Peter Chung

AF by Stable Diffusion 2

Added 2024-07-03 12:47:57 +0000 UTC

As a child of the 60s, the vintage Mario Bava vibe of these posters is thoroughly delightful. Swapping out a few words in the prompt pushed the style in a number of unexpected directions, like 1970s Metal Hurlant cover art to a black coiffed Charlize.

There's a relief in not bearing responsibility for the AI's output, and I can foresee that having both good and bad consequences. It's already hard enough to get professional artists to own up to their failures. The most common excuse is for them to deny they had the power to make creative decisions. On the other hand, many bad movies get made because of the need to protect someone's ego.

I still have mixed feelings over how to use AI in my work going forward. The novelty value will certainly subside in time, but to ignore its potential would be foolish. I can prompt it to produce thousands of variations and by some fluke, a handful will strike a chord while I'll discard the overwhelming majority of outputs. They will have been so effortlessly produced that disposing them will be no great loss. It cheapens the value of each image, but I don't think that's a bad thing. The value of art should never be tied to the effort it took to produce it. There was a necessary connection between hardship and final quality in the past (the Sistine Chapel comes to mind) but the fact that that no longer holds is, in my view, a step forward. It will place the greater importance where it belongs- on the quality of ideas and substance.