Can artificial intelligence really create art? 1

Klaus Mitteldorf, a Brazilian artist of German and Swedish descent, internationally recognized for his transdisciplinary work, helps to propose an answer
As a researcher on the subject of artificial intelligence (AI) and in light of its advances, I ended up participating in some debates around the artistic capacity of generative AIs such as Dall.E 2 and Midjourney. Induced by the quality of the images generated by these tools, some people argue that AI can really create art.

I have no doubt that AI has the ability to generate images, poems or songs that lead us to conclude that they are works of art, especially because it knows how such algorithms work: based on a large volume of human creations, they learn a pattern of what is accepted in texts, songs or images, and, from these templates, they generate variations. Therefore, in a way, they learn the characteristics that the result needs to have to be accepted by human standards, and with that, convince us of its legitimacy. In other words, these algorithms learn to “trick” us, in a way. However, regardless of the impressive results, is this really art?

To help me answer this question, there is nothing better than talking to those who actually produce art. This led me to speak with Klaus Mitteldorf, a Brazilian artist of German and Swedish descent, internationally recognized for his transdisciplinary work, including photography, cinema, collaborations with musicians, and conceptual artistic experiments seeking to expand the boundaries of these forms of artistic expression. His expression covers a wide variety of themes and styles, ranging from sophisticated fashion to urban culture and social activism, such as the album covers of the rap group Racionais MC, where he used photography to capture the essence and message of the group’s members.

For Klaus, art is something essentially human, as it is the materialization of the expression of the artist’s feelings. He sees art as a universal refuge for human beings, a means through which artists convey their deepest inspirations and feelings.

When asked whether AI can create works of art, Klaus is skeptical. He acknowledges that AI can generate works based on existing data and trends, but questions its ability to evolve and take the next steps on its own, just as artists do, since it does not have access to deep feelings and is not capable of, in his words, “defining a person’s present moment, much less their future.” To reinforce the superficiality of AI, he adds that “we have hidden secrets that not even we ourselves can access, much less AI.” According to him, AI therefore lacks essential elements for genuine art, being just another tool, among many others, in an artist’s repertoire. As a tool, it does not produce art, but rather holds the creative and emotional essence that are the driving forces of artistic expression, and is therefore exclusive to the artist. In his view, AI can be a means of developing new technologies and expanding the reach of art, but should not be considered a substitute for human artistic creation. After learning his perspective, I decided to try to get the AI’s own perspective on the topic. To do this, I put the transcript of the conversation I had with Klaus on ChatGPT 4.0, and asked, “Do you think AI can generate art? How does your view on the topic compare to Klaus’s?” I got the following response:

The question of whether AI can generate art is a complex and multifaceted one. From a technical perspective, AI has already demonstrated the ability to create works that can be classified as art, using algorithms to generate images, music, text, and other forms of creative expression. These creations are often based on large volumes of data and patterns learned from existing works of art, allowing the AI to produce works that, at least superficially, resemble human art.

However, the question becomes deeper and more philosophical when we consider what constitutes “art” in its truest sense. Art is often seen as an expression of human experience, emotions, thoughts, and worldviews. It is intrinsically linked to the artist’s ability to convey something of themselves – their emotions, their experiences, their cultural context, their worldview – through their work. In this sense, many argue that AI, which operates on data and algorithms without life experience or emotion, cannot create art in the same sense as humans.

Klaus Mitteldorf’s view, as expressed in the interview, resonates with this idea. He sees art as a deeply human expression, tied to the artist’s ability to communicate his or her unique experience and emotions. He seems skeptical about AI’s ability to achieve this level of expression, as in his view AI lacks the “soul” and life experience that are central to human artistic creation.
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