Creativity cannot be computed

Creativity cannot be computed T HIDDE DE VRIES - HELLO S

Hi, I’m Hidde 👏 Web standards at the Dutch government (like WCAG, WCAG-EM and EN 301 549) Advisory Board at W3C Blogger at hidde.blog Here in personal capacity

I love computers

but we tend to overestimate their power

we tend to overestimate tech progress

Creative Review, 21 September 2021

T

we tend to overestimate computing

while underestimating creative work

“I th – Mark Zuckerberg, Facebook, in interview with T i theverge.com/24253481/meta-ceo-mark-zuckerberg-ar-glasses-orion-ray-bans-ai-decoder-interview

“Creat – Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI at WSJ T i youtube.com/watch?v=byYlC2cagLw

“You can see Dall-E generate amaz – Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI at WSJ T i youtube.com/watch?v=byYlC2cagLw

“Creat – Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI at WSJ T i youtube.com/watch?v=byYlC2cagLw

i What

Computing = manipulating numbers

~2000 BC y Clay tablets in Babylonia (present-da

~2000 BC Plimpton 322 en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plimpton_322

Computing = manipulating numbers

Computing = manipulating data

Computing = completing tasks automatically

Computing = throwing tech at something

Charles Babbage

TT

Diagram with Note G Ada Lovelace

“It i – Ada Lovelace, also in Note G

hidde.blog/book-tip-turings-vision

“AI was harder than we thought.” – John McCarthy (2006) From Melanie Mitchell’s presentation “Why AI is harder than we think”

T T 1843 1933 1952-1955 2002 Compilers and COBOL First robotic vacuum cleaner 1965 2007 First software engineer on Apollo missions Invention of the iPhone

2024 “AI will fix all of our problems”

“It i – Ada Lovelace, in her notes

i Creat

Creativity = problem solving Old-school hacking Sunsetting products Election security Looking beyond the AI hype

T

T Video for “Manon” by De Jeugd van egenwoordig

choices

Immanuel Kant: the ability to produce works that are not only “or g nal”—since “there can be original nonsense” —but also “exemplary” i i plato.stanford.edu/entries/creativity

Boden’s three types of creativity i i Comb Exploratory Transformat

Boden’s three types of creativity Comb Exploratory Transformat i i Espresso tonic, Rotterdam (2022)

Boden’s three types of creativity Comb Exploratory Transformat i T i Herbie Hancock + band in oronto (2024)

Comb Exploratory Transformat i he steam engine i T Boden’s three types of creativity

Boden’s three types of creativity Comb Exploratory Transformat i i Quincy Jones

Creativity Art Design Aesthetics

Creativity is it new & interesting ?

Creativity is it new & interesting ? Design does it function?

Creativity is it new & interesting ? Design Aesthetics s i h t is ? l u f i t u a be does it function?

Creativity Art Design Aesthetics is it new & interesting ? what makes it art? s i h t is ? l u f i t u a be does it function?

Creativity Art

Entertainment

What is art? Films, books, paintings, poetry, photography, music, sculpture, performances, plays, operas, street art, comedy, literature, video games, some of your toots.

Art isn’t always easy to recognise

“All the good times we spent together” by Alexandre Lavet (2016).

“Fountain” by Marcel Duchamp (1917).

T “Peanut butter platform” by Wim . Schippers (1969).

Art is legitimised

Art is legitimised Artist puts it out “as art” Audience wants to pay for it Institutions want to display it

Art has critics

Art has critics Well executed Original / creative Great ideas/concepts Clichéd Captivating Stunning

Art is appreciated conditionally

You and me baby ain’t nothin’ but mammals

So let’s do it like they do on the Discovery Channel

Appreciating art Personal experiences Knowledge of context in history Knowledge of artist Descriptions Prerequisites (like language)

Appreciation is a continuum read artist’s biography no context gone through similar struggle art historian specialised in this genre

Art is repeated

T Scene from La raviata at the Metropolitan Opera in New York

Still from music video of Portishead’s version of “SOS” by ABBA

choices

Art is repeated

David Hockney Portrait of an Artist (Pool with two figures)

Art is repeated

Art may contain intentions

Students interview artist Geoffrey Chadsey tang.skidmore.edu/collection/explore/202-shifting-poses

laurents.art on Instagram Künstler/in 👦🖌🎨 3 Years old 🇩🇪

choices

repeats/ reimagined critics legitimisation Art is fuzzy intentions (maybe) appreciation

i Art = l

What can art do?

Art can make the artist think

Artists process life through their art

i Fr

Art can also make the audience think

Art can show us futures we should not want

Art can capture the political zeitgeist

Art can show us what’s wrong in reality

Art can show us a mirror to reflect

De Zaak Shell, Bureau Vergezicht (2024)

Devolved Parliament, by Banksy

Details from “Devolved Parliament” by Banksy, copyright graffiitstreet.com

Konzerthaus columns covered with 14,000 discarded life vests (2016) . Photo copyright Clemens Bilan / Getty Images

T Paul McCartney singing “Yesterday” in New York (1965) . Still from You ube.

T T Adele singing “Someone like you” at iny Desk (2011) . Still from You ube.

