A.I. and its Place In Art - Angel Sager
Angel Sager
Joanne Keaston
Critical Issues Contemporary Art
20 November 2024
Art and A.I.
The art community and A.I. (Artificial Intelligence) currently are at odds with each other. Many fear exactly what A.I. may be developing towards stealing others work and jobs from the art industry. A.I. is transforming various industries, and the art world is not immune to this revolution. As AI-generated art continues to gain traction, it is important to explore its impact on the traditional art industry, the opportunities it presents, and the ethical implications it raises. I want to analyze the way it not only influences creators, but also the people consuming it.
Forbes has an article, The Impact Of Artificial Intelligence On The Art World, which discusses the business side of A.I. in art and how that would affect the collector and curator world. When A.I.as first brought onto the scene, it seems as though this would be a tool for artists and collectors to use. In fact, one of the pros brought on about A.I. in the art world is that it can analyze art trends and the market for auctioneers, collectors, and artists. In an article by Forbes it states, “AI is also allowing art experts to interpret market developments, track the activities of relevant public figures and understand and analyze collecting behaviors and patterns.” This means that the algorithm can predict what trends in the art world might be popular and what pieces could gain value in the future. A.I. has also been used as a means to identify artwork and authenticate it. With an ability to analyze every pigment, brush stroke, and stylization, these algorithms can pin down who produced the artwork. With the artist attached, it can increase the value of the work. According to Forbes, “These elements are often extremely difficult to assess manually. In January 2023, Art Recognition, a Swiss AI company, identified with 96% probability that an unknown painting was by the famous Italian master painter, Raphael. The price difference after AI had determined the provenance of the painting was hundreds of millions of dollars.” With that being said, A.I. can only be used with the information it’s given.
Although A.I. in the art world can work as a tool, it also poses the worry that A.I. will steal from artists, the New Yorker, Why A.I. Isn’t Going to Make Art, poses this question. The article states, “Art is notoriously hard to define, and so are the differences between good art and bad art. But let me offer a generalization: art is something that results from making a lot of choices.” This poses the idea that what causes art to be art is intention. When A.I. creates art, it’s using an algorithm of what is deemed suitable, popular, even aesthetically pleasing, but there isn’t any intention when “producing” art. The article also discusses how A.I. is unable to produce something that is genuine, with an example being the A.I. Gemini ad and how the initial reaction from the consumer was how disingenuous the “fan letter” featured in the ad was. There is also a worry in how A.I. will affect the human psyche. The article warns how us as people may begin to be desensitized to the usage of A.I. It could lower our expectations in what we create and consume, by having this art readily available with no work behind it.
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Sources
Chiang, T. (2024, August 31). Why A.I. isn’t going to make art. The New Yorker. https://www.newyorker.com/culture/the-weekend-essay/why-ai-isnt-going-to-make-art
Lam, P. (2024, August 13). Council post: The impact of artificial intelligence on the Art World. Forbes. https://www.forbes.com/councils/forbesbusinesscouncil/2024/02/02/the-impact-of-artificial-intelligence-on-the-art-world/
Placido, D. D. (2024, November 18). Coca Cola’s AI-generated ad controversy, explained. Forbes. https://www.forbes.com/sites/danidiplacido/2024/11/16/coca-colas-ai-generated-ad-controversy-explained/
I really like all of the research that you chose to pull out of the article that you read. The points about how A.I. is able to predict future trends is really important to those in the art field. This is a positive use of A.I., helping push artists in a certain direction. I also really like the point about how art being art is through intention. I feel that this is very relevant today with how much A.I. is coming into our lives. I think most people are worried that it will take jobs and other means of living, but at the end of the day it can only take from information that it is given. The creations made by A.I. lack all intention and total creative uniqueness. It is sad to think that our expectations might be lowered because of A.I. I feel that we are in a time of great creativity and it would be a shame to see that fade.
ReplyDeleteYour argument about A.I. is very valid. I like how you give examples of both good and bad ways A.I. is being used. You stated that it is being used to identify artworks by well known artists from the past, which is almost impossible to do manually. That is a huge benefit in the art world because it is something that we humans can not do. But you also shared how A.I. is being used to create commercials that are not super high quality. You connected this lack of quality to a decrease in our creative standards. These are both very negative examples of A.I. I think the way that you shared positive and negative examples really helped your post. It helped it to be objective and informative to the reader. I also like how you added your opinion at the end. That helped to give a personal view of the topic.
I did some further research about how A.I. is being used in creative industries. In the world of writing, there are many things that makes a human-written story stand out. “The best of these human-written stories surprised me with 1) unique ways of viewing the world (personality), 2) linguistic originality, 3) inimitable details that could come only from personal experience” (Mineo). A.I. is great at mimicking a type of writing or art, but what it truly lacks is “true insight and experience” (Mineo). The Harvard Gazette explains that the most at risk genres for being mimicked by A.I. are the commercial genres (Mineo). These genres have easily recognizable styles that A.I. could be able to mimic and rewrite (Mineo). In the music world A.I. is not yet a risk. Music is about transmitting emotion (Mineo). To be able to do that without a visual representation is a special talent. Since A.I. is only mimicking what it knows, it can not create any new emotional stories to tell through music. Another aspect that A.I. lacks in music is drama.” I love dramatism in music, and for me, emotion in music is important, and AI is not there yet” (Mineo). A.I. is a possible threat to those in the digital creative world. In animation, A.I. is already being used in some big studios (Mineo). Animator Ruth Stella Lingford provides some good insight into her feelings about A.I. in her field: “I am told by a knowledgeable friend that it would be possible to train AI on my style and have it work as an assistant in my work. I can see how this would be useful, but, as I actually like the repetitiveness of the animation process, the idea is not very appealing, at least for my own personal work” (Mineo). It is interesting to hear from the perspective of someone who enjoys the work that A.I. would take over, which is usually the work that no one wants to do.
I think that A.I. presents a challenge to us as artists. Humans are able to produce a more emotional, intentional piece of artwork, but A.I. can produce art quickly. This is a challenge to those of us in a creative industry and will help to push is to do our best. I wonder if in the future humans will want to continue with the usage of A.I. of revert back to a more personal, humanistic way of life? I also wonder if people will get tired of the low quality of work that A.I. generally puts out?
Thank you for sharing your thoughts on AI’s role in the art community. I share many of the concerns you’ve brought forward while acknowledging the opportunities that AI tools could provide if approached ethically and transparently because I have also wrote about the same thing.
ReplyDeleteOne thing that caught my eye was the important distinction regarding AI’s lack of intentionality when producing art. Creativity, by nature, is a deeply human experience—one driven by personal emotion, purpose, and meaning which is something that AI could never do. Reminds me how putting "love" into a recipe is its secret ingredient, no one can copy that. AI, at its core, replicates patterns from a myriad of online date information and algorithmic trends, which may generate visually or audibly impressive work but often misses that intangible connection between the creator, the work, and the viewer aka the "love". While it may mimic aesthetics, it cannot replicate the lived human experience behind the art—but it can challenge us, not only as an artist but as a viewer as well.
However, I agree with your perspective on AI potentially serving as a tool, rather than a replacement, for creatives. I too have used AI before to help generate ideas. A lot of the time the outcome is what I have expected. Used responsibly, AI can enhance artists’ workflows, offer inspiration. For instance, as Forbes highlighted, AI can assist with market predictions or authenticating art—tools that empower artists, collectors, and curators rather than diminish their roles. So in sense AI can be good in the world, it just needs to be used correctly.