You know, I’ve been saying I was going to blog about something since last Friday, but now that I actually have time to do it I’m over it. I guess I can try to summarize it. Basically on a whim I decided to use Grok AI to meddle with some of my art. I have explained this many times over the years but I was in college during the rise of Photoshop and my instructors were terrified of it. They wouldn’t teach us about it. They didn’t even have the tools to do so. So I went into a career in art hobbled by the previous generation. I’ve been nursing that grudge for 30 years. So now that AI is going to decimate the job market across many fields I wanted to know, first hand, what I’m up against. I feel it’s safe to say that things are bleak. The drudgery art jobs that make up the bulk of the art economy are going to just not be a thing anymore. Art as a profession will be devalued across the board. Only the best of the best will survive this culling and there aren’t enough jobs to go around already. I’ve already spoken at length about that so I’ll cut it short. The thing that really hacked me off was the reaction to me posting examples to my Patreon, and a few to twitter. I was treated so badly for daring to explore, lost patrons, and generally maligned for the entire weekend. It irritated me greatly to be treated as an enemy when I was earnestly attempting to understand what the situation actually is. This emotional, reactionary, hysteria over everything has me completely fed up. The reduction in strategic thinking in the world, in aggregate, is at epidemic levels. People can’t master themselves, introspect, plan, or any of the things required to enact change or thwart disasters. Which is how I know artists will never be able to stop AI. Screaming at other artists won’t do anything. You have to organize a defense, via legislation, and at least become some sort of reasonable opposition. They can’t. Artists, by and large, are completely controlled by their emotions and incapable of doing anything apart from attacking one another. As an artist myself I am prone to the same kinds of problems, but I’ve always managed to keep it together enough to keep the ship afloat. Which is why when I was in the hospital those time the comic didn’t just stop. I worked from my bed. As things fell apart in my life I kept producing. I complained loud and long, but I kept putting out page after page because that was the agreement I made with my audience. I will go down swinging at AI until it beats me, or everyone agrees it’s here to stay. I’ve never been the best, but when other people wandered away, or broke their promises, I showed up. That’s how you win. Pure, pig headed, stubbornness. The only thing that happened after all those people came at me over trying AI tools was my tank getting filled with pure, weapons grade, SPITE. When there are no jobs left for them I’m gonna be out here making a place for myself. When they cry for help I’m gonna let them burn. I’m far tired of getting walked over by people who think they’re so much better than me because they went to Calarts, or whatever bullshit reason they have.
My dander is up!

Anyway, the readers who didn’t flip out said they thought it was interesting, but the AI art looked dead to them. That’s a really strange thing about AI art right now is how you can somehow tell it’s not right. Even when it’s not obvious at first glance. I’m not sure how long that will remain true though. It’s learning at an extremely fast pace and the rich and powerful have gone all in on it in spite of the dangers that futurists have been warning us about since before computers were even real.

I’ve been through all of this before. When CGI became accessible to the masses people had a fit when CGI trash art started flooding art websites. Shit, even when photoshop was coming up people said it would never overtake traditional media. That was certain sure incorrect. Several people I knew who studied animation have never worked in the field they went to school for. The one that have certainly didn’t get to do much hand drawn animation, if they got to do any at all. The world demands more and more from us every year. More and faster, for less money. Of course no one seems to know what will happen when no one can afford anything and six people have all the money…
Humanity is walking the line between paradise and dystopia. If we stray but a little it could all fall to the ruin of us all.

Anyway, my mother and I finally decided on what new drawscreen I should get to help mitigate my failing eyesight. We landed on a Huion Kanvas Pro 27, I think. Maybe 24. Whichever it is it’s the previous years version and cost, like, 1000$ less. My art is not very taxing so I don’t need extreme levels of speed and whatnot. We were both under the impression that my Surface would not be able to run the thing for long periods of time, or possibly at all, but it turns out that it does it quite easily. As soon as I plugged it in with the USBc cable it understood exactly what the new screen was and how to make it work. No overheating, no issues at all. So I don’t need a new PC I can just keep using my Surface and work on the big screen unless I’m traveling. This page represents the second use of the new screen for the comic. It’s not worse at the very least. Better? I’m not sure. If nothing else I wasn’t straining to see things the entire time, which is the main bonus for me, so I don’t feel quite so tired when I’m done. Eye strain can really mess you up and I’ve been dealing with it for quite some time now. I’m still getting new glasses as soon as I can make the time and find someone who is better at it than the last few practitioners. I scratched my glasses so badly a few weeks ago that they are almost completely useless. They were already not very useful, but scraping the center our of both lenses sealed the deal.

Anyway, I’m over this whole last week of nonsense. If people can cast me aside simply for being curious about what I’m contending with I guess they were never very invested in my work to begin with. Being thrown out with the refuse over the tiniest perceived infraction is not a workable situation long term anyway. All I can say is I wish people outside of my sphere would quit making things harder for me via their flippant choices. I will return on Friday with more comic, assuming you are still here after you’ve found out I sullied myself with the stink of AI you can look forward to that, if you are so inclined. Until then, damn the man, Joe!

2954 If You Love Someone.

Links