In the midst of all the debate surrounding AI’s involvement in art, it’s clear the issue is far more fluid and dynamic than the simple statement: “You can’t use AI ethically.” The boundaries of art have always been defined by evolving practices, tools, and interpretations—and perhaps, that’s exactly what makes this debate worth having.
Take the example of collage artists. Do they credit every single source for the images they use? Rarely. Collage as a medium thrives on reinterpretation, juxtaposition, and a new synthesis of elements taken from existing works. Does this make their creations any less artistic? Or consider artists who study other art—copying existing pieces as a method of learning. This traditional approach has given us some of the most famous and valued pieces of antiquity, many of which are literal copies of earlier works. Were those copies not art?
I’ve observed my own practices in this context. Across my four websites (excluding Fortean Giftorium), I’ve posted around 1000 images, and have thousands more pending post. Of these, I’ve personally taken and processed 99%. Yet, I don’t consider myself a photographer. On the other hand, I’ve created about 40 oil paintings and a couple dozen pieces in gouache, and I unquestionably consider those works art.
Now let’s talk about AI. I openly use it to organize my thoughts, punch up my writing, and even draft articles with minimal prompts. Take this very article as an example—a free-writing exercise where AI has stepped in to “make it make sense” so I can focus on the core ideas. But I wouldn’t dare call any of that art… or at least not mine. It belongs to the robot, and the robot owes its existence and mind to all of us collectively. That’s the essence of its utility, and it’s where the line begins to blur.
Should we judge an author who uses AI for a first draft, as a storyboard designer, or to generate ideas? Writing, after all, is grueling work, particularly in a competitive market that often forces artists to either perform, starve, or sell their labor to the nearest factory, mill, or warehouse. AI offers a million tools that can lighten this burden. The key, however, lies in what we call the result. The immediate product of AI is not art; it is a manifestation of tools at work.
Art is your creation. It’s what you pull out of the ether. It’s the spark that transforms raw ideas into something unique, something imbued with your essence and vision. Everything else is craft, technique, or the result of tools aiding in that process. That distinction matters because it preserves the very soul of what we recognize as art.
So where does this leave us in the AI debate? Perhaps the answer isn’t about banning or shunning these tools but instead recognizing them for what they are: enablers. They can enhance our processes, speed up our workflows, and even expand our horizons. But at the end of the day, art remains defined by the human spirit behind it—the ability to take inspiration, shape it, and claim it as one’s own. Everything else is preparation, support, or simply the work of a robot… and that’s okay.
What matters is the distinction. What matters is that we know where the human ends and the machine begins. And in that space lies the true essence of art.
This article for instance was created by putting
“ok. gonna need some help organizing thoughts. premise is an article entitled what is art. brought on by an observation in the midst of all of the debate over ai involvement in art. issue is ore fuild and dynamic than you cant use ai ethically. thinking about artists making collages….do they credit everyone. how about people working from other art as studies. it is the traditional method of learning and some of our most famous and valued pieces through antiquity have been literal copies of previous works. think about and discuss that I have posted (take a quick count of the number of images on my four websites and exclude fortean giftorium) (blank) number of pictures, and I have taken 99 % of them personally and processed them. As an artist I do not consider myself a photographer though. on the other hand I have done around 40 oil paintings and a couple dozen in gouache, but I absolutely consider that work art. I openly use ai to organize my thoughts, punch up my writing, even in some cases writing articles for me with very basic prompts. Or in this case writing the article and having ai, make it make sense so to speak, so that I can free write my thoughts. But I would not dare call any of that art…or at least not mine. It belongs to the robot and the robot owes its existence and mind to all of us. At the same time I would not judge an author who used an ai as a first draft editor, or as an idea generator, or to design their story board. That stuff is a lot of work in a competitive market that demands an artist perform , starve, or sell their body to the local factory/mill/warehouse. MOst us are not rich and we clearly dont care enough about one another to make real enclaves without a bunch of hippy bs or psychotic competitiveness, so ai presents a million tools. Just dont call their immediate product art. Art is your creation. What you pull out of the ether. That is the art. Every thing else is a manifestestation of the use of tools. so lets see where that takes us”
into chat GPT and asking for it to organize my thoughts.
I am not a writer. I don’t claim to be. My business can not fund a full time copy writer, and while I am a DIY guy….I can only do so much. A great example is the header of this article. Those are to help people find me….ads…not my art. I will not feel guilty for spending very little to promote my own work and I am not going to let the advertising industry pummel with ai when I think it is democratizing and we should pummel industry with it.
Lets not let the people who own us all keep us fighting about how we create. JUST CREATE. Make the world better and bright with everything you do….even those of us who like the dark stuff. Make it fun.
Do the work. Pull what you want out of the ether and amplify it with your mind and touch. Use everything in your reach and power to make this better for yourself and everyone around you.
Maybe the billionaires will get those vapors from us like we all get the want money vapors from them.