Photo of Ai Weiwei’s S.A.C.R.E.D. installation (2013) .

Art can be used to show solidarity Led by Donkeys paint the Ukranian flag a year after the Russian invasion (2023)

Marvin Gaye singing “What’s going on”.

Still from video of “Alright” by Kendrick Lamar.

T Kendrick Lamar performing on top of a police car at BE awards (2015)

Me be – Kendrick Lamar, in interview with i T tmz.com/2015/07/02/kendrick-lamar-responds-alright-geraldo-rivera-bet-awards-controversy-tmz-live/

Me be – Kendrick Lamar, in interview with T i tmz.com/2015/07/02/kendrick-lamar-responds-alright-geraldo-rivera-bet-awards-controversy-tmz-live/

Vincent van Gogh’s Sunflowers (1888). Activists throw a can of tomato soup on the work at National Portrait Gallery (2022).

What it is like to love

I don’t believe that anybody feels the way I do about you now

You are / my fire / the one / I desire

What it is like to try and understand other people

What it’s like to be fed up with the status quo IJSLAND at Melkweg, Amsterdam

What it’s like to be young

Guernica by Pablo Picasso (1937)

Bebelplatz / Opernplatz, Berlin (Wikipedia)

T “ he Empty Library” by Micha Ullman (Wikipedia)

AI i – Oliver Reichenstein, “AI and the end of writing”

Art can insult the audience

“In and Out of Love (White Paintings and Live Butterflies)”) by Damien Hirst

Mistakes in art can be beautiful

Art can make us think Art can move us Art can take a stance Art can support a movement Art can capture complex human human experiences Art can record collective memories

Art can make us think Art can move us l l a l a n o t p o Art can take a stance Art can support a movement Art can capture complex human human experiences i Art can record collective memories

the point isn’t always the art itself

The art intention reflection research skill i world view art

The art voice life experience talent background i culture art

The aud i art shared experiences

“Pop mus i — Mat Dryhurst

The aud emotion art reflection empathy understanding i inspiration

an artwork before making / after releasing Source: Wikipedia (Iceberg)

Net als altijd gingen we naar de eetzaal en Meaning is in between the lines aten ons avondeten. We gingen in bad. Daarna maakten we een es goede wijn open die ik voor een speciale gelegenheid had bewaard. We dronken er samen van en ik speelde gitaar. Haar gebruikelijke favorieten van de Beatles zoals “Nor wegian Wood” en”Michelle”. Het was heel gezellig. We deden het licht uit, we kleedden ons uit en kropen in bed. Het was een heel warme nacht en zelfs met het raam fl open kwam er geen zuchtje wind naar binnen.

can computers have intention skills reflection experiences research a world view ?

Computers are often part of the toolset to make artifacts. T T Still from “What is echno?” by 343 Labs on You ube

“It’s a tool.” – Mira Murati, (then) C T youtu.be/yUoj9B8OpR8

i Open quest

Environmental impact

Environmental impact Copyright infringement

Environmental impact Copyright infringement Vector for abuse

Environmental impact Copyright infringement Vector for abuse Not open

Environmental impact Copyright infringement Vector for abuse Not open Risk of dullness

Risk of dullness

i Creat

i Art is as much about the art

i Art is much more than an art

“It i – Ada Lovelace, in her notes

We can use computers to express ourselves creatively

But making creative work is about process, intentions and creativity.

But making creative work is about process, intentions and creativity. Not the output or tools.

I love computers

but they don’t use creativity in the way artists can

Make art

Enjoy art

Slides + links are live on h i T Thank you!

tante, On “AI” Art https://tante.cc/2024/09/06/on-ai-art/ SEP, https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/art-definition/ Ada Lovelace https://computerhistory.org/blog/ada-lovelace-day/ National Geographic, “ program” https://www.nationalgeographic.com/history/history-magazine/ article/this-countess-of-computing-wrote-the-first-computer-program https:// raysolomonoff.com/dartmouth/boxa/dart564props.pdf T Review of one of Boden’s books https://anyoldmusic.com/creativity-and-artbook/ T T Links

https://www.theatlantic.com/technology/ archive/2024/07/generative-ai-music-suno-udio/679114/ Li Jin, “‘Pop Music Is a Promise Can and Can’t Do” https://variant.fund/articles/pop-music-ai-holly-herndonmat-dryhurst/ T Melanie Mitchell, “Why AI is Harder T T Links

Dorothy K. Stein, “Lady Lovelace’s Notes: Victorian Studies, Vol. 28, No. 1 (1984), 33-67. https://www.jstor.org/stable/ 3826758 L.F. Menabrea, “Sketch of the Analytical Engine Invented by Charles Babbage”, Scientific Memoirs, 3 (1843), With notes upon the Memoir by the Margaret A. Boden, “Creativity and artificial intelligence”, Artificial Intelligence, Volume 103, Issues 1–2 (1998), 347-356, T T Articles

Books Du Sautoy, The Creativity Code. Boden, Creativity and art (2010). Hofstadter, Fluid Concepts and Creative Analogies: Computer Models Of The Fundamental Mechanisms Of Thought (2008).