I have to confess that when I hear AI there is one word that always pops into my mind, Skynet.
Most of you will get my Terminator reference. The day Skynet comes online the machines begin to take over the world. We have finally reached that day in our history when AI taking over people’s jobs is now a concern. But my question is, “If we are concerned about AI taking over people’s jobs then why don’t we stop it from happening?”
Isn’t it up to the humans, who run the companies, to make the choice whether to use AI or humans? Wouldn’t that mean that the companies could choose to continue to only use humans in the positions they currently fill? If that is the case, then if AI ends up taking over people’s jobs wouldn’t it actually be the human’s fault.
I could sit in my creative room pondering all the ways AI is going to steal my livelihood from me. Or I could continue to create original artwork and writings. Sometimes using elements of AI and sometimes not.
Here is the thing, I’ve been a published devotional writer for almost twenty years. I’ve been writing poetry (published and unpublished) for twelve years. And I’ve been creating traditional art, photography, digital art, mixed media art, and 3D art for ten years. What I create is unique because it is based on my own personal experiences in my life. Nobody else has ever walked a day in my shoes. Just as I haven’t walked a single day in theirs. My heart and mind interpret the world around me in a way that only I can interpret. AI is never going to be able to exactly replicate what I create because it is not me. Every creative person has a voice that is theirs alone.
To me using AI to collaborate on a poem is no different than if I was co-writing a poem with another person(s). I was part of a poetry community for years. We often worked together in pairs or large groups writing poems – each person contributing a stanza. We would reorder the stanzas, change lines. rearrange words, alter punctuation until the poem was exactly how we wanted it. I do the exact same thing when I work with AI on a poem. The only difference is that I don’t have to worry about hurting another person’s feeling in the editing process. It is a win win situation.
When I collaborate with AI on artwork projects it is the same as working with another artist. Many composite artists and 3D artists use stock photos as the background for their art. Typing a prompt in MidJourney to get a background specifically designed for the idea I have in mind is basically the same thing as using a stock photo. Mixed media artists often use different elements created by a variety of artists to create original artwork. Typing a prompt in NightCafe to create elements to use in an original mixed media piece is no different.
AI is just another tool in an artist’s/writer’s tool belt. Something to add texture and design elements to the original concept that is in our mind. I have chosen to only use AI images straight out of the box for my blog images, but not in any other capacity. Since I usually use royalty free stock images from Pixabay or UnSplash it is basically the same idea to use MidJourney/NightCafe images as stock photos. But that is simply my preference. I leave it up to each individual on how they choose to use AI.
Until our ones and zeroes shall meet again