Perhaps it's just a generalization, but I don't think there's such a clear separation between "code as art" and "code as engineering". The very best engineers

Perhaps it's just a generalization, but I don't think there's such a clear separation between "code as art" and "code as engineering". The very best engineers are like artists, in that they harness their creativity to solve problems efficiently and effectively, often in innovative and personal ways. And artists who are respected in the field of software can use consistent methods to produce solid maintainable code. I wouldn't say "zero surprises" though, I'm often surprised by reading the code of an artist, how they achieve extraordinary results with mundane code that a child can understand. The example that comes to mind is Fabrice Bellard. He's one of the most talented engineers - and I'm sure many of us would agree that his software is a work of art. Well, as someone who has to manage a team, I completely agree that what's needed are engineers who can consistently produce predictable results. We don't want someone who chooses (or worse, creates!) an esoteric language to pursue their art. But I myself am of the latter persuasion, "writing lisp for fun". And having a team of only non-artistic engineers would be so boring. But then again, boring is what we need most of the time.