PioneeringArtificially Intelligent Artwork: Harold Cohen's AARON Pushes the Boundaries of Perception at the Whitney Museum of American Art
AI Art Pioneer AARON Showcased at Whitney Biennial
AARON, an AI artist developed by Harold Cohen in the 1970s, is making waves in the contemporary art world with its exhibition at the Whitney Biennial. This pioneering AI art presence is challenging traditional notions of authorship and creativity, as well as pushing the boundaries of what AI is capable of in the realm of artistic expression.
Originally starting out with Cubist-like abstract drawings based on programmed rules and heuristics, AARON has evolved over the years to generate more complex, lush, expressionistic landscapes that resemble human artistic creativity. This evolutionary journey marks milestones in AI's ability to generate increasingly sophisticated art.
AARON's earlier works, such as those showcased at the Whitney Biennial, feature asymmetrical and disproportionate human figures and contrasting colours. However, its later works depict jungle-like environments, layered foliage, and more life-like images of humans. This shift from abstraction to figuration represents a technical and conceptual change, influenced by the works of artists like Paul Cézanne.
Cohen spent his lifetime translating his artistic knowledge into code for AARON, building his own plotters and painting machines to interpret the demands made by the AI. These machines are the reason why AARON's paintings and drawings have excessive amounts of texture. AARON generates images of plants based on codes about their size, branching levels, and patterns of leaf formation.
The Whitney Biennial's latest exhibition, 'Even Better Than the Real Thing,' is challenging the essence of artistic authenticity. AARON's inclusion in the exhibition is significant as one of the earliest examples of AI-generated art being showcased in major art institutions. Its presence in the exhibition helps stimulate discourse around the role of AI in artistic creation and redefines the boundaries between human and machine-made art in the contemporary art world.
AARON's human name is a reference to the Biblical figure who spoke for Moses. Despite its beauty, AARON's art leaves some viewers feeling cold and empty due to the lack of human creativity. However, the value of art lies in its human innovation, boundary-breaking, and exploration of new ideas. AARON's paintings, despite being created by an AI, are full of life, colour, and vibrancy, showcasing the potential for AI to contribute to the art world in a meaningful and impactful way.
The Whitney Biennial is the longest-running survey of contemporary art in the United States and is currently on view through August 11th, 2024. If you have the chance, be sure to check out AARON's work and join the conversation about the future of AI in art.
Sources:
- Harold Cohen's AARON: An AI Artist's Evolution Over Decades
- AARON: The AI Artist That Pushed the Boundaries of Art
- The Whitney Biennial: Even Better Than the Real Thing
- The Art of AI: AARON and the Future of Art
- AARON KCAT: The AI Artist That Challenges Artistic Authenticity
- The evolution of AARON, an AI artist, has showcased its ability to produce art that challenges the boundaries of traditional artistic expression, such as its lush, expressionistic landscapes that resemble human creativity.
- The Whitney Biennial's latest exhibition, 'Even Better Than the Real Thing,' has stirred an opinion about artistic authenticity with AARON's inclusion, which represents one of the earliest examples of AI-generated art in major art institutions.
- The contribution of AI, represented by AARON, to the art world is a subject of ongoing debate, with some views holding that the value of art lies in its human innovation, boundary-breaking, and exploration of new ideas.
