Visual Art and Artificial Intelligence: Tensions between Ethics, Aesthetics, and Authorship in the Algorithmic Age
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.63385/cvca.v1i1.189Keywords:
AI-Generated Art, Algorithmic Aesthetics, Visual Culture, Digital Identity, Portrait, Art Ethics, Precarious Labor, Digital MediaAbstract
This article examines the impact of artificial intelligence (AI) on the visual production of contemporary art, generating debates about authorship, creativity, and aesthetic legitimacy, while addressing the ethical and labor implications of automated creation. The main objective of this research is to explore the perception, production, and philosophical implications of AI-generated visual art, with an interactive art installation serving as the case study. The study adopted a qualitative and interdisciplinary approach, structured in three phases: a visual and aesthetic analysis of the work using tools from visual studies and computational aesthetics; a critical documentary review on digital art and algorithmic ethics; and an interdisciplinary critical analysis that integrates ethical, cultural, and technological dimensions, considering viewer interaction and the material conditions of production. The results reveal that AI reconfigures visual identity by fragmenting and distorting human images, creating a dynamic perceptual experience influenced by viewer interaction. This process questions traditional notions of authorship, authenticity, and creativity, also highlighting the aesthetic, cultural, and labor implications of contemporary digital art. In conclusion, the research demonstrates that AI not only transforms visual language but also reshapes perceptions of identity and authorship in the digital age, while raising relevant ethical questions about the invisibility of human labor and power structures in algorithm-mediated artistic creation.
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