I have previously written that the advent of AI art will increase the value of artists’ knowledge, particularly that of different art styles. Knowing what style to use, when to use it, how to apply it, what style to combine it with are all crucial to prompting the algorithm to create something specific. Prompt vocabulary has a direct influence on the quality of AI art and an expansive vocabulary can make intention and result converge. Thus, this week’s theme of Nimmit’s AI art is that knowledge is power.
With the 5 images showcased in this article, I’ve tried to show different art styles and techniques. Each has particular strengths that work well if used in the right context. I hope you find some value in my observations below and that this knowledge helps you in your own AI (or real) art journey. Clicking on the images will take you to the image post on NightCafe where these were generated. If you’re curious, you can find more technical information about the image there. You can also visit my NightCafe profile page to view more of my creations.
Tranquility
Composition: “a pond covered by lotuses in full bloom, light shines on the pond through the canopy of trees, ethereal, peaceful, calming, a single elephant plays in the middle of the lotuses (1.4)”
Modifier: “fauvism maximalism in the style of Peter Max (1)”
When I was researching and experimenting using different art styles, fauvism immediately stood out to me for its colorful results. Artists, over time, tend to develop their own unique art style and it’s important to be aware of them as well. I discovered that Peter Max’s works also liberally used color. I wondered what would happen if I prompted for both fauvism and Peter Max. The experiment resulted in the image above. The image generally works because the scene in question is expected to be colorful. It’s good to think about whether the modifier you are using will work well with the scene you are trying to create.
Lighthouse Postage Stamp
Composition: “Lighthouse album cover landscape (1.5)”
Modifier: “line art ink drawing blue and white (1.3)”
“minimalism (0.8)”
My objective with this image was to create a postage stamp that featured a lighthouse. Stamps don’t have the space for minute details and so this was the reason for the minimalism prompt. Similarly, I remember stamps usually being blue ink lines on white backgrounds. Line art minimalism is a good combination and it’s something I used in my early experiments with AI art. Refer to the ‘Reflection’ image in that article. One last thing to note for this image: “album cover” is my attempt at telling the algorithm to compose a square-shaped, artistic, flat scene. I find that “propaganda poster” and “poster art” also produce similar results.
Twilight Tryst
Composition: “full body view of a silhouette of a woman in flowing robes approaches you from the edge of a forest, nothing but moonlight illuminates the sparkling sapphire diadem on her forehead (1.3)”
Modifier: “gothic art, lyrical abstraction, surrealism, masterpiece, perfect composition (1)”
It’s debatable whether the scene is moonlit, but there is no doubt that the algorithm failed to draw a diadem on her forehead. It’s one of the challenges of AI art that you won’t always get exactly what you seek and it’s why those with the technical ability to edit and reproduce an image to their liking will surge ahead in this field. Composition aside, I find the mysterious quality of gothic art, lyrical abstraction, and surrealism quite captivating. I wanted to observe how well they work together. The result is a nicely shaded 2d image that verges more on fantasy than dread. I believe this is due to lyrical abstraction’s propensity for bright colors. It’s a strong style and I’ve observed it giving interesting results.
Hand Eye Coordination
Composition: “tennis player overhead smash action (1.5)”
Modifier: “watercolor in the style of don blanding (1)”
The algorithm did a good job of respecting everything in the composition except for “overhead”. In my experiments, the algorithm I used had trouble with that stance. Nevertheless, it is a good action shot and I find that these algorithms take the word “action” very seriously. Whenever you want to show a subject in motion, I recommend you try out this word. You may get good results. Watercolor, or any similar art medium, is a good modifier to use if you’re struggling with the quality of realism in images. These algorithms appear to have been trained on a large amount of paintings and I find they are good at drawing and coloring images using these styles.
Indra Vrtrahan
Composition: “low angle full body view of an ancient Vedic warrior shouting as he wields lightning in his raised hand (1.3)”
“on a tumultuous battlefield in the riverlands thunder rages fire burns wind howls and the earth trembles under the weight of battle (1.1)”
Modifier: “hypermodernism, hyperrealism, perfect composition, masterpiece, in the style of Greg Rutkowski (1)”
Towards the end of my previous article in this series, I had promised to write about my philosophy on depicting Dharmik deities using AI. Dharmik deities (and many others in the ancient pantheons) are steeped in symbolism. AI struggles with drawing weapons and multiple arms correctly. The requirement for precise placement of symbols makes for a challenging project. I believe it is wise to edit the AI’s creation manually to achieve the intended results. If you don’t want to manually edit, however, creative descriptions of a scene to achieve the same general result can work well. For example, consider the image above. I did not prompt for “Indra” but simply for an “ancient Vedic warrior wielding lightning”. This gives some more freedom to the algorithm. Hypermodernism and hyperrealism add to the tension between ancient and modern thereby highlighting the timelessness of this scene.
This week’s AI art experiments were quite educational. It was tempting to simply imagine and tell the algorithm to create. But the algorithm cannot read my mind and it is necessary to learn the vocabulary to communicate exactly what I want it to create. In the world of AI art, knowledge is indeed power.
I hope you found this week’s article just as educational. Please write your feedback through the contact page. If this is your first time on this website, welcome! I am Nimmit Prabhackar, and I write white papers to help leaders take initiative. To learn more about what I do and how I can help you, please visit the solutions page.