As a digital artist his brush is a stylus pen, but he can put that down and use a whittled burnt charcoal pencil, because they’re both largely brush-like objects. A prompt-wrangler can’t go into their backyard and whip up a midjourney-like object to use in the same way.
But I don’t think complexity of tools makes a real artist.
If the argument is that digital artists have learnt the skill of drawing and therefore count as real artists, well some percentage of prompt-wranglers can draw, and some percentage of conceptual, ‘outsider’ and other artists can’t draw.
Almost all professionally trained artists can draw, but I hope we can agree that professionally trained doesn’t = real artist either.
I think “plagiarists aren’t real artists” is a much sounder argument than this, but mostly I don’t think there’s much sense in policing who or what is a real artist. Even about stuff I don’t like.
If the argument is that digital artists have learnt the skill of drawing and therefore count as real artists, well some percentage of prompt-wranglers can draw
If I’m a chef, and have the ability to make gourmet meals, but I doordash a burger from Applebees, I still haven’t cooked the burger. Similarly, if you can draw and you ask an AI to make an image for you, you haven’t drawn the image. You’ve commissioned the image. Your skill in drawing may allow you to prompt for more specific changes, but it does not mean you drew it.
Plenty of artists don’t make their art in that way. Most of the grand masters of the past had underlings who did most of the painting, and since Duchamp found objects have been considered valid art.
I wouldn’t consider someone who didn’t do the painting themselves to be the artist of a painting either. You could call them the art director or something, but they are at most a coauthor of the art. They are not making all of the artistic decisions. That’s pretty similar to AI art.
Found objects have about the same artistic value as well-made AI art too, yeah. You’re going through a selection process to find something that appears pleasing. I think AI art is more similar to directing, but found art isn’t far off.
There are a ton of other types of art than those using brushes. Hell, the example is using something other than a brush.
As a digital artist his brush is a stylus pen, but he can put that down and use a whittled burnt charcoal pencil, because they’re both largely brush-like objects. A prompt-wrangler can’t go into their backyard and whip up a midjourney-like object to use in the same way.
But I don’t think complexity of tools makes a real artist.
If the argument is that digital artists have learnt the skill of drawing and therefore count as real artists, well some percentage of prompt-wranglers can draw, and some percentage of conceptual, ‘outsider’ and other artists can’t draw.
Almost all professionally trained artists can draw, but I hope we can agree that professionally trained doesn’t = real artist either.
I think “plagiarists aren’t real artists” is a much sounder argument than this, but mostly I don’t think there’s much sense in policing who or what is a real artist. Even about stuff I don’t like.
If I’m a chef, and have the ability to make gourmet meals, but I doordash a burger from Applebees, I still haven’t cooked the burger. Similarly, if you can draw and you ask an AI to make an image for you, you haven’t drawn the image. You’ve commissioned the image. Your skill in drawing may allow you to prompt for more specific changes, but it does not mean you drew it.
Plenty of artists don’t make their art in that way. Most of the grand masters of the past had underlings who did most of the painting, and since Duchamp found objects have been considered valid art.
I wouldn’t consider someone who didn’t do the painting themselves to be the artist of a painting either. You could call them the art director or something, but they are at most a coauthor of the art. They are not making all of the artistic decisions. That’s pretty similar to AI art.
Found objects have about the same artistic value as well-made AI art too, yeah. You’re going through a selection process to find something that appears pleasing. I think AI art is more similar to directing, but found art isn’t far off.