04/08/2025
Is this the future we want for art? 🤖
AI art tools like Lensa App, Midjourney or Stable Diffusion have recently taken the world by storm.
It’s impressive what these applications are capable of but most people aren’t aware of the very worrisome implications this trend has for the future of art:
1. AI tools are algorithms that need source data to function. In the case of AI art software, the source data is a pool of millions of artworks that were created by human artists over the centuries. AI tools can only create stunning images because they have access to this vast library of art. The problem is that most artists didn’t give permission for their art to be used this way. Furthermore, contemporary art is protected by copyright laws and is used against the artists’ will to feed a machine that aims to replace them by recreating their art style. This is not only morally reprehensible but most likely illegal. It is art theft on a massive scale disguised as technological progress.
2. AI art threatens the livelihoods of millions of artists, designers, photographers & other creatives. These tools are built to create artistic or photorealistic images in a myriad of different styles and in an instant. “Fast art“ you might call it. No human artist can compete with a machine that can create 20 different iterations of a prompt in 5 seconds. The basic economic principles of supply and demand dictate that when the art market is flooded with cheap & easy to create AI art, the wages for artists will go down even lower — when most creatives can already barely cover their living expenses. Why should companies or individuals pay a human artist when they can get AI to create their desired outcome in the blink of an eye and for the fraction of the cost? We already see this happen in certain fields and this trend will only accelerate.
3. AI tools devalue art to a mere product of algorithmic approximation and a means to serve consumerism. They mash together source material to create images that are visually pleasing but have no human soul. Art has been a form of human expression and communication for as long as we have existed. From cave paintings to impressionistic masterpieces of more recent centuries — art is a vital part of who we are! It helps us make sense of the human condition and put beauty into our world. Capitalism has the tendency to reduce things to products merely designed to generate revenue. We have seen this happen in the world of movies and video games, where the same generic themes are rehashed over and over because they are „safe“ and sell. Rarely do we see hollywood directors truly tread new paths because corporate profits are more important than having creative vision. Do we want the same thing to happen to art?
4. AI art apps like Lensa encourage their users to upload photos of themselves and turn them into artistic masterpieces. This poses a huge risk to the privacy and safety of the app‘s users because their likeness is fed into the AI‘s source data and may end up being used for unwanted nefarious purposes. It has been reported that Stable Diffusion, the software Lensa App is based on, has been used by some to create p*rnographic images. Would you want your face to float around in a software that can create these kinds of images?
5. AI art tools enable art thieves in completely new and dangerous ways. Some artists have already experienced this: the thieves would feed the artwork they want to steal into the AI and let it create a variation. The outcome would be very similar to the original artwork but different enough to protect the thief from a copyright lawsuit. Even entire art styles can be imitated. A digital artist called SamDoesArt recently had thieves train AI software to almost perfectly copy his art style. They even made a contest out of it, rewarding whoever got closest to Sam‘s art style. While a certain style is not protected under copyright laws, it takes artists years and years to find their unique voice and perfect it. To have it stolen like that, without a legal way to fight back, is beyond frustrating.
6. Lastly, this AI art trend discourages people to get into the arts and develop the necessary creative skills it takes to become a professional. I myself had many aspiring creatives reach out to me, telling me how scared they were for their future and that they didn’t know if going to an art school or studying art by themselves was even worth it anymore. Choosing an artistic career is already daunting and difficult enough. Having to compete with machines that have no downtime, no self-doubt and learn at a much faster pace than humans could, will cost us entire generations of actual humans wanting to add their creative voice to society.
I am not against technological progress. I think AI is fascinating and can be used for good in so many ways. I just believe that we shouldn’t automate things that are so central to who we are as humans. We risk losing touch with our own humanity. Think about how much art has an influence on our everyday lives: it’s in the music we listen to on our way to work, in the design of the car we drive or in the Netflix show we watch to wind down in the evening.
If you want to support the survival of human artists and protect their rights, consider doing any of the following:
- share this post so that more people are educated about the topic
- write to politicians and lawmakers so that we get clear and tight regulation around AI art
- demand companies to continue to hire human creatives and don’t buy products that were AI-generated
- continue to support the human artists around you
As for me, I will keep creating — it is an integral part of who I am.
I hope so will you.
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