Was dead set against AI portraits until my aunt used one for a memorial

I always thought AI art was just lazy copying from real artists. Then my aunt paid $30 for an AI portrait of her dog who passed away last spring. She showed me how it combined three different photos into one scene nobody could have staged. It wasn't trying to replace a painting, it just gave her something real to hold onto. Does using AI for personal memories make it more okay than selling it as fine art?

4 comments

4 Comments

moore.beth1mo ago

Twenty bucks for an AI portrait sounds like a lot, but my sister paid almost two hundred for a real oil painting of her cat. The AI version isn't trying to fool anyone into thinking it's fine art, it just works for quick memories. I think the real issue is when people try to pass off AI art as original paintings or charge gallery prices for prompts. For something personal like a pet memorial, the price tags are way lower and nobody expects it to be museum quality. My aunt got a similar thing done last fall for her dog and she just wanted something that looked like him all together in one picture. The difference is really about honesty and price, not the tool itself.

wyatt1351mo ago

Wait, didn't your sister pay $200 for a custom oil painting though? That's a totally different thing, one artist spent hours on that. Twenty bucks for an AI one that took 30 seconds to generate is still kinda steep when you compare it to what you're actually getting. I get what you're saying about quick memories and nobody expecting it to be fine art, but the price still feels high for something that didn't really take any skill or time to make. I think it's more about the value for what's actually in the picture, not just comparing it to expensive human-made stuff. The honesty part I agree with though, that's the real dealbreaker when people feel tricked.

umar491mo ago

Yeah, you're right about the honesty part... that's really the key. People get upset when they feel misled, not just because something is made by AI.

nelson.vera1mo ago

Right? "Quick memories" is exactly it. My aunt would drop $20 on a blurry phone print from Walgreens without blinking, but suddenly AI is where we draw the line.