Introduction

The preface of this book was written by the AI program ChatGPT with no edits from humans. It speaks of a world where AI has a positive yet dark potential. It describes a fantastical post-apocalyptic society that must decide what the future will be like. Will humanity ultimately succumb to the machines in a takeover? Will it leave our society in ruins or contribute to the creative process? Giving a voice to AI, which is as much of a contributor to this book as the chapter authors, brings in questions surrounding authorship and the uncertainty of its role in society; by criticizing and interrogating what the future of AI means, it captures the essence of the rest of the book in which it speaks upon.

This book is the work of a fourth-year seminar in the History and Theory of Art program. The course explores practical research methods and strategies on the theme of artificial intelligence (AI) and the visual arts. Each student has created an AI work using a platform of their choice, such as DALL-E or other image algorithms, with a prompt that interrogates an aspect of art history and theory. Their chapter then critically analyses the image considering its aesthetic qualities as well as questions of originality, intention, and creativity. The subsequent research surrounding each image examines the process of machine learning when used as an artistic tool; this in turn delves into the relationship between AI algorithms and the inclusion and exclusion of works from the art historical canon.

This multidisciplinary project is written in an accessible format meant to encourage collaboration with minimal academic and financial restrictions. It is the first student-led Open Education Resource (OER) published by the University of Ottawa. We intend to encourage open dialogue amongst those with similar interests and contribute experiential narratives about AI through the lens of the visual arts.

As the reader may have recognized, the cover of the book is an appropriation of Michelangelo’s masterpiece, The Creation of Adam, a fresco in the Sistine Chapel. The image, mirroring the power transferred from God to Adam, represents the transfer from God to a Robot, and reflects on the power of creation. In this context it fascinating that A.I. seems to render the form of a brain in the image, an aspect explored by Frank Lynn Meshberger. See, this article. Also

The frontispiece of this book was generated by our classmate Maya Norgaard, with a prompt using the titular keywords that each author chose to identify their own chapter. Norgaard asked the AI platform DALL-E to “deeply intertwine” these keywords in a “complex, multi-layered image”. It generated a swirling cityscape of coloured shapes. Our chosen words appear amongst the spiraling colours, translated into the gibberish of AI. There are notable parallels with the fauvist foregrounding of colour relationships seen in works like Sonia Delauney’s Electrical Prisms. Hints of objects appear alongside equally concrete waves of light and colour. It also bears resemblance to the contrasting tendrils and geometry in Alex Janvier’s Morning Star. This association calls to mind the First Nation creation story symbolized in Janvier’s work, and subsequently the creative process around which our book revolves.

In 1967, Roland Barthes published an essay titled “The Death of the Author.” He goes into depth about the separation of author and reader. If we remove the author, does that change the meaning of the text? Or is meaning solely based on audience interpretation?^[1] The same questions can be applied to the dialogue created by AI. The terrain of AI is unfamiliar territory and is only just beginning to be explored. Scholars like Martin Zeilinger are asking questions on how copyright laws apply to AI if it is appropriating images from the vast expanse of the internet and in the end, who owns the image?^[2] When creating art especially, there are many stages involved in the creation of works. There is the human responsible for inputting the prompts, the AI program itself, the owner of the algorithm, and the artists from which the works are coming. It is these questions the book explores, aiming to be but one voice in the emerging discussions of this grey area of technology that has made a name for itself in the twenty-first century. Could AI change the meaning of art?

The chapters in the book are organized in a loosely chronological and thematic manner. The first half focuses more on the art historical canon, whereas the second half delves deeper into socio-political and cultural biases of AI and technology as a whole.

Chapter one by Maya Norgaard, titled “Porcelain,” starts the narrative with an AI-generated image of a skeleton drinking tea which was instructed to be created in the style of artist Johannes Vermeer. AI is used to compare art that involves imitation from the Dutch Golden Age as well as Chinese porcelain in the Netherlands with the AI’s interpretation and exclusion of these elements. It incorporates theories from Jean Baudrillard to analyze AI through its interpretations of the art historical canon.

Chapter two was written by Kelseigh Thompson and it is titled “Waste.” It combines William Shakespeare’s Ophelia and environmental issues as the character lies submerged in a polluted body of water. Through AI, Thompson analyses and explores the character’s prevalent symbolism, the limitations of AI, and the waste produced by consumerist ideals and technology.

Chapter three, written by Isabelle Gray, is titled “Perception.” It compares the Impressionist works of Claude Monet with an AI-generated landscape that uses only formal qualities for the prompt. Ultimately, it aims to investigate the digital landscape and its place in the art historical canon.

Chapter four is titled “Reinterpretation,” and it is written by Shems Benmosbah. Benmosbah investigates human emotions and psychology in the works of Henry Fuseli with an AI-generated image based off of his paintings of the sublime. The overall goal of this chapter is a comprehension analysis of the limitations and achievements of the AI’s interpretation of Fuseli’s paintings.

Chapter five, titled “Collage,” was written by Abigail Moffitt. It starts with an AI image based on the works of Francisco Goya and Hannah Höch. From there, Moffitt uses her own experiences as an artist to delve into the exploration of the potential AI has in removing or enhancing the creative process regarding symbolism, style, and technique.