Get Started with Generista

• Introduction
• How it works
• GRID
• RADIAL
• SEED
• VARIANTS
• RANDOM, NOISE and PROXIMITY
• ROTATION
• OPACITY
• SCALE
• POSITION
• Mixing Modifiers
• CONFIG
• Quick Actions

Introduction

Generista is a powerful Figma plugin that lets you apply generative design techniques to create amazing artwork without writing code. There are many ways you can use it. Here are just a few of them:

• Graphic Design
  • — Abstract patterns
  • — Posters
  • — Illustrations
• UI Design
  • — Data visualization
  • — Procedural UI
  • — FUD
• 3D Design
  • — Textures
  • — Blueprints

How it works

You can think about the plugin as a grid generator that clones an object you select and applies a bunch of modifiers to change some properties of this object. By doing that, you can create a wide variety of patterns.

There are five modifiers you can experiment with:

• 1. Variants
• 2. Rotation
• 3. Position
• 4. Scale
• 5. Opacity

The general flow of creating generative artwork with the plugin looks like this:

• 1. You select an object.
• 2. Hit the Generate button to create a grid with the object's clones.
• 3. Tweak modifiers to update clones' properties.

Here is an example of generating a grid of items and randomizing its rotation property:

Grid

It generates a grid with an object you selected by the size of C (columns) by R (rows) and offset for X and Y axes.

The 2D grid generator works very straightforwardly. Though you can also use it to create a 1D sequence by setting the number of columns or rows to 1.

It might be useful for creating different types of graphs.

You might also want to generate a certain number of clones without any offset at all to make effects like this:

The GRID / RADIAL tabs at the top of the block switch between the two layouts.

RADIAL

RADIAL places the clones on rings around the object you selected: the object becomes the centre. Choose how the rings are filled:

• EVEN — outer rings get more clones, so the gap between them stays the same everywhere.
• SUNFLOWER — the same number of clones spread along a golden-angle spiral, with no rings or spokes, like the seeds of a sunflower.
• FIXED — every ring holds exactly N clones, so they line up in spokes.

• N — clones on the first ring (on every ring with FIXED)
• R — the number of rings
• RX, RY — the radius of the first ring. Both are 0 by default, so the pattern starts from a single clone in the middle. Raise them to leave a hole in the centre, or make them different for an oval
• F, T — from and to angles, in degrees clockwise from 12 o'clock. 0 to 360 is a full ring, -90 to 90 is the top half
• STEP — the gap between rings
• SYM (EVEN only) — rounds the clones on each ring to a multiple of this number. With 4, they line up on a cross, like the speaker grille of Dieter Rams' Braun radios. 1 turns it off

Every modifier works with RADIAL too. In PROXIMITY, the pad covers the whole circle: U runs left to right, V bottom to top, and 0.5 / 0.5 is the centre. Put the point in the middle to grow the effect from the centre out.

Seed

Every grid is built from a seed: a number that drives all RANDOM and NOISE picks. The same seed with the same settings always rebuilds the same grid, so you can always come back to a result you liked.

• S — the current seed. Type a number to get that exact result.
• FREEZE — when it's on, Generate keeps the seed. When it's off, every Generate rolls a new one.
• UPDATE — rolls a new seed right away and updates the grid.

Variants

If you select an object that has different variants, you can generate clones within all its possible permutations. Using variants, you can encapsulate the randomization of colors, shapes, or even images.

There are three modes to randomize variants:

• random
• sequence
• ranseq

random

For each generated clone, the plugin randomly selects one of the possible permutations. It's completely random. Each pick isn't affected by what was picked before. It doesn't have memory.

sequence

This mode allows you to generate all permutations in the order they were defined in the master component. If the number of clones was bigger than the number of possible permutations, the sequence would start over.

ranseq

This mode combines the previous modes: random and sequence. In ranseq mode, it sequentially generates all permutations but in random order.

As shown in the example below, each row uses a unique color. But their order is randomized.

