If you’re on board with Walter Benjamin’s assertion that the mass reproduction of art destroys an aura it might have had, then boy, have we got the blog post for you.
While GANs and algorithmic generative art have been around for a long time, the hot new diffusion models have yet to really make a splash into the physical world. Below, we’ve logged every example we could find of an artist bringing unique art into the real world with the help of computer intelligence.
Pindar van Arman
Pindar van Arman is one of the earliest practitioners of AI art and perhaps the first to involve robotics. His most recent work uses “deep learning neural networks, artificial intelligence, feedback loops, and computational creativity to make a surprising amount of independent aesthetic decisions.”
Sougwen Chung
Sougwen 愫君 Chung is a Chinese-Canadian artist and researcher as well as the founder and artistic director of Scilicet, a London-based studio exploring human & non-human collaboration. Much like Van Arman, Chung is a pioneer in the field of human-machine collaboration, though she often leans into the performative aspect of such collaborations, creating pieces live for gallery attendees.
Tyler Hobbs
Perhaps the most well-known algorithmic generative artist working today, Tyler Hobbs isn’t content to leave his work on the screen. To bridge the gap between digital and physical, Hobbs often incorporates a CNC plotter to realize the outcome of his creative coding skills.
Similarly, the maker community is already making cool things combining plotters, ChatGPT, and text-to-image generation:
Glowforge’s Magic Canvas
Glowforge just released Magic Canvas, an AI text-to-image generator that creates images specifically for the Glowforge CNC printer.
Quiet strides are still being made to move AI imagery into creating and building real-life sculptural pieces, and we can’t wait to see what the next year brings in the rapid pace of development in bringing AI to the physical world.
If there are any outstanding examples of AI-to-IRL art that you’d like to share, let us know with a quick message to editorial@makersplace.com