The Birth of Ai Art and Quick Rundown

How is Ai Art Generated?

• General steps:
  • Text is processed and turned into usable data by the model, and the semantic elements are analyzed as well.
  • Text goes through a “diffusion process”, which essentially adds noise to the text, making it so the art generator will make a different thing every time.
  • AI uses the new data to create the art. The art is usually made using GAN(Generative adversarial networks), which is a style of algorithm which is made up of two parts, one part which creates something, and another part which judges it. The GAN creates a feedback loop where the creator makes a piece of art, then the judge decides whether or not the thing matches the prompt, and if it doesn’t the creator tries again based on the feedback and the process repeats until the judge decides that it matches the prompt.
  • The model will then take the k best images, where k is a number provided to the model, and how good an image is is determined by the judge, and provides the images as output.
• Additional Information:
  • Usually this process takes about 5 minutes on an average computer, so there are websites that do all the backend processing for you, making it a lot faster.
  • Models typically have at least 2 parts, the creator and judge, but sometimes they can have more. For example, a model might have an image encoder to turn images into numbers, a part that turns text into images(creator), and a part that judges the images(judge).
  • The process of transferring the art style of one piece to another piece is called NST(neural style transfer).

Specific Ai Art Example

Implications of Ai Art

Perpetuates existing biases and stereotypes

Most algorithms that power AI art use data pulled from the internet, and the internet is a place filled with biases. The algorithms then generate images that have certain biases depending on the prompt. Taking DALL-E 2 as an example, the prompt “restaurant” will generate images that depict a western setting and styles and the prompt “nurse” will generate images of people who are female-passing. Generating these types of images will further the proliferation of biased images on the internet, creating a feedback loop and homogenizing AI art as a whole.

Copyright issues with using artwork in ai training data

Since the models pull images from the internet, innumerable artworks are used without the artists’ permission. This can lead to images that are generated directly in an artist’s artstyle; put the artist’s name in the prompt, and you’re done. Also, since a model can create mimetic art easily, if a company sees an image they want to use, they can input it into the database of an AI art model and quickly generate a similar image while bypassing copyright laws. The solution to the legal issues is currently not clear.

Impact on the art industry

Heavy criticism of AI art arose when a participant of the Colorado state fair took the blue ribbon in the contest in the category of digital art. The increase in prevalence of AI art may eliminate the need for artists since people can generate art rather than hire an artist. AI art undermines the creative process of traditional artists since it generates art with a click of a button. However, just like the invention of the camera or photoshop, AI generated art can be used as a tool; artists can use AI art as a starting point for creativity rather than a finished product. It may decrease the entry point of artists since it is much easier to have a working product from the beginning. The effects of ai art on the art industry will be determined by the users themselves, not the technology.