Stilia
History
A timeline of key events in computer graphics. We include only events with a verifiable date and briefly explain why each one matters.
Selection principle: the event changed artists' tools or ways of working and is confirmed by publicly available sources. Entries are grouped by year; the topic filter works on top of the regular list.
- 1963history
Sketchpad
Ivan Sutherland creates Sketchpad, one of the first programs in which a drawing is made directly on the screen with a light pen.
- 1974community
The first SIGGRAPH conference
The annual ACM SIGGRAPH conference begins, becoming the main meeting place for computer graphics researchers and artists.
- 1975technique
The Utah teapot
Martin Newell creates a teapot model that serves for decades as a standard test object for rendering.
- 1986tools
Softimage is founded
Daniel Langlois founds Softimage in Montreal.
- 1990tools
Photoshop 1.0
The first version of Photoshop, created by brothers Thomas and John Knoll, is released.
- 1995history
Toy Story
The first feature-length film made entirely with computer animation.
- 2000tools
Softimage|XSI 1.0
The first version of XSI, Softimage's new 3D package, is released.
- 2002tools
Blender goes open source
Blender's source code is released under the GNU GPL after a community campaign.
- 2014tools
End of Softimage sales
Autodesk stops selling Softimage; version 2015 becomes the last.
Related sections
- People and creatorsPioneers and tool makers: verifiable facts only.
- AnalysisRasterization and ray tracing: how a computer draws an image.
- ArchiveAll materials by title and topic, including archived addresses.
Sources
- ACM SIGGRAPH: conference history
- Computer History Museum: materials on Sketchpad and the Utah teapot
- Blender Foundation: project history
- Autodesk announcements on discontinuing Softimage (2014)
Information is current as of the date of preparation. If you spot an inaccuracy in dates or facts, check the primary sources listed below.