BBC | Alexander Reben on Artificial Intelligence and Human Collaboration

Represented artist Alexander Reben recently spoke about using artificial intelligence in his daily practice as a roboticist and an artist, and the relationship between AIs and humans.  He explains:

“I see my own work as a playful investigation into a human-machine symbiosis and a glimpse into the possible futures of artmaking. My hope is that these artworks act as a conduit to encourage people to think about what our symbiotic future with intelligent machines might look like. I've been interested in human-machine symbiosis for over a decade, and I see the machine learning tools of the last few years as a huge leap forward in what it means to collaborate with AI.”

As technology becomes more of an extension and amplification of our minds – just as a wrench is an extension of our hands and amplifies our physical ability – AI becomes more of a collaborator rather than a calculator. Unlike creative tools of the past, such as Photoshop, photographs or pigments, we are now working with tools that seem to have generative imagination, but perhaps no "taste". The human in the loop adds an important curatorial role in determining the "good" versus "bad”.

I believe we are on the cusp of a new artistic movement, and I view these tools as the beginning of the next great period of creative expression. As the surface-level novelty wears off, works of fine art will emerge. Just as we have entire museums dedicated to photography, I'd be on the lookout for the same for AI.”

His latest AI sculptures will be on display at ART SG with Gazelli Art House.