Wordless Wednesday: Udder Disaster

A.I.-generated artwork

Original Art used as Prompt:

"Udder Disaster"--24"x 36" Acrylic on panel

Wordless Wednesday: Creepy Crawlers

"There was another life that I might have had,
but I am having this one."
--Kashuo Ishiguro

To create the images here I used the app Dream by WOMBO.

For a prompt I used my original painting above and

the words "Creepy Crawlers." Those below are AI generated.

Rhapsody in Pixels: Jazz and AI Art Fusion

Playing with Dream AI by Wombo

I used the above painting as a prompt 

along with the verbal prompt "The Jazz Players"

The following images were generated based on style selections.

These last two were generated using the same painting

but I'd forgotten to change the prompt from "A Bald Man"

to "The Jazz Players."

This last image is very unusual, considering that the original painting 

was the one at the top of the page, a sextet of jazz players.

Related Links

15 AI Illustrations Based on a Cowboy Theme

How AI Mis-read My "Visionary Dylan" Painting

Fascinating A.I. Apps Produce Striking Images

15 AI Illustrations Based on a Cowboy Theme

This week I painted a cowboy.
Last night I used it as a prompt

to make a dozen variations using AI.

Below is a photo of the original painting. 
I leaned the painting against the front of my car

and took the photo. You can see the gravel from

my driveway across the bottom, which explains

the various interpretations on the AI-generated

illustrations. Is it essentially a loose silhouette.

Observations.

I'm impressed by the manner in which the AI images

play off the color scheme of the original. It's also 

interesting how in some instances the driveway is

incorporated into the illustration, but in others it's not. 

The app I'm using is Dream by Wombo.

DAI Hosts Special Event Addressing A.I. and Art

AI collaboration with the author.

Last night the Duluth Art Institute hosted a panel discussion with the working title AI Art: A Human Discussion. The 90 minute panel discussion, moderated by DAI director Christina Woods, took place via Zoom and featured five guests from various arts-related backgrounds. Rick Kollath is an illustrator who makes pictures the old fashioned way. Kathy McTavish is a transmedia artist who has worked extensively in coding and the creative application of technology. Ben Moren is a Twin Cities multi-media instructor, Jonathan Thunder a fine artist, and Alexis Elder a philosophy associate professor who has a background in tech ethics and fostering creativity. 

The discussion touched on many relevant themes. One recurring theme was "Where is this headed?"

Will children learn to draw by telling their phones to make pictures? Will pro illustrators be a thing of the past because AI can make fast, cheap pictures? How will copyright laws change? What are ethical and unethical applications of AI art? 

Kathy McTavish stated, "This moment is pivotal." ChatGPT, a "Large Language Model", has brought AI research to a far wider public than in years past where AI was more or less something the geek world thought about deeply. Right now, schools everywhere are grappling with how to use AI and ChatGPT.

Some of the discussion revolved around what is lacking or missing in AI generated art. "A painting is hand-made. As art it has a value," one panelist said. "Artists' processes are important." 

Is the amount of time it takes to make something (or clean up afterwards) what gives it value?

A Post-Modern Man. (AI collaboration)

Ben Moren is currently training an AI model. In his view three considerations are important features of art. (1) Intention  (2) Process  (3) Observation. He went on to compare art to collage. 

Jon Thunder said he pays his bills with his art. He noted that there are different categories of businesses and individuals buying art. People who buy clip art for their ads are not the clients someone like Thunder relies on. 

Rick Kollath then asserted that "AI cannot compare to hand made art."

"The human spirit, that's where it's at," Thunder replied.

Kollath pointed out that photography changed art and "AI will change art in ways we cannot yet imagine."

Kathy McTavish drew attention to the exorbitant costs involved in running the machines that enable us to create a picture AI. "I don't want to participate."

There were occasional statements that could have been elaborated on. One of these was "AI as function of a Colonizer." And "does AI create Accessibility?"Or to put it a different way, "Who gets access."

The relationship between technology and our environment was mentioned as well as the relationship between technology and mind formation. "Are we outsourcing our thinking and being exploited?"

AI is not the first insertion of technology into life. Many of us who were around in the Sixties remember mimeograph machines that enabled us to mass produce a newsletter. The capabilities of Photoshop emerged with the advent of personal computers. 

Before it goes too far, should we dismantle AI? One person asked if maybe it's time to dismantle Capitalism.

Hmmm. Now that's a whole different question.

* * * 

Illustrations on this page were AI collaborations with Dream by Wombo using original paintings by the author as a starting point.

My "Belly Dancer" Drawing and AI Variations

The Belly Dancer. Pen and ink, 4"x 6"

Original Pen and Ink Drawing (right)

The original is sharper than this reproduction.

Exploring the possibilities of AI art and writing programs has been entertaining. By changing the style selections one gets a whole range of results. While many get discarded, there are some fascinating surprises as well. 

When Susie and I first moved to Duluth in 1986 there was a restaurant called Natchio's Greektown which had delicious Greek cuisine plus belly dancers. (You can read about it here.) What follows are some AI-generated variations on this drawing.   

To see more AI experiments 

utilizing my original paintings and drawings

follow me on Instagram at 

https://www.instagram.com/newman_ed/