AI Art vs. Human Art

 

Photo by pure julia on Unsplash

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is becoming increasing popular in the world of art. AI-generated art is created using various techniques, such as algorithms and machine learning. While AI art is created with these programs, traditional art is created by human artists using their skills, creativity, and imagination. With traditional art, there is a level of control that the artist has over the final product. With AI art the algorithm is responsible for the final creation. Human artists have unrestricted freedom of choice in terms of aesthetic direction, colour palette, style choice, and revisions during the creative process.

AI programs are not producing original works of art, but rather replicas. The problem with AI generated art is that to learn how to create their artwork, they are pulling art from human artists without their agreement and without giving any acknowledgment to the original artist. Artists on the human side should have the choice to opt-in to these AI platforms using and learning from their work.

Personally, I do not agree with AI generated art as I understand the frustration of having your work taken without your consent, but I can see the appeal behind it. I think it should be created in a way that is not harmful to human artists, as I mentioned above by giving them credit and receiving their permission. 

Many people use AI-generated artwork for fun, for character inspiration, or for character artwork because it's an inexpensive way to express their creativity. Many see AI-generated artwork as an approach to making high-quality artwork accessible to a wider audience at a lower cost. Not to mention, it is created quickly and easily, and is becoming more difficult to distinguish the difference between AI art and human-created works of art. 

It can take some artists years to develop a signature style that truly expresses their voice and emotion. AI art does not need the time that human artists require to learn or to create. Algorithms can now make art for you in a matter of seconds, drastically shortening the time it takes from idea to finished product.

I wanted to reach out to an artist to get their opinion on AI art and how and if it has affected them since it has becoming more and more popular. I have many friends as well as artists I have worked with and this is what one of them had to say:

“Art is something done with great passion. Artists put a lot of hours and determination; the concept alone takes time. And once a brilliant idea clicks in my mind, it fills me with joy and motivates me to create more. It takes up to a week for me to create an artwork, if not more. 

It honestly feels bizarre. With the kind of attention it gets (AI art) and people appreciating something that was put together from the scraps of other artist’s work, honestly, it’s not only disheartening but highly demotivating as well. Being inspired by art is one thing, and copying and editing an art is another. The main issue here is using the work of other artists and getting away with it. It not only loses the originality, it is cheating many!”

Real artists will have a harder time keeping up with AI's rapid art production. Contrary to popular opinion, I do not think the rise of AI-generated artwork spells the death of human creativity. Nevertheless, I do think that many human artists will lose their inspiration and drive as a result of this trend.

Danielle Hill is an Amazon Top 10 author of drama filled, swoon worthy and magical contemporary fantasy novels. Danielle first came up with the idea for A Kingdom of Sun and Shadow in late 2017 and began publishing chapters on Episode shortly after. After a warm reception on Episode, she decided to expand the story and began writing the manuscript in February 2018.

A Place for Politics

Remember group projects in high school? Or maybe it was in a college class. Or around the meeting table at your first job. You had an idea. A good one. You started talking. Everyone was looking at you. And then one of the other people started talking. As if you weren't speaking. All those people who you thought had been paying attention blink and turn away.

No one ever asked you to finish your thought. No one ever asked to hear your idea. It's as if you didn't even exist.

If you're  better human being than I am, you don't stand up and scream, "Oh my GOD WILL YOU LET ME FINISH?"  (FYI - this rarely actually gets your ideas listened to. It may get security called. Only once did a manager laugh and tell the developer trying to talk over me that he'd earned getting yelled at.)

If you've ever said "I wish *insert famous person name here* would stop talking politics and go back to . . . " you're guilty of doing to them what was to you. (Guys, help me out here - I have someone suggesting this being talked over thing only happens to women and minorities. Rebuttals??)

This is the long way of saying that my beliefs and I are a package deal. That's why if you read my books - especially my sci fi, you know my politics and most of my belief systems. If you're on my personal Facebook page, you know my politics. I won't hide because life is too short to live on mute. I mean to live my life out loud. Too much time and energy has gone to making sure other people were comfortable, whether I was or not. Maybe I'm just all out of fucks to give because my loyalty isn't to anyone party or person. It's to ideals. Rights. Equal protection for all people under the law. Very strict separation of church and state.

I think that one of the great things about living in the United States is that you are called by your civil duty to participate in the democratic process. Plenty of people abdicate that responsibility. Fine. That, too, is a right. But frankly, anyone with a pulse has the right to an opinion and the right to voice it. I suspect that when well-known people take heat for expressing their opinions, it's because someone envies the platform and reach (not to mention it's only when the opinion disagrees with someone's preconceived notions.) No one says, 'I wish famous person x would shut up.' when the opinions agree. Which is code for, 'I'm uncomfortable and I don't want to be forced to examine my thoughts and beliefs!' I get it. It's not easy. But the last time it was legit for any of us to express that kind of discomfort it was because we were doing unspeakable things to our diapers.

So you'll likely also see on my Facebook page that I don't shut down political opinions that differ from my own. Because I want my thinking challenged. Not that I'm above participating in the world wide call upon witches to spell cast Saturday. The stated goal is to bind the current US administration from doing any further harm. I prefer something more colorful, I think. Maybe a spell inspired by a new Chuck Tingle title. I'll leave the content of the spell to your imagination.

Any spell suggestions? Or requests? (Remember the genie in Aladdin - I won't kill anyone and I won't bring anyone back from the dead . . .)