Technology & Innovation - Issue 11

starting points while keeping the overall theme prompt consistent (such as ‘Glastonbury Festival’), but changing the suggested artist or influence (such as ‘Art Deco’, ‘Milton Glazer’, ‘Paula Scher’ and so on). These can then be utilised in much the same way as one might use a moodboard. “ As an engineer, I want efficiency, ” Dan explains. “ I therefore plot a whole page of code. ” However, while he can predict whether his code will lead to straight, curved or jagged lines, he can’t focus as fully on the aesthetics until a later stage. Only once the mechanical arm starts drawing can he see how the code is actually building on the page. “ I almost always stop the artwork part way through, ” he says. “ I see it build, and knowwhen it’s reached a point that, for whatever reason, works visually. If ever I let the arm draw the whole code, I’m always disappointed. ” More recently, Dan has introduced a new element into his code writing that he calls ‘Co Pilot’. The idea is for Co Pilot to make further suggestions based on code that’s already been written, thus speeding up his processes considerably. Dan is, however, careful to note that Co Pilot doesn’t have any understanding of aesthetic value – it’s still the artist who must decide on that. I’m relieved to find that Dan’s views, while more practical and developed through his use of technology, coding and nascent AI, otherwise broadly align withmine. Reference, explore, rework; keep the artist as the final arbiter, and think of AI as a useful tool. Tomorrow’s photography Before I leave, he shows me some images produced by Midjourney – a generative AI programme and service that’s attracted attention for its sometimes sublime imagery – examples of which have been used as illustrations by a number of media outlets, including The Economist . Danmakes the point that artists and creators now have the option to develop their own artistic style using the same tool. ABOUT THE AUTHOR Hannah Day is head of art, media and film at Ludlow College “ Before AI, if you had an idea you also needed the skills to create that idea. Now, using AI, you can create a visual output for that idea. Some people view those working in this way as artists, and some don’t. ” His comment reminded me of the conversations that would have taken place during the early days of photography and still continue to this day. For many, the mechanical nature of the camera, and its ability to create images that can be reproduced infinitely, prevent them from considering photography as art – even some 200 years after the first photographic images were created. Collectively, we seem to have a deep and perennial desire for the human and the unique. Yet AI is now very much with us, and will only become more sophisticated in its uses and applications over time. Just like the ‘ready-made’ and often conceptual art of photography, the notion that AI won’t similarly become a specialism in its own right appears absurd. It seems to me that as teachers, we need to get on board and start helping our students understand howAI might influence, and maybe one day even enhance their artistic journeys. A.I. INTHE CLASSROOM Familiarise yourself with your exam board’s AI guidelines. These must top everything, since it’s the exam board that will ultimately be awarding the qualification. Check this each year as the tech develops. Some exam boards have made their AI guidance available online, including JCQ (bit.ly/ts131-AIA1) and OCR (bit.ly/ts131-AIA2) . Discuss AI with your students and help them to understand its pros and cons. It may be beneficial to do this at a whole school level, rather than having each subject department tackle the issue separately. Ensure all AI-produced elements are clearly labelled, just as one might reference research in an essay. Where possible, students should use their own code or prompts for tasks involving AI assistance. If the code is then reworked to produce different outcomes, the code is the media . If the student is using existing code from elsewhere, then this should be deployed sparingly – and certainly not in a way that makes it central to the creation of the final piece. Artwork created using Generative AI powered by Adobe Firefly 51 S C H O O L S O L U T I O N S teachwire.net