Why it’s still worth getting into art even with AI

Billed as an artist exploring the quirks and wonders of AI, Alison Timmins has just completed her Artifacts exhibition at the Market Place’s Hive Gallery. But this University of Bolton alumnus will tell you she’s just a simple girl from the midlands near Derby.

From the midlands to exhibitions

She says she’s enjoyed art since she was a kid but thought she’d never make a go of it professionally and so had resigned herself to becoming something more practical… a vet. However, she kept excelling in art and it lured her to Bolton for a BA in Fine Art and then a master's directly afterwards. Alison became obsessed with Victorian art; they were going through a period of change (much like we are) and romanticising the past, and she loved reproducing master copies to train her own eye. When she graduated, work in her field was steadily available in decorating and commissioned portraits, but then the pandemic happened and all at once the work slowed.

With more time on her hands, Alison went back to her practice, this time armed with AI. The software DALL-E was free and new at the time. She asked it very simply to create “a photo of me” and a blue-haired, ruddy-cheeked woman appeared… not a long way off from Alison herself. But then she tried that same prompt again, it showed her someone else. Who did it think she was? Who is ‘me’ to DALL-E? Her foundational training at Bolton and these questions would lead to an AI-inspired exhibition that’s received critical acclaim and prominent local feature. To create these pieces, she inputs prompts in Midjourney, for example, to create the base image and then reproduces it physically in the style of the period. This process resulted in striking pieces like a horse with 5 legs, a Victorian woman in a field with a digital screen over her face, a 90s girl with voluminous backwards jeans and Edwardian women on e-scooters.

There’s a bright future still for artists

However, across all of her work with AI, Alison isn’t pessimistic about its impact on art and human creativity. “There’s still such value in the mark of the maker; wanting something from a human for a human,” she explains. “Despite the printing press, the ‘death of art hysteria’ brought on by copies of masterworks - we’ve made it through, we still have art and artists, just like we have writers and books.” She explains that she uses her work and their anomalies to generate a gentle discussion with people about our AI future with a bit of humour. However, she’s certain that future Bolton students who want to go into art will always have a place and a bright career future. This is not only due to the Ouroboros effect caused by AI requiring vast amounts of human creativity for training data and the diminishing returns you get when fueling AI learning with AI output but also because of the inherent value of putting a price against creativity. When ‘passable’ is free, ‘exceptional’ increases in value.

She’s certain that studying art at Bolton is still a good career path to take. The top-of-the-line facilities, passionate lecturers and critical foundational skills will help you adapt to whatever comes. She suggests artists might see new roles emerge and old roles change, that’s just part of life. Alison thinks that you’ll see an increased demand for art authentication skills, AI art proofing roles and creators making training or branding capsule creative for mass media outlets. Learning how to spot AI, manipulate AI, evaluate its creativity and evolve your craft beyond what AI can create is what will keep future artists in demand. And it’s something she’s thankful to have learned during her time at Bolton.

Studying art at the University of Bolton

Alison had a positive experience during her time at Bolton. The mentorship of expert lecturers and access to our world-class facilities meant she could follow her passion and make a full career out of art. The passion of our lecturers and student-focused experience is something we’re known for and it’s why we’ve been voted top for Student Satisfaction 5 years in a row! So no matter how AI changes the art world, you’ll have the space to experiment with drawing, painting, sculpture, printmaking, ceramics, photography, installation, performance, digital, digital 3D, video and sound to find your niche.

If you’re ready to create your own masterworks, why not explore your creativity and apply for our BA (Hons) Contemporary Art Practice course at Bolton? You’ll learn to use traditional fine art methods, processes and theoretical frameworks within ever-evolving public-facing contexts just like AI. Have questions for us? Phone 01204 903394 or email admissions-team@bolton.ac.uk and we’ll support you to take your next step towards an exciting art career.