Art and AI
Art and AI: Using a tool with purpose — My Thoughts
I get asked a lot about art and AI. People want to know whether I use it, whether I think it’s “cheating,” and where it fits in a creative life. My short answer is: AI can be incredibly useful, but it shouldn’t be the default — especially for professionals whose work and reputation depend on a human eye, a practised hand, and a lived creative sensibility.
Why AI is tempting: AI tools are fast, affordable (or free), and endlessly available. For someone needing a concept mock-up, a mood board, or a quick visual idea to get started, AI can save hours. For makers and small creative businesses juggling dozens of tasks, AI can feel like an extra pair of hands — helping with time-consuming parts of the process so you can focus on what truly needs your attention.
When AI makes sense
Experimentation and exploration: If you’re just starting out and trying to figure out your style, AI-generated images can help you test directions quickly and cheaply. They’re a stepping stone to learning what you like and what you don’t.
No-budget fun projects: For personal pieces, hobby work, or projects that would never have a commission budget, AI gives people the chance to play and create. That enjoyment is important — creativity shouldn’t be gated only to those with budgets.
Time-saving for admin and drafts: For busy creatives who can’t yet afford an assistant, AI can draft captions, suggest colour palettes, or refine ideas. These efficiencies can free up time to actually make art.
Rapid prototyping: When you want to show clients options fast or test several compositions before committing materials and time, AI can be a helpful visualiser.
When AI shouldn’t be the go-to
Professional commissions: There’s value in budgeting for real artistry — the unique mark, subtle gesture, and emotional intent a human provides. Clients paying for bespoke work deserve the depth that comes from lived experience and time spent honing craft.
Work that needs a personal voice: Art is more than an image. It carries context, intention, and nuance that come from human history, mistakes, choices and relationships. AI can mimic style, but it can’t replicate a personal archive of decisions or the gentle, unpredictable things that make art meaningful.
When you can budget for skill: If your income or the project budget allows for paying an artist, maker or assistant, choose the human. The result will be more thoughtful, tailored and ultimately more valuable.
AI as a bridge, not a replacement. For many emerging artists and small-business owners, AI is a bridge. It helps people with no budget, little experience, and a lot of ambition create visual ideas, learn visual language, and present concepts. Those early experiments can lead to better-informed briefs, clearer direction when hiring a professional, and a deeper understanding of one’s own taste.
But bridges are temporary. As skills grow and budgets expand, I believe the goal should be to invest in the personalised touch — the trained eye, the handcrafted mark-making, the relationship between artist and client. Those are the places where art transforms from commodity into connection.
Practical principles I follow
Use AI consciously: I reach for it for speed, for testing ideas, or when a project truly has no budget for human labour. I don’t use it to replace commissioned work or to shortcut the craft I value.
Be transparent: If AI played a role in a work, acknowledge it. Honesty builds trust and respects clients and fellow artists. (Yes, AI helped me put my thoughts into a structured layout for this blog post, so you don’t have to wait another six or more months… It’s a problem, haha.)
Invest in human skill: Whenever possible, I budget for real people — whether that’s hiring an assistant or investing in training. The long-term value of that investment often outweighs the short-term savings.
Preserve the personal: The little imperfections and choices that come from a human maker are often what make a piece of art speak to someone’s heart. Don’t lose sight of that.
Art is a practice of curiosity and care, and AI is a tool that can support that practice when used thoughtfully — as a way to explore, to save time, and to open doors for people who otherwise couldn’t afford to create. But it’s not a substitute for the intimacy, craft and lived insight a real person brings, and I truly believe human nature will see and appreciate those things in the long run.
If you’re starting out and experimenting, lean into AI where it helps you learn and make. If you’re building a business or producing work that people will live with and value, make space in the budget for the people who bring heart, nuance and a human eye. That’s where the richness of art lives.
— Chelsea Anne
