The works in the La Trobe Art Institute's Algorithm Aesthetic exhibition have been sourced from the institute's 10,000-piece collection.

But rather than a curator choosing what pieces to use and the order the pieces are shown within the gallery, the exhibition has been curated through an algorithm.

"It's a completely arbitrary exhibition," the institute's public programs coordinator Dr Karen Annett-Thomas said. "It shows the diversity of the works and the subject matter."

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Dr Annett-Thomas said the gallery placed the artists it had work of in alphabetical order. The first work the institute acquired from that artist was then chosen as the artwork to go in the exhibition.

"We usually choose different components to highlight within the collection," Dr Annett-Thomas said. "This is something a bit different."

Dr Annett-Thomas said curators would often focus on areas like theme, material, medium, chronology or other methods to curate an exhibition.

She said there would often be a story to the works, which was lacking in the Algorithm Aesthetic exhibition.

"What it does show is the importance of the curators," Dr Annett-Thomas said. "The audience often looks for a narrative that connects together the artworks in an exhibition.

"When you take that away, there can be that lack of connection. When it's not framed around a story, it can be harder for an audience to access."

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But Dr Annett-Thomas said the exhibition, which had been open since January 13, was a success with the Bendigo audience.

"People have been quite curious about the exhibition," she said. "There have been questions around what it will look like when an algorithm takes over the role over a curator."

Dr Annett-Thomas said the exhibition had also been beneficial to the institute, as it had unveiled a number of artworks.

"Different ideas have come to light," she said. "We found some works we had forgotten about, but we have also found some works that might need conservation work.

"We've also found more about that integral relationship between objects."

Dr Annett-Thomas said the La Trobe Art Institute would continue to experiment with curation in future exhibits.

"We may not use the algorithm again," she said. "But we may look at different ways to use our collection and how it can come together going forward."

The free Algorithm Aesthetic exhibition will be on show at the La Trobe Art Institute until Saturday, February 8.

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