Random / Noise / Proximity

Before we continue discussing the rest of the modifiers, I would like us to look at the difference between RANDOM, NOISE and PROXIMITY.

RANDOM

Random works the same way you roll a dice. Each roll result is independent of the previous rolls.

If you roll a dice six times, you can get something like [1, 4, 3, 6, 6, 1] or [6, 6, 6, 6, 6, 6].

In Generista, you can specify the range for random values or define a set of values, and then the plugin will randomly pick one of them.

NOISE

NOISE introduces a form of "randomness" in which each outcome depends on the previous ones. NOISE is great for generating organic patterns.

In the case of rolling a dice, you might get [1, 2, 3, 2, 3, 4] or [3, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6].

PROXIMITY

PROXIMITY isn't random at all. Each clone gets a value based on how far it is from a point you choose: F (from) at the point, T (to) at the distance R (radius) and beyond. It's great for radial gradients, vignettes and focus effects.

The grid is mapped to a square from 0 to 1: U goes from left to right, V from bottom to top. Drag the point on the pad or type U and V. The dashed outline shows the radius; R = 1 is the full width of the grid.

• UV — distance in every direction, so values spread in circles.
• U — only the horizontal distance counts, so values change in vertical bands.
• V — only the vertical distance counts, so values change in horizontal bands.

Easing shapes the transition from F to T: linear is even, easy-in stays close to F longer, easy-out moves away from F quickly, and in-out combines both.

Because PROXIMITY doesn't use randomness, the seed doesn't change it.

Rotation

This modifier allows you to manipulate the rotation property of a clone.

Opacity

This modifier allows you to manipulate the opacity property of a clone.

You can use the RANDOM/sequence algorithm with 0 and 100 to emulate the On/Off state.

Scale

This modifier allows you to manipulate the scale property of a clone.

Position

This modifier allows you to manipulate the position property of a clone.

Mixing Modifiers

The full potential of the plugin comes with mixing different modifiers. The possibilities of what you can create are endless.

You can also use it as a particle generator!

Config

CONFIG shows all the plugin's settings as text. Use it to save a look you like, share it with someone, or bring a recipe back.

• RECIPE — opens first. A short line with only the modifiers you use and the settings you changed. APPLY rebuilds exactly what it says: anything not in the line is off or back to its default.
• JSON — every setting, including those of modifiers that are off.

• COPY — copies the config.
• APPLY — loads the text you edited or pasted.
• RESET — discards your edits.

Both tabs accept either format. A recipe looks like this:

c=8 r=12 x=64 rot=45,-45 sc=0.5..1 op=noise 0..100 pos=-8..8 seed=random

Keys:

• c, r — columns and rows
• x, y — offset along X and Y
• grid=8x12, spacing=64 — both at once
• rot, op, sc, pos — ROTATION, OPACITY, SCALE, POSITION
• var — VARIANTS: random, sequence, ranseq or off
• seed — a number, or random
• radial=12x3 — switches to RADIAL with 12 clones and 3 rings; radius, ring, fill (even, sunflower or fixed), sym and arc=-90..90 set the rest
• rot.noiseDensity=200 — any other setting by name: the modifier (or grid, out, var), a dot, and the field name from JSON

Modifier values: 45,-45 picks from a set (RANDOM/sequence), -45..45 picks from a range (RANDOM/range), noise 0..360 uses NOISE, prox 0..360 uses PROXIMITY, and off turns the modifier off.

In JSON, the version field shows which plugin version wrote the config. It's ignored when you paste one.

Quick Actions

Generista also runs from Figma's quick actions bar (⌘/ on Mac, Ctrl+/ on Windows), without opening the panel. Select an object, type Generista and pick a command:

• Quick Generate — set the grid (for example, 8x12) and, if you like, spacing, rotation, scale, opacity, position and seed. Values use the same format as in CONFIG.
• Generate From Config — paste the short syntax or a JSON config.

Both commands start from your last settings, roll a new seed unless you give one, and close the plugin when the grid is ready.