Over the past year, Athens has seen a notable increase in the use of artificial intelligence for creating media by local businesses and student groups, prompting mixed reactions from the artist community.
Sam Boyde, a senior studio art student, strongly opposes AI-generated artwork, criticizing its poor quality on food trucks near campus and urging support for human artists instead. Conversely, Reagan Nutter, a sophomore graphic design student working with the campus multimedia agency Vivid, values AI as an aid in design tasks like background removal but worries that fully AI-generated designs could overshadow student opportunities.
Other artists, such as Jacob Gardner, use AI as a complementary tool without compromising their personal artistic style. Meanwhile, Claire Drayer, another graphic design student, questions whether AI creations qualify as art, emphasizing the importance of imagination and creativity in genuine artwork. She hopes local businesses prioritize hiring human artists to preserve artistic authenticity.
Many local artists advocate for businesses to collaborate with student artists, suggesting simple initiatives like posting flyers to seek artwork contributions that would support emerging talent and enrich the cultural scene.
As AI’s influence grows in Athens’s creative fields, the community continues to balance technological innovation with maintaining traditional artistry.