AI Art Wins Contest: A Fake Masterpiece
Table of Contents
- Introduction
- The Art Competition Controversy
- The Winning Image
- The AI System Used
- The Artist's Process
- Mixed Responses on Twitter
- The Debate on AI Art
- Ethics of AI Art
- The Future of AI in Art
- Conclusion
The Art Competition Controversy
Recently, an artist entered an art competition and won in the most remarkable way ever. An AI-generated artwork won first place at a state fair fine arts competition, causing a big commotion within the art community all over Twitter, Instagram, and every other news outlet on the internet. This has made artists question their self-worth and debate amongst themselves if their skills hold any value anymore.
The artist, Jason Allen, participated in the Colorado State Fair Animal Art Competition and presented his work under the digital art and digitally manipulated photography section, where he came out as the first place winner, apparently beating the other 18 participants and also winning the grand prize of $300.
The Winning Image
The winning image, which he titled "Theater di Opera Spacial," looks hella impressive and could have been mistaken for a painting from the early masters in the Renaissance era. It also proved to us how exceptional the AI is at stealing from multiple artists at the same time, just like a really good artist.
The AI System Used
The AI he used to make this image is called "Mid Journey," which uses the GAN system. You Type in a set of keywords describing the type of image you want to Create, and then it spits out various options for you to choose from. According to the artist, he spent weeks fine-tuning and selecting from various thousands of images and then adjusting his art until he came up with something that was pretty presentable.
The Artist's Process
The artist spent weeks going through several images and fine-tuning them. If by fine-tuning, he actually was painting scenes and merging photos together, erasing some parts, masking other parts out, and actually having a say in the creating of the image, then that's basically photo bashing. But if all he had to do was type in a description and then choose from a bunch of images whichever he wanted to use for the competition, then does that seem fair to you?
Mixed Responses on Twitter
This entire situation has gotten a lot of mixed responses on Twitter, with some people saying it's totally fine and they don't find anything wrong with it, while others say it's killing artists and art itself since the AI can literally just do all the work without the person behind it doing anything aside from pressing a button.
The Debate on AI Art
The debate on AI art is ongoing, with some people saying that it takes as much time and skill as it takes to create an entire drawing or illustration from scratch, while others argue that it takes zero skill to choose from a bunch of images which one looks good or Meaningful to you.
Ethics of AI Art
The big issue is that the AI used for this didn't just use stock copyright-free images for the generation. It used artwork from living professionals without their permission to generate these images without credits, payments of any kind. This is a whole different topic for another video.
The Future of AI in Art
I think just like any sub-form of creating art, there is a place for AI art, and there's always going to be ways to find it work and fit into a pipeline of creating spectacular looking images. When it comes to competitions and contests, I think it should be made specific if AI art is allowed or not, or at least it should have its own sub-category so everyone competing under that knows they're going against other people using AI to create images.
Conclusion
In conclusion, the controversy surrounding AI art is ongoing, and it's up to the art community to decide whether or not it's a valid form of art. While some argue that it takes away from the skill and effort required to create traditional art, others see it as a new and exciting way to create unique and innovative pieces. Regardless of where you stand on the issue, it's clear that AI art is here to stay and will Continue to be a topic of discussion in the art world for years to come.
Highlights
- An AI-generated artwork won first place at a state fair fine arts competition, causing a big commotion within the art community.
- The winning image looks hella impressive and could have been mistaken for a painting from the early masters in the Renaissance era.
- The AI used to make this image is called "Mid Journey," which uses the GAN system.
- The debate on AI art is ongoing, with some people saying that it takes as much time and skill as it takes to create an entire drawing or illustration from scratch, while others argue that it takes zero skill to choose from a bunch of images which one looks good or meaningful to you.
- The big issue is that the AI used for this didn't just use stock copyright-free images for the generation. It used artwork from living professionals without their permission to generate these images without credits, payments of any kind.
FAQ
Q: What is AI art?
A: AI art is a form of art created using artificial intelligence algorithms and techniques.
Q: Is AI art valid?
A: The validity of AI art is a topic of debate in the art community. Some argue that it takes away from the skill and effort required to create traditional art, while others see it as a new and exciting way to create unique and innovative pieces.
Q: What is the GAN system?
A: The GAN system is a type of artificial intelligence algorithm that is used to generate images.
Q: Is it fair for an AI-generated artwork to win an art competition?
A: The fairness of an AI-generated artwork winning an art competition is a topic of debate. Some argue that it takes away from the effort and skill required to create traditional art, while others see it as a valid form of art.
Q: What are the ethics of AI art?
A: The ethics of AI art are a topic of debate, particularly when it comes to the use of copyrighted material without permission or compensation.