AI – Save Humanity?

Beginning conversations

Recently I joined a book group. I’ve never been part of a formal ‘book group’ (secret is out). I’ve never been interested and truth be told its only recently that I’ve been reading books at a very fast rate, now that my schedule allows. I like this book group for several reasons. It’s pretty non-traditional, no one book is read and discussed like in traditional book groups. Actually, its one of the reasons I decided to join the group. We gather over lunch monthly and each participant shares books, films, podcasts and other forms of stories and ideas. The participants are retired educators who have a keen interest in education and other interesting and sometimes challenging topics. At our April gathering we each shared a poem in recognition of National Poetry Month.

At more than one gathering the conversation has included AI – Artificial Intelligence. I’m certain as we learn more that the conversation will continue. I’m reading and learning about what AI is, where it is, and the potential impact on the world. A 60 Minutes episode from a couple of weeks ago provides foundational information that I suggest you take the time to VIEW. It’s very informative and important as educators that we inform ourselves.

You can google AI and come up with the definition but until you begin to ‘see’ and experiment with the online tools I’m not sure it will provide you with the understanding to consider the impact on education. For example, think about this: The sum of all human knowledge is online. AI is replicating the brain. What are the implications on education? What is the impact on art making? AI can solve problems in very little time compared to the brain. Is humanity diminished because of the enormous capability of AI?

Visual artist Jonas Peterson is creating art work using AI. His collection of art called Youth is wasted on the young is an amazing collection that is his way of celebrating the ‘old’ and a comment on ageism. He used fashion to highlight the personalities of older people. Jonas is a photographer but in this collection he uses AI to create scenes, the people and what they’re wearing. In his own words:

I give specific direction using words only to a program, lenses, angles, camera choice, color theme, colors, styling, backgrounds, attitude and overall look and the AI goes to work, it sends back suggestions and more often than not it’s completely wrong, so I try other ways to describe what I’m after, change wording, move phrases around and try to get the AI to understand the mood. It’s frustrating mostly, the AI is still learning, but getting any collaborator to understand you can be difficult no matter if it’s a human or a machine. After a long stretch of trial and error I get closer to a style and look I want and after that it comes down to curation, picking the renders I believe go well together, I start making it a series. To me the process is similar to that of a film director’s, I direct the AI the same way they would talk to an actor or set designer, it’s a process, we try over and over again until we get it right. Should I get all the credit? God, no, the AI creates with my help and direction, it’s a collaboration between a real brain and an artificial one.

You might be thinking or asking, is this really art? Do I want my students to use this in their art making? Here are some of my thoughts and questions. AI exists in the world. Microsoft introduced ChatGPT, an artificial intelligence chatbot, in November 2022. Bard is a conversational generative artificial intelligence and was released in March 2023. How should educators learn about AI? Should we leave it up to students to teach us? I’m sure that this will be the next wave of education professional development offerings, in person and online.

Jonas Peterson said:

I’m not here to debate the process, I’m a professional photographer, writer and artist myself, I understand the implications, how this will affect many creative fields in the future. I’m simply using a tool available to me to tell stories, the same way I’ve always told stories – to move people. To me that is the point of this, not how I did it. Dissecting something will almost always kill it.

You can learn more about Jonas’s work by googling him and also at this LINK.

I’m sure I’ll circle back to this topic in future blog posts. If you have questions or comments that we can all learn from please don’t hesitate to comment at the bottom of this blog post. Thanks!

This and That

A few good stories

I have been cleaning out as I start 2012 and found over 20 drafts for blog posts. Each of the segments below could be full blog posts however, in the nature of “cleaning up” I have compiled them into a “this and that” post because I didn’t want to leave any out. Enjoy! There may be another post similar to this one since there are still 14 drafts!

• Gospel for Teens: 60 – minute segment

This is a story about a woman named Vy Higginsen who brings young people together each weekend in Harlem to study gospel music. Her original intent was to save the music however it has turned into a much greater project. She has auditions each fall for 13-19 year olds to select the participants. Vy says: “Learning the music of gospel as an artform.” And a comment from a viewer: “In Gospel for Teens, we see in the faces of the youth how lives are transformed when they are granted a vehicle of expression.” I suggest you take a look at these when you have a few minutes to view them them from beginning to end.

View Part 1 by clicking here.

View Part 2 by clicking here.

Thank you to Pete Mickelson for sharing this information.

• TEDx: Diana Laufenberg: How to learn? From mistakes

A teacher describes her teaching experience with experiential learning. Students using their own voice to explore their learning. She has taught in several schools in different states and presently in a school in PA with one 2 one laptops.

Thank you to Pete Mickelson for sharing this information.

• STEM/STEAM

Article from the Art of Science Learning written by Martin Storksdieck that you can read by clicking here.

Thank you to Pete Mickelson for sharing this information.

• World Children

The International Child Art Foundation has served as the leading art and creativity organization for American children and their international counterparts since 1997.  ICAF organized the Arts Olympiad, hosts the World Children’s Festival, and publishes the ChildArt magazine for the development of students’ creativity and empathy. The link below will take you to the Children’s World Festival celebrating peace and diversity. Please click here to learn more. And one of Maine’s students artwork will be included in the event. Read about it by clicking here.

• Art and Neuroscience

For Art and Neuroscience check out this article about an exhibit at the Franklin Institute on Automaton. Please click here.

• Jack Kent Cooke Foundation

Providing opportunities for artists to pursue their learning and creating the Jack Kent Cooke Foundation website gives you an overview and information. Please click here.

Thank you to Nancy Salmon for sharing this link.

• Karen Montanaro on the theater

When well-coached and inspired, kids are miraculous performers . . . and, they all deserve the opportunity to feel the nervousness and thrill of performing . . . shining as brightly as the spot-light they stand in.

Suzanne Farrell (George Balanchine’s muse) is quoted as saying, “The only place to learn is ‘out there,’ on the edge, when the beginning and end of your career hinges on that one performance, that one moment.”

Even though kids aren’t looking for a performing career, there is something about “being on stage” that demands their total commitment to every word they speak, every gesture they make, and every stage-direction they follow.  They also experience the dynamic interplay between themselves, the other performers and the audience.  In fact, I think the stage teaches one of life’s biggest lessons . . . the universal appeal of one’s vitality, awareness, presence and spontaneity.

Karen gives her permission to quote her with the above statement on the theatre.

• Education Week article

The article written by Eric Fox for the December 13th issue is called “Every Student Is At Risk. I found it has ‘food for thought’ and recommend it. Please click here.

• Art Knowledge News

I am not sure when I stumbled upon this site but it has some good information that you might want to check out. Please click here.

• Leighton Art

Mrs. Girbino is an art teacher for grade 3, 4, and 5 at Leighton Elementary School. She has a blog with many wonderful ideas and examples of her students’ art work. You can check it out by clicking here.

• Victoria Wyeth’s grandfather Andrew said…

“My grandfather taught me a valuable lesson, that there are a lot of boring people out there, the more unusual the people you hang out with, the more fun you’re going to have.”