While the Australian Government is still thinking about regulating artificial intelligence (AI), these technologies are galloping ahead at an alarming rate, unchecked.
New “generative AI” tools such as image generator, Midjourney, have prompted photography students at the Australian National University along with PhotoAccess to hold a mock funeral and wake for photography tonight.
“It is with regret that PhotoAccess announces that photography has passed away,” a statement reads.
At 6pm tonight, Thursday 15 June, a memorial service is being held at Manuka Arts Centre to celebrate the life and contribution of photography and photographers. As the coroner’s report is still pending, the public is asked to refrain from speculating whether the medium’s demise is to be blamed on AI or Instagram.
The ANU’s Head of Photography and Media Arts, Dr Katrina Sluis, says the rapid generative of AI in the past six months raises questions about ethics, cultural practices and the way creative labour is valued.
“At this point, it’s not important to focus on the output of such image systems but on the whole system through which images are harvested, statistically analysed and created,” Dr Sluis says. “I think it’s a great opportunity for artists to probe and intervene and open up this black box.”
Recently, Sony World Photography Award winner Boris Eldagsen from Germany refused the prize as the image had been created using AI. In 2022, Jason Allen won the Colorado State Fair Fine Arts Competition with his AI-generated image, which raised a lot of questions.
Students from the ANU’s School of Art and Design now face a vastly altered creative landscape.
Tonight’s playful event, Photography is Dead! Long Live Photography, is open to the public. Running from 6pm to 9pm, there will be a funeral procession for the image, and a specially commissioned lament. Inside the gallery, mourners can explore the history of photography and the influences that led to its rise and demise, or else pay their respects at an open casket viewing of photography’s corpse.
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