Ghibli-style art recreations have taken over the internet. Anyone with access to social media today is sure to have come across the flood of OpenAI generated Studio Ghibli style posts. While everyone from Bollywood celebs to content creators and brands have been jumping on the trend, it has also posed critical questions on the use of artificial intelligence in art.
Studio Ghibli was founded in 1985 in Tokyo by Hayao Miyazaki, Toshio Suzuki, Isao Takahata, and Yasuyoshi Tokuma. Miyazaki, a prominent Japanese manga artist and filmmaker, is the creative force behind popular animated films like Princess Mononoke, Spirited Away and The Boy and the Heron, and is famously known to have called AI-generated animation an “insult to life itself” and that he would “never want to integrate this technology into my works at all.”
With AI being increasingly used in art and art-adjacent fields, My Kolkata spoke to students of the Government College of Art & Craft in Kolkata, about AI trends, and how technology can influence art and artists.
Art is permanent, AI is not
“Art through artificial intelligence is making art through software. It is a trend and therefore not permanent. Art is eternal and will continue to be of paramount importance as it has been in the past. I don’t think we have to worry about AI’s use in art so much. Making art comes from a zeal for creativity, and is not a phase or something that has gone viral. Artificial intelligence cannot take over human intellect.”
— Niloy Das, first year student
Man made AI, not the other way round
“Expression through art versus expressing through ‘artificial’ intelligence — there will always be a huge difference between the two. Not only do the terminologies draw the difference, but it is important to understand the creative prowess of an artist cannot be compared with AI. Man made the technology, not the other way round. Trends like Ghibli art show how technology can fail — the many wrong artistic representations are a testament to the fact. Art through AI has very limited scope, and it cannot match the dedication of an artist who has studied the craft and has practised it. However, the use of artificial intelligence may hamper the career scope of an artist, especially in the fields of graphic design and allied fields. But, I don’t think it can eliminate the role of artists.”
— Tithi Adak, third year student
AI does not have a soul like an artist
“AI is used in various fields to cater to various requirements in today’s day and age, but technology should be an aide and not a hindrance. In the field of art, while it is providing assistance, artificial intelligence is also creating problems. Art comes from the conception and ideation of an artist — it is the artist’s expression and a result of his or her emotion. An artist bares their soul through art. While AI can do many things, it cannot feel like humans do, and there lies the difference. AI can help with easy solutions that can be handy, but art is not dependent on that alone. Technology can replicate an art genre, but it cannot replicate the process and the medium through which the art was made. I don’t think AI will cause a major hindrance for an artist, but many fields of art might face challenges. Since AI lessens production time, it is posing a threat to several artists.”
— Souptik Parui, first year student
There two sides to the AI coin
“The recent Ghibli trend using AI disheartened me. An artistic legacy is being damaged with the rampant use of artificial intelligence. However, there is another side to this too. We, the artists, need a platform to showcase our artworks, and often are unable to do it. Such trends popularise an artist and the art form. Those who did not know about Studio Ghibli now know about it. There needs to be moderation when using technology, and due importance must be given to the artist — his or art should be primary.”
— Subhamoy Banerjee, third year