Mahanoy City, PA
The discourse around artificial intelligence, or AI, has expanded to all aspects of life. AI is the simulation of human intelligence processes by machines. It’s been utilized in industries like healthcare, finance, and education, and it's also been used for entertainment, such as when people use AI on social media to communicate with their favorite TV characters or generate how they would look in their yearbook photos. However, these AI image generators pose a threat to all types of artists. The cost-efficient creativity of being able to generate any image with a single prompt drives people to use AI. Business industries are starting to incorporate AI into their marketing strategy, by making marketing materials, logos, and even product designs quickly. Money-wise, using AI seems to be better than paying an artist to do it since it requires less effort and time. The shift from original art to generated art reshapes creativity, thus creating the question: “Is AI taking over art?”
There are numerous problems regarding AI and art, and the main one is unethical data collection. For an artificial intelligence system to learn, it has to be fed vast amounts of data, which is then used to influence its decision-making. This data often includes various artworks that are used without the artist’s consent, such as when the art is copyrighted. Technically, AI isn’t breaking any copyright laws, since they’re only imitating the art rather than copying it verbatim. The lack of legal protection leaves artists unable to fight back against the use of AI, causing artists to be furious because such a practice devalues the time and work they put into their art. Most AI systems are trained to essentially steal and modify artwork, completely disregarding the original artists’ connection to the art. The misuse of this art not only raises ethical concerns but also poses a danger to social media artists because digital art can easily be pulled into the data. This leads to creators being unable to spread their work without exposing themselves to AI.
Despite these issues, the theory that AI will evolve to replace art is highly unlikely. AI-generated art has many tell-tale flaws. For example, AI-generated art often features merged lettering that doesn’t make up words or hands that can have more than five fingers. This is due to AI being limited to imitating the “big picture” of human artists rather than focusing on nuanced details, despite having extreme technical precision and expertise. This leads to an art piece that may look visually appealing at first glance, but then you realize the small things when you look closer. The lack of focus on these details also fails to create a deeper emotional meaning that is usually expressed through art. This problem doesn’t only affect generated traditional art but also generated photography and music. AI-generated images don’t have the realism and authenticity that human photography usually demands. For example, say a news channel is reporting about a local protest. Would it be more impactful to the audience if there was a generated photo or real photo that captures the entirety of the event? The generated photo wouldn’t have the same emotional connection. The same goes for music, where AI-generated compositions don’t have the same passion as a human-composed song.
However, the gap of sentimentality in generated art can be filled by artists. It may seem hesitant, but using AI as leverage is the best option for all creators. AI can serve as a tool to push artists to stand out and find new inspiration. The intersection of technology and art creates more landscape for artists to explore. It can be used to overcome creative blocks or to try something new. For instance, AI can sketch up an idea or generate a new color palette to work with. By embracing AI, creators can benefit from the dynamic view it provides while adding their own touch of personal expression. Ultimately, artificial intelligence can’t stand alone, but its true potential can be drawn out when paired with an artist.
Sources
https://news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2023/08/is-art-generated-by-artificial-intelligence-real-art/
Tell us what interests you! Drop suggestions to read about your favorite STEM topics!
Коментари