Quick Answer: Artists and composers have deliberately incorporated randomness into creative work since the mid-20th century. John Cage used the I Ching to compose music. Dada artists used chance operations for poetry. Today, algorithmic and generative art uses PRNG to create infinite unique visual and audio compositions.
John Cage and Music of Changes
American composer John Cage was the most influential proponent of chance operations in music. His "Music of Changes" (1951) was composed by consulting the I Ching (Chinese divination text using coin tosses or yarrow sticks) to determine pitches, durations, tempos, and dynamics. Cage believed randomness freed music from personal expression, allowing it to exist independently of the composer's ego.
Dada: Chance Operations in Poetry
The Dada art movement (1916) used chance operations as a reaction against rationalism. Tristan Tzara's "cut-up" method involved cutting words from newspaper articles and drawing them randomly from a bag to create poetry. William S. Burroughs later popularized the cut-up technique. The method produced jarring, unpredictable juxtapositions that revealed hidden connections.
Generative and Algorithmic Art
Modern generative art uses code and random number generators to create visual works. Artists define rules and parameters; the algorithm generates infinite unique variations. Sol LeWitt's instruction-based art used random elements. Computer artists like Casey Reas use Processing (a creative coding language) to generate visual works from PRNG-controlled rules.
Stochastic Music (Iannis Xenakis)
Greek composer Iannis Xenakis developed "stochastic music" in the 1950s — using statistical and probability theories (Poisson distributions, Markov chains) to compose. His "Metastaseis" and "Pithoprakta" pieces were composed using mathematical randomness applied to pitch, density, and gesture — anticipating algorithmic composition by decades.