- November 23, 2022
When doing research for this video I saw videos ranging from Ai art is the end of all artists to how to use it to make money.
There is a huge polarization here.
No one knows what to think. We have no idea how this Ai thing is going to change our future.
So why speculate?
Instead of creating a video focused on asking what if for a future that doesn’t exist and upsetting ourselves. I decided to create a practical video on how you as an artist can use Ai right NOW.
Using Ai art for motivation, creativity and idea creation.
With Ai we can see things we’ve never seen before.
It’s like an alien from another world decided to come here and start interpreting humanity through imagery.
Some generated images are just darn weird.
Some are absolutely breathtaking.
But the majority of them seem generated with zero influence from the human race.
It’s like giving a new born baby the knowledge of all the images in the world and viewing what their dreams have produced after they saw them.
An interpretation of humanity with a complete detachment from everything that makes us human.
How could we not take advantage of this new perspective?
I’m seeing this Ai art thing as a new movement of art. Like impressionism.
We have a new view of our world. We have a new lens to look through onto our world.
It’s like discovering a new primary color.
Okay maybe not THAT groundbreaking, but you get my point.
I discovered AI generated art in August this year. Maybe I’m late to the game, I don’t know.
Don’t care.
But what I do know is that before I jumped on Midjourney and started generating art. I had no idea what I was going to paint next.
Afterwards I had a folder full of images that I would like to paint.
None of them are perfect.
In fact I wouldn’t dare transfer any one of these images directly to a canvas without editing it first.
No, it needs human influence.
I treat it like a conversation through imagery with a being from another world.
I would generate an image.
Take it into Krita and make adjustments to it.
Then Feed it back into Midjourney with different prompts and see what Ai had to say about it.
A collaboration.
Here is one of the paintings I came up with.
I would have never painted something like this before.
But Ai art inspired me to go down a road that I’ve never tried before.
I learned a ton from this painting. I’ll probably not paint anything like it again but with it I experienced a freedom that I’ve never experienced before.
As an artist locked into the real world and reproducing reality, to some extent, Ai helped me break out of that rigidity of thinking.
I continue to use Ai.
When I’m looking for something I’ve never seen before or a new take on something done a million times over.
I jump on Midjourney and see what it comes up with.
Sometimes the result is inspiring and sometimes it’s a repeat of what I’ve seen before.
But, almost always there is a small part of the image generated that I can use to enhance what I’m working on.
I didn’t get the epic landscape I wanted but how the light plays over this snowy valley is gorgeous.
In 1839 the first widely available photographic process was made public by Luis Daguerre which caused an uproar in the art world. (Source)
Now that the photograph could depict life more accurately and quickly, the artists had to reinvent themselves.
Artists shifted from trying to depict reality into portraying emotions and impressions.
When a machine could do it faster and better than we could we changed course and doubled down on our humanity.
Instead of trying to paint a sunset accurately Claude Monet asked, what is the emotion that I feel when looking at this sunset and how can I paint that?
We are at a wonderful time in art history right now.
I say we embrace Ai art and use it as a tool just like all of the digital artists making the majority of our entertainment have used google, pinterest, sketch up, Mudbox, photobasing and 3D programs to create some of the most breathtaking images we’ve ever seen.
We can use Ai to further enhance our own creativity, imagination and style.
Just like we enhance our art now by stealing from contemporary artists or artists throughout history.
We steal some ingredients from others and put it in the melting pot along with our own influence and stir up a concoction that is all our own.
BUT!
And this is a big but.
Just like you wouldn’t plagiarize Davinci by repainting the Mona Lisa and calling it your own, don’t take the lowly and despicable route of generating something that looks just like an artist you admire and call it your own.
By doing that you’ve become a cog in the wheel and have given up your own humanity for the base urge of monetary and social gain.
Use it. Use it ethically. And use it to further what makes us human.
Because, like Adam Duff said, it’s the human behind the art and it’s the human that makes the art precious. It’s the person behind the art that is imperative.
These are my thoughts.
Other artists I admire like Jake Parker and Adam Duff have wonderful videos about the subject as well.
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