Art is the process and the experience, not the object, so AI results in shallow art

Portrait of a Verb and not a Noun My wife and I were talking about what "art" is. I forget the context, but it comes up from time to time since we both have far too many hobbies. We have a friend who falls hard into the "what I say is art is art" camp, and who will triumphantly point at a trash can and yell "ART!" at us. It used to annoy me. It's very much a devil's advocate gambit, and the devil rarely needs the help. To be fair, though, I couldn't actually articulate what I thought was the differentiator. Until recently. The problem I have with AI art Let me preface this: I may speak in absolutes here, but there's nuance on all sides. So before you get your ruffles twisted thinking I'm being Very Declarative About Reality, just chill and remember that few things are ever black and white. When I first played with Midjourney, I was firmly in the "prompting an AI is a valid way to make art" camp. I was astounded by what it could do, even then. I think I still sort of agree with that,…