A Short Rant, If I May...

Psst! Want the TL;DR?

• AI cannot feel, and that's the difference

 

First off, in case you couldn’t tell from the title, I like ellipses. Probably too much. Oh, well. 

Secondly, my family is probably my biggest inspiration. Yup. It’s the cheesy truth, but the truth nonetheless. 

 

Why am I sharing this? Because I want my customers to know where I’m coming from. Something I like to make a big deal of on my site is how every original piece of work is hand painted by a real human being, with real paint and paper, inspired by real people and real life. That means no AI, and no digital art. 

Do I think there’s something wrong with digital art? No. I play around with it pretty regularly, myself, and love to (attempt to) animate. But we live in a world incredibly saturated with digital content, and that is only increasing. A hundred years ago and more, creating a quality piece of art, whatever it was (woodwork, a painting, ballet, clothing, composing a concerto, etc), took time. It took effort. It took years of expertise and honing one’s craftsmanship. The art of art is dying out. 

There’s two sides to this coin, however. On one hand, faster-made products means cheaper products, and that means beautiful art is no longer limited to the more wealthy, which is great! But on the other hand, it means that half the value of art - the ability it has to capture a person, a memory, a moment - is lessened. When something takes time, you are forced to slow down and be intentional about every choice you make, and the end result is a physical, tangible piece that will last, unlike a photo in your camera role, or that 30-second clip on social media. 

 

For people who love quick and easy, AI generated art, have fun with it. It’s a neat and unique tool, one that I think comes with benefits. But for anyone looking for something that you can feel, something substantive, something you can really sink your teeth into, I encourage you to try painting. Or drawing. Or inking. Or coloring. Or anything. Try to make something that lasts. Not something perfect, or realistically accurate, or precisely composed on your paper or canvas. Just something real. We’re built to do creative things, after all. 

And that’s why I shared my biggest inspiration at the top of this post. One of my favorite things to draw is my family, and it has been since I could first hold a pencil. AI can’t feel inspired by your kids. Or your sisters. Or your parents. Or your dog. But a person can. You can. 

That’s all for now. See you next week, and go make something!