AI art, pieces of multimedia art generated by artificial intelligence, is on the rise and threatening the livelihood of actual artists.
Artificial intelligence, while having its uses elsewhere, does not– and will never –belong in art made by the hands of hardworking artists. No one can dispute the fact that art, no matter the medium, stems from creativity and the soul of the person making it.
Of course, AI has a surplus of positives with ever increasing possibilities. Among other applications, the completion of repetitive tasks and helping to minimize possible human error are all things that artificial intelligence excels at.
“I see the value in exploring new tools, including AI, but I also believe it’s important to understand the concerns surrounding AI-generated art,” said art teacher Emily Tonon.
The use of artificial intelligence in the creation of art threatens the vital creativity that is necessary to the process. If art is whittled down to feeding prompts into an algorithm which then spits out a soulless picture, it loses all meaning.
“[AI art] is created using copyrighted artwork without the original artists’ permission, which raises serious ethical issues. It can imitate styles without credit, making it harder for artists-especially young or emerging ones—to be recognized for their work. AI also lacks the intent, emotion and personal voice that make art meaningful,” said Tonon.
The images generated by artificial intelligence gather the information through artwork posted online, without the creator’s knowledge nor permission.
As of recently, this concept has caused massive backlash. One such instance surrounds the iconic Studio Ghibli art style, notable for its vivid colors, simply yet lively characters and expressive backgrounds.
The scandal lies in the trend of people running various photos through an AI tool which in turn recreates it in the art style. This, to no one’s surprise, upset not only artists, but Hayao Miyazaki himself, the man behind the eye-catching art style of Studio Ghibli films.
If nothing is done to help protect artists from the wrongful use of their art, society will lose one of the things that make it flourish.
