AI art is everywhere – except for when it isn't. It seems people are now so on the alert for AI-generated imagery, that 'it looks like AI' is becoming almost an automatic response to some work online. Sometimes it is AI, but sometimes human artists are finding themselves being 'AI shamed' unfairly.
A recent case is that of a Blender artist (see our Blender review) who shared a short 3D animation on Reddit. Alexandr SubSensus resorted to proving that he made the dreamy piece himself after being accused of having used AI. But should artists have to show their working to prove their art is real?
If Alexandr's piece has some of the traits that tend to crop up AI art, that's because it's a short video that shows a surreal fantasy subject with a sharp, hyper-realistic finish. But the consistency in the patterns appears to be way too good for AI today, and AI video tends to be much more jerky.
After much debate on AI vs 3D, the artist shared his a viewport picture to settle the argument, and he confirmed that he made the piece using Blender, Cinema 4D and Octane Render. Of course, the reveal generated even more debate.
My new blender Artwork from r/blender
Comment from r/blender
"It looks like people who don't know AI and 3D well are arguing about AI and 3D," one person suggested on X. And there may be some of that. But others suggested that accusations of AI are now almost an accolade. "Congrats on your first AI allegation," one person wrote on Reddit. Some even fear that AI has ruined a particular style of art. "We're reaching a point where creating anything abstract and high quality will make it look like you faked everything," was another comment.
Some are concerned that it can be devastating for an artist to put hours into creating a piece of art only for people to dismiss it as AI, while others think that if AI were capable of generating such a piece, it wouldn't detract from the value of a human artist's work. "A person being able to run a full marathon is still impressive even if they could just drive a car instead," one person wrote. "Even if AI could make something like this with a quick prompt, I would still find more value in human made art, because sometimes it's not about efficiency but about appreciation of artists skill and commitment to their work."
As AI image generators become even more capable and more versatile, it may be that there will no longer be an 'AI look', and people will no longer be able to say what looks like AI or not. But the debate will surely continue as to how to identify human art from AI-generated imagery.
For tips for your own work (not using AI), see our roundup of Blender tutorials and our general Blender explainer. Also check out the stunning viral anime that broke the fourth wall (and Blender's UI).
