Artificial Intelligence is No Substitution for Artists
By Sharon Kim
By Sharon Kim
“What AI program did you use for this drawing?”
“... I made it.”
It’s a frequent comment that some people ask today that adds insult to injury.
Artificial Intelligence has been gradually integrating itself in our everyday lives. Whether it's taking over monotonous jobs in industry that require simple commands to flick a switch or helping brain surgeons with fine precision. Coding, driving or delivery, AI allows essential functions to go automatic, allowing humans the luxury to expand and explore different interests. Nevertheless, AI at the same time steals away job opportunities from people that need them, shrinking the labor market. They've finally gone too far, infiltrating an artist's creative space, something that should be reserved for the human capacity.
The way that artists’ creative property end up in AI generators without their permission is a big problem. Asking for the consent of the artist is always important for sharing or reposting artworks, but when people blatantly steal the artist’s intellectual property without credit is very disrespectful. The main issue with AI is that people take this art and feed it into the system improving the quality of its works. That’s just a slap to the face to the artists that spent years of their lives honing their skill, just for it all to be whisked away by a machine.
“I fear the world’s end is near,” said Hayao Miyazaki, director of Studio Ghibli when confronted by people that wanted to make AI art a reality. Art is a creative expression and emotions are quintessential in making it. Both are things computers lack.
A big player in this normalization of AI in the art world is big platforms such as TikTok and Instagram. Filters that transform real life images into stylized drawings with the click of a button are much quicker, easier and simpler for many people, thus making AI more appealing. Why pay a person to make art when you can get what you want for free? However, giving prompts to a machine instead of a person to make art is diverting funds that could support artists that make their livelihood off of these commissions. It's disheartening to see some rising artists questioning if they even want to pursue art in the future at the rate that things are progressing. As someone who has used traditional and digital mediums for years, I see artists assembling on these major platforms saying, “no to AI art,” and I support and empathize with them.
Even though it looks bleak, I am sure that artists won’t stop making art just because AI can do it now. Having AI participate won’t spell the end for human creativity and can even be a tool to expand it. However, I still feel including AI in a creative space is setting a dangerous precedent because at what point will an AI be able to do everything a human is able to do? Where do the lines blur? Because for me, art was that line and now that AI is progressing in knowledge and skill, it's worrisome.
Art has been around since the start of human civilization, and has constantly evolved, expanding in mediums and uses. Perhaps AI was the eventual next step, but I still feel that AI should have no spot in making art. At least in the way an auto generator churns out new images from an amalgamation of previous works for fun. “The only natural talent an artist has is the desire to create,” said Ben Cato.
Say no to AI art.
“... I made it.”
It’s a frequent comment that some people ask today that adds insult to injury.
Artificial Intelligence has been gradually integrating itself in our everyday lives. Whether it's taking over monotonous jobs in industry that require simple commands to flick a switch or helping brain surgeons with fine precision. Coding, driving or delivery, AI allows essential functions to go automatic, allowing humans the luxury to expand and explore different interests. Nevertheless, AI at the same time steals away job opportunities from people that need them, shrinking the labor market. They've finally gone too far, infiltrating an artist's creative space, something that should be reserved for the human capacity.
The way that artists’ creative property end up in AI generators without their permission is a big problem. Asking for the consent of the artist is always important for sharing or reposting artworks, but when people blatantly steal the artist’s intellectual property without credit is very disrespectful. The main issue with AI is that people take this art and feed it into the system improving the quality of its works. That’s just a slap to the face to the artists that spent years of their lives honing their skill, just for it all to be whisked away by a machine.
“I fear the world’s end is near,” said Hayao Miyazaki, director of Studio Ghibli when confronted by people that wanted to make AI art a reality. Art is a creative expression and emotions are quintessential in making it. Both are things computers lack.
A big player in this normalization of AI in the art world is big platforms such as TikTok and Instagram. Filters that transform real life images into stylized drawings with the click of a button are much quicker, easier and simpler for many people, thus making AI more appealing. Why pay a person to make art when you can get what you want for free? However, giving prompts to a machine instead of a person to make art is diverting funds that could support artists that make their livelihood off of these commissions. It's disheartening to see some rising artists questioning if they even want to pursue art in the future at the rate that things are progressing. As someone who has used traditional and digital mediums for years, I see artists assembling on these major platforms saying, “no to AI art,” and I support and empathize with them.
Even though it looks bleak, I am sure that artists won’t stop making art just because AI can do it now. Having AI participate won’t spell the end for human creativity and can even be a tool to expand it. However, I still feel including AI in a creative space is setting a dangerous precedent because at what point will an AI be able to do everything a human is able to do? Where do the lines blur? Because for me, art was that line and now that AI is progressing in knowledge and skill, it's worrisome.
Art has been around since the start of human civilization, and has constantly evolved, expanding in mediums and uses. Perhaps AI was the eventual next step, but I still feel that AI should have no spot in making art. At least in the way an auto generator churns out new images from an amalgamation of previous works for fun. “The only natural talent an artist has is the desire to create,” said Ben Cato.
Say no to AI art.