Midjourney AI Art Generator Is Going To Put Artists Out Of Work
Recently there has been a lot of buzz in the art and AI communities due to AI art generators. This conundrum started when people discovered Midjourney’s AI art generator that can make breathtaking illustrations with relative ease. It is one of those moments when AI technology has progressed to the point that it is becoming fascinating and scary simultaneously.
AI art generators have been around for a while, and you might have even heard of DAll-E. However, it was Midjourney that gave out such a powerful tool in the hands of thousands of people. Due to this, many people from the artistic community shared their displeasure with AIs replacing real artists.
Midjourney’s AI-generated art
Midjourney’s entry into the AI art community is slowly breaking many good and bad barriers. The program is so simple to use that anyone and their mother could now be a Picasso, Van Gogh, Da Vinci, or Banksy.
In addition to its ease of use, the AI could make unique artworks from simple prompts. Of course, this led to many users flocking to Midjourney’s discord server to try out the AI for free. Users get their first few AI-generated art for free, but later they have to pay a $10 basic monthly membership for 200 images.
AI vs Artists
The trouble started recently when an article from The Atlantic used a cover image made with Midjourney. The writer, Charlie Warzel, was tired of using the same images from Getty, so he decided to try something new. However, many artists on Twitter were frustrated and shocked to see a national magazine using an AI over an artist to illustrate stories.
Charlie later clarified himself, but that didn’t stop Twitter users from coming after him. Many users criticized his editorial decision to include the AI-generated image in the article. However, Charlie is not the only one who has used AI-generated art. Many famous publications such as The Economist and Cosmopolitan have also used Midjourney’s AI to create magazine cover images.
Another interesting case was when Paul Tassi, a writer at Forbes, made some Destiny 2 concept art using Midjourney. He jokingly submitted the AI-generated art to a Destiny 2 fanart contest. However, Twitter users failed to see the sarcasm in his joke and got mad at him.
Afterward, Tassi made a video explaining the mini-controversy and how this technology is excellent but at the same time terrifying. However, many good things have also come out of this.
AI-generated art opening new doors
AI-generated art is not all bad, as I have seen many people using this tool and combining their creativity to bring something beautiful to life. Some users are now making their graphic novels using Midjourney. One user, in particular, has even made a whole video showcasing the history of humanity.
As a writer, I see AI-generated art as a great tool to bring my imagination to life. It takes little effort and saves a lot of my time from using Photoshop or Canva. However, I can see the effect it can have on the Art community in the long run.
