As Artificial Intelligence (AI) seeps into each aspect of our lives, can it some day even create art? Harshit Agrawal, who explores the symbiotic relationship between AI and art at his solo show at Emami Art, Kolkata—EXO-Stential: AI Musings on the Post-human—believes so. The exhibition gives us a peek into the future where hyper-realistic and interactive art might be the norm. With its sheer innovation and application of technology, the exhibition challenges the traditional ways of approaching and appreciating art. The artworks created with the assistance of AI are compelling yet thought-provoking.
Agrawal, 29, speaks with confidence that belies his age and the fact that this is his first solo show, “Technology and design are two of my greatest passions. AI is probably the most important technology we have today. It is shaping our lives and growing at a fast pace. It is influencing our decisions, gives us recommendations based on how we browse the internet and even decides what pops up on our social feed. This is happening very subtly, so people don’t realise they are moving into the post-human era. AI will be an extension of one’s body soon, just like one’s mobile phone is today.” The Bengaluru artist became the first Indian artist to join the non-fungible token (NFT) art bandwagon. As many as eight of his AI-generated artworks were recently minted.
With nine artworks that explore sculpture and installations, the exhibition in Kolkata is unusual from a regular gallery art experience. One of the installations, Masked Reality, is an interactive video, where the viewer’s facial expressions are transformed into those of a (female) Kathakali performer and a (male) Theyyam performer. In Strange Genders, the artist investigates our cultural representations of gender bypassing human drawings through the mind of a machine. Agrawal says that he views AI as a vehicle to engage with deep-rooted social issues. Explaining the tone and tenor of AI art, this IIT-Guwahati alumnus shares an analogy, “Just like an artist uses paints and brush to create a canvas, for AI, paint is the data. Data is the raw material that I use to manipulate an algorithm to create an artwork.”
This show portrays how technology can be used as a means of engagement. The curator of the show, Myna Mukherjee, notes that this is one of the first such in-depth shows in India and adds, “AI is rapidly reshaping the world. Agrawal’s work consciously engages with this inevitable techno-centric reality we live in, rather than being simply sucked into it.” The unique show presented many challenges to the artist, from transporting technology across media to collecting data on a large scale. Dabbling in social, cultural, and ethical issues, this exhibition though married to AI, asks pertinent questions about the world around us, in a manner similar to any traditional art form.
It may sound strange. But the art world is constantly evolving, and at a pace, we cannot begin to fathom. Back in November 2017, when Leonardo da Vinci’s Salvator Mundi went under the hammer at Christie’s, many questioned its provenance. Was it really by the Renaissance artist, hushed voices asked. To avoid such scepticism, and in some cases, consequent scandal, many auction houses today use what is known as convolutional neural networks (CNNs). These are designed to analyse images to help recognise the master’s brushstrokes. Indeed, the art world is just not the same!
Agrawal became the first Indian artist to join the NFT bandwagon. Eight of his AI-generated works were recently minted.