Earlier this year, Ascham’s Head of Visual Arts and Design Technology Jeff Morabito embarked on a journey to New York City, immersing himself in the city’s rich museum culture, and then the prestigious National Art Education Association (NAEA) Convention in Minneapolis. Here Mr Morabito relfects on this fulfilling journey exploring the role of AI in contemporary artmaking…
‘My focus of this immersion in the US was on understanding the impact of artificial intelligence (AI) on visual arts practice and its implications for teaching this discipline. This article explores the innovative ways AI is shaping contemporary art practice and visual arts and design education.
AI in visual arts is not a recent innovation. In fact, it has been evolving since Harold Cohen’s creation of the AARON program in the 1960s, which generated autonomous painting machines that produced original artworks. Today, artists like Holly Herndon and Mat Dryhurst carry this legacy forward with projects such as xhairymutantx, featured at the 2024 Whitney Biennial in New York. Their work examines the synergy between human creativity and AI, employing machine learning to create music and visual art, reflecting the continuous evolution and significance of AI in art.
The innovative contemporary practices of AI artists like David Salle, Patrick Tresset, Jake Elwes, Es Devlin and our own Australian Sam Leach highlight the intersection of technology and creativity, challenging traditional art forms. David Salle uses AI to enrich his layered paintings, fostering a dialogue between human intuition and AI’s analytical power. Patrick Tresset’s robotic systems replicate human drawing techniques, questioning creativity and the artist’s role. Jake Elwes’ Zizi: Queering the Dataset tackles AI bias and celebrates LGBTQIA+ diversity by training AI on queer performance data, blending performance art with digital innovation. Es Devlin’s PoemPortraits invites participants to create unique poems turned into visual portraits, combining literary and visual arts. Sam Leach employs AI to craft landscapes that explore nature and technology, reflecting on how technological progress reshapes our view of the natural world. These artists collectively demonstrate AI’s expansive potential in art, expanding creative boundaries and sparking discussions about the artist’s evolving role in the digital age.
PRACTICAL APPLICATIONS AND ETHICAL USE
AI-based courses that I attended at the 2024 NAEA Convention in Minneapolis emphasised the urgent need to teach the ethical use of AI in art education. Workshops addressed AI’s inherent biases, potential misuses, and the importance of fairness and equity in student access to technology. The recurring theme of copyright and online imagery stressed the necessity for educators to instruct students on respecting intellectual property while using AI tools. These discussions underscored the vital role of art education in fostering ethical, informed and responsible AI usage, ensuring students navigate the digital landscape with integrity.
NAEA courses also demonstrated how AI can significantly enhance visual arts and design education through various practical applications. AI can help generate creative ideas, assist in writing artist statements and titling artworks, and enhance digital photography with advanced filters and effects. Personalised feedback from AI tools helps students refine their techniques, while automation of repetitive tasks like image resizing saves valuable time. AI can also teach design principles through interactive tutorials, simulate different artistic styles, improve composition analysis, facilitate virtual art exhibitions, and assist in the preservation and restoration of digital artworks. For less-able Visual Arts students, generative AI provides crucial support by helping them overcome creative barriers and complete tasks more efficiently. These technologies democratise the creative process, enabling all students to explore and develop their imaginative ideas. By aiding in brainstorming and articulating concepts, AI allows students to concentrate on refining technical skills and personal expression, creating a more inclusive and supportive educational environment.
EQUIPPING OUR STUDENTS FOR FUTURE SUCCESS
In a future dominated by AI across industries, skill development must encompass both traditional and AI-driven competencies. Teaching students effective prompting in the generative age cultivates precision, accuracy and clarity, vital for successful AI interaction. These abilities complement, rather than replace, traditional mastery of visual arts, ensuring students can utilise AI tools while upholding artistic integrity. By integrating AI literacy with core artistic techniques, we can prepare our students to innovate and excel across various fields, blending creativity with technological proficiency to navigate and shape the evolving visual arts field.
Art educators worldwide are embracing critical thinking around AI by incorporating new technologies and methodologies into their programs. At Ascham, we are also embracing this approach. Changes are underway in the Stage 4 NESA Technology (mandatory) curriculum, set to be implemented in 2026, which will incorporate AI in several ways. The updated curriculum will prioritise AI literacy, teaching students fundamental concepts of machine learning and AI applications. Practical components will include employing AI tools for design and problem-solving, enabling students to leverage AI for creative projects. Emphasis will also be placed on ethical considerations, ensuring students comprehend the implications of AI practice, including bias and fairness. Additionally, the curriculum will introduce AI-driven software for tasks such as data analysis and automation, preparing students for future technological landscapes.
Furthermore, in the new NESA-developed Visual Arts curriculum, students will be required to document the use of AI in their artworks. This documentation will entail detailing the specific AI tools and techniques employed, the role of AI in the creative process, and reflections on how AI influenced their artistic outcomes. This requirement aims to promote transparency, ethical use, and a deeper understanding of AI’s integration in art. By documenting their AI practice, students will also engage critically with the technology, considering its impact on their creative decisions and the final artworks. Art educators are integrating new technologies and methodologies into their programs, embracing critical thinking around AI. At Ascham, we’re pioneers in this regard, utilising AI as a creative tool. We employ text-to-image programs like Midjourney, DALL-E and Adobe Firefly to aid Years 11 and 12 students in developing compositions for artworks. These programs also serve as valuable resources for mastering specific art techniques such as watercolour painting or impasto, offering visual demonstrations for enhanced learning. Additionally, we are revamping our Year 9 Portrait Photography course for 2025, aiming to incorporate AI-generated works alongside traditional photographic approaches, providing students with a comprehensive understanding of contemporary artistic practices. And there may be other units of work where AI can be employed to build further skill use.
SHAPING THE FUTURE
The integration of AI into art education marks a pivotal moment in the evolution of both creative practice and pedagogy. As evidenced by the conversations at the 2024 NAEA Convention and the innovative initiatives at Ascham, educators are not only acknowledging the significance of AI but actively embracing it as a tool for fostering critical thinking and enhancing artistic expression. By incorporating AI literacy into our programs and providing students with hands-on experience in utilising AI tools, we are preparing them to navigate the complexities of the digital landscape with integrity and proficiency. Furthermore, the requirement for documenting AI usage in artworks ensures transparency, ethical use and deeper engagement with the technology. As we continue to explore the possibilities of AI in art education, we remain committed to empowering our students to innovate, create and excel in this evolving visual arts landscape.’
Jeff Morabito
Head of Visual Arts and Design Technology
Image: American artist Harold Cohen created the earliest AI program for artmaking in the 1960s. Image credit: Harold Cohen, AARON KCAT, 2001. Whitney Museum of American Art. © Harold Cohen Trust
