Artwork created using AI won at Colorado State Fair’s fine art competition in the US

An artwork using artificial intelligence (AI) won the top prize at the Colorado State Fair’s fine art competition.

The work created using artificial intelligence (AI) has reignited the fierce debate over AI in art. Amid criticism, he told The New York Times, “I’m not going to apologise for it…I won, and I didn’t break any rules.”

The winner, Jason Allen who is president of Colorado-based tabletop gaming company Incarnate Games, was shocked after receiving criticism for using AI in the artwork. He won in the digital art category with a work called “Théâtre D’opéra Spatial” or ‘Space Opera Theatre.

As the title suggests, the artwork depicts a space setting with figures in robes looking out through a viewport. The work brings together space opera and classical Baroque elements.

It was created using Mid journey, which is an AI software that converts text prompts into visual images. The beta version of the software was available from July 2022 and it has allowed users with no training in art to create highly detailed artworks. Critics of AI-generated art, such as this one, argue that converting prompts into art is like painting by numbers, which means that there is no real artistry or skill involved.

Midjourney, in a matter of minutes, can create a digital artwork that would ordinarily take hours, if not days. “Users type a series of words in a message to Midjourney; the bot spits back an image seconds later,” as per New York Times.

He received backlash after he posted about it on Twitter. However, the category’s rules allow any “artistic practice that uses digital technology as part of the creative or presentation process.” This could mean that using AI programs to create art is no different from using other software such as Photoshop.