Key Points
- •A browser-based generative project recreates Sol LeWitt’s instruction-based wall drawings.
- •Each piece is algorithmically rendered from LeWitt’s original rules, producing unique variations on each reload.
- •The page lists specific works from 1969–1973, summarizing their instruction sets (e.g., line directions, grids, arcs).
- •External links point to the Sol LeWitt collection at MASS MoCA and to a build write-up detailing development.
- •The project demonstrates systematic translation of textual art instructions into algorithmic procedures.