“Art is a lie that tells the truth.”
Pablo Picasso
.. and modern man and artificial intelligence are “liars” capable of this,” I would add.
What pushes me personally to write so much on this topic is that AI tools simplify the duality of “savior or threat?” It’s not a duality, it’s a spectrum!
I have collected everything I have thought and observed about how AI, or more precisely neural networks, affects not only decision-making with large amounts of data but also our feelings:
▪️ How art in war is a tool of propaganda or its antagonist.
▪️ What criteria should a visualizer be guided by in times of information war to avoid harming his own?
▪️ Why is it important for Ukrainians to focus on the informational possibilities of generative art rather than artistic or philosophical discussions about this technology?
AI-generated images are the modern ammonia or dual-use problem. Neural network-generated images can be used to accurately document and convey the reality of war or for manipulation. The responsibility for whether it will be a fertilizer for the growth of new ideas or a deadly explosive rests on the artist or documentarian of the Ukrainian war.
Propaganda or emotional documentary
Uroš Predić’ is a midjorney-man of the late nineteenth century. A talented Serbian artist, a camera artist who perfectly mastered the realism technique. In 1888, he created the painting Orphan on Mother’s Grave. The detail and authenticity of the scene where the little boy lies on his mother’s grave are still impressive. One hundred years later, a reproduction of this painting printed in a Belgrade newspaper was signed as a “Serbian boy whose whole family was killed by Bosnian Muslims.” The Bosnian war used art for propaganda and manipulation. Fast forward to the present day, and instead of a newspaper, we see state social networks. Instead of a fuzzy reprint, we see a detailed image created by a neural network tool. In both of these cases, the issue is not technology but propaganda and manipulation of public opinion. In 2022, we noticed how history, art, technology, war, and propaganda teach us to think and see. Once again.
The tools for documenting and visualizing war at our disposal have come a long way since the days of notebooks, brushes, and the first lenses. Today, we have access to powerful neural network tools in the spectrum of technologies. So they promise us a lot of problems with what to consider the truth, but on the other hand, they can help to educate, inform and inspire.
Artificial intelligence in art and visual communication during the war is a delicate balance that requires an understanding of the technology and a sensitivity to the subject. You often don’t need literature on an illustration to communicate more effectively through visualizations. I am sure that one book by Peter Pomerantsev, “This is not propaganda. A Journey to War with Reality’ will do more for visual communications than ten tutorials on image generation or a long read on the secrets of creativity.
How, for example, did the non-existent image of the non-existent boy from the Dnipro contribute to Ukraine’s war coverage? At least for the Western audience and at least for the domestic audience. Any! Moreover, such content is potentially harmful. Think of AI as a camera lens. Just as the camera lens can be used to capture the harsh reality of the battlefield, it can also be used to create manipulated images that are misleading. The artist behind the lens decides how to use it. The same is true of art created by AI: it has the potential to be a powerful tool for telling the truth about war, but it can also be used to make deep fakes that spread misinformation and propaganda.
Dual-purpose technologies
How can “neuro” imaging help us in war, not harm us?
Subjectively and informatively, one can definitely talk about the powerful therapeutic effect that a person who has tried to create such pictures at least once receives. A lot has already been written about this, and I will not stop. But “discussing” the war with the neural network, finding words to describe the images, is a potential therapeutic practice.
But every day, there are unexpected and exciting places to use the power and variability of “neuro” pictures. Recently, I needed to create several hundred non-existent portraits of emotional people for the Ukrainian startup Anima, which helps process mental health. This is a case where photorealism does not harm but helps the viewer. For legal and ethical reasons, photo bases for such tests cannot be used for free access. Therefore, the ability of a neural network to draw people of any age/gender/race/culture to endow them with the right emotion very significantly helps such products both financially and aesthetically.
Look, Fred Ritchin spoke interestingly and interestingly about the topic of documenting the war and searching for the visuals in an interview for Zaborona. There is an opinion very consistent with my experience that neural network photos, in addition to the apparent threats of fakes and the gray zone of authorship, give a sense of surprise:
“One thing I’ve already learned: using artificial intelligence, I’m always surprised. I’m almost never surprised by photos taken by real photographers — it’s always something to expect, I know what I’m going to see — but AI photos surprise me. I ask what the best mother in the world is, and he shows me a gorilla, not a human, and that’s great because I never thought that animals could be better mothers than humans.”
Yes, with a few taps on the screen, anyone can share an image or video that can reach millions of people. It has a significant impact on how we document and visualize war and how we shape public opinion.
AI can help us create powerful images, but it can also be used to manipulate and deceive, as we have seen and will see again and again and cannot believe our own eyes. This is a challenge.
As artists and creators of the 21st century, we are empowered by AI technology to tell the stories of our time in new and powerful ways. But with that power comes great responsibility, Peter Parker. Ukrainians can shape the way the world sees and understands war. How we talk about it depends on us.
