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Artists already have it hard. It’s not an easy feat facing heavy expenses for their education, uncertain job opportunities once they graduate, and the overall stress of trying to make art that they’re proud of. But on top of these hardships, artists now have to worry about an AI stealing their hard work to mold into a quick fix for profit. I’m an artist. I know firsthand how much time is slaved away trying to make an artwork perfect in my eyes, because I want to make something I can be proud of. I’m a perfectionist in my work, and when I post something on the internet, it’s me pouring myself out there for others to see. But now, everytime I want to post, I hesitate. If I put this out, will I be fueling AI systems further? Will they exploit my work to train their own software to better steal from others? It makes me worry for the art community, which has millions of artists like me posting their work in the hopes that someone appreciates it or double taps the like. Many of the freelance artists seen on social media have incomes from people buying merchandise or commission from their shops. But with AI art starting to gain more popularity in recent years, more people are turning to AI instead of artists for their commissions, finding it to be faster and cheaper. It makes me wonder: will the art community still be here in the years to come? Or will being an artist fade out like other jobs in the past, becoming obsolete in the face of technology? (Word count: 270)

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During my research, I found that although AI is becoming increasingly more prominent in the media, it still has a long way to go before it starts to compete with artists.

I do think it would be unwise to completely ignore the threat to artists, digital artists especially, as these are where most of their notable sources of art come from. One article talks about its significance impact on the artist industry as students are now hesitant to get into art careers thanks to this technology. Digital artists are also objecting to these AI art sites that steal thousands of art without compensation. However morally controversial, there are no laws in place for this new technology on whether these sites are right or wrong. The fact that it can be used to make art faster and cheaper than human artists makes it appealing to many non artists, and similar to other plagiarized creative works out there such as online movie streaming or songs, there might be no way to regulate the usage of this AI.

In contrast, one way we can adapt to this new technology would be using it to our advantage. Some artists have started to integrate AI into their workflow, according to one article, which can be a time saver to artists. Artists can still find ways to use AI to their advantage to create new and innovative works of art. The same article also says that artists will find some way to adapt or get left behind. While I don’t know if I truly support artists being forgotten due to changes in the art industry, I do find it interesting that AI might lead to a new age of art. If we can find a way to integrate AI technology into art flow while still keeping to our roots of human created works, there could be the potential to become an innovation in the industry.

In addition, even though AI might spark competition between the two, human art is found to be winning. One article distinguished that people generally found art made by humans to be liked more than art made by AI through surveys of people. I believe people find connections with art that is made by another human that just isn’t possible with AI art. Artists are still able to outcompete AI art because they have emotional significance and remind us of ourselves, while AI art still feels foreign and wrong to us. It is simply an ill attempt at recreating art already created from humans. Even if AI sorts out its bugs and is able to draw someone without extra toes or missing fingers, there will still be that human touch missing that makes art bring people together. As long as artists have something that AI art doesn’t, it will always be valuable. Art is about more than creating pretty images, after all. It’s about sending a message to the world and creating provocative thoughts. (Word count: 492)

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I created this using Procreate, which is a digital art platform. I wanted to show one side of her face as robotic to symbolize AI art, while the other is more lifelike and symbolizes the human aspect of art. As you can see, one side looks more menacing yet filled with grays and lifeless, while the other is brighter and filled with more color.

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I interviewed my friend Caitlin for this project. She is a digital artist who is planning to major in art, so she has direct correlation to the affect of AI art on the industry. She has also previously done a project on AI art vs. human art, so she is well aware of it.

She says that there are many industry jobs that she doesn’t believe AI will replace, such as character designers, storyboarders, or animators as they have a level of intricacy that can’t easily be replicated. She wants to maintain copyright laws that protect artists as she finds these to be crucial. As of now, US law has dictated that AI art isn’t protected under copyright law, so if corporations want certain assets they’ll still have to commission human artists. As for people who use AI art, it depends on their motivation. People who are just curious about this tool are fine, as after all, being able to produce “art” so easily can seem amazing. But she hopes that when they learn more about how this generated “art” is sourced, they can consider more carefully how and if they should use it. Caitlin believes, however, that AI art will not find a way to catch up to human art. While AI art can copy the look of existing art, it can’t defy, innovate, or expand on the principles the way human artists do. AI art is reliant on the data it's fed, but it itself is not learning color theory or anatomy or composition in any self-sustaining way. She quotes, "That is, if you take away all the human art, there is nothing left for AI art."