Kareem Azeez
The future of art is witnessing an expected change. Artificial intelligence (AI) has already emerged as a tool for artistic creation, generating works that are both technically astounding and visually astonishing.
As beautiful as this may sound, it raises a crucial question for Nigeria’s artistic community: What Next for the Nigerian artists?
AI Art’s impressive abilities
In 2023, a German artist by the name Boris Eldagsen won the creative open category at the Sony World Photography Award with his entry “Pseudomnesia: The Electrician.” but he rejected the award, after revealing it was AI generated. This is how impressive the tool can be.
Undeniably, Artificial Intelligence possesses remarkable abilities. It can create hyper-realistic portraits, bring to life fantastical creatures unseen in the natural world, and even mimic the stylistic nuances of various artistic movements. Artists like Malik Afegbua are already exploring AI as a creative collaborator. Many of his artworks have gathered enough popularity.
What next for Nigerian artists?
amidst the successes of AI and it’s relevance to today’s world, a fundamental question arises: what next for Nigerian artists, Can AI truly be considered an artist in the traditional sense? Straight to the point, there’s still plenty for the artworks to enjoy from the human touch, which is where the Nigerian artists come in.
Art is a form of human emotions, a platform for conveying narratives and ideas, and a reflection of the human experience. Even though AI can replicate artistic styles with precision, it currently lacks the capacity to imbue its creations with the profound emotions, cultural insights, and historical context that Nigerian art is renowned for.
AI has no emotion, nor can it feel, it can not even read the human mind to suggest what people would like, therefore there is hope, and plenty to do in the artworld.
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Collaboration not competition
Perhaps the best thing to do is not be in competition with AI, but in collaboration. AI could potentially serve as a valuable tool for Nigerian artists, assisting in brainstorming ideas and also in generating unique patterns for the artist.
The almost endless field of AI art presents both challenges and opportunities for the Nigerian artists. While it serves as a potential collaborator, rather than as a competitor this will pave the way for exciting new ideas in artistic expression.
For the Nigerian artists, AI has come to stay, so do your creativity, rather than feel as if there’s uncertainty in your world, AI as an innovation might just usher in a new golden age for Nigerian art.
