AnxAIety about AI, Art & the Future (Patreon)

In response to this thread on twitter, among other things:
https://x.com/SydusArts/status/1826453582926995852

Idk, I wanna rant for a bit...

Honestly, I don't feel the majority of people will care if AI replaces us and that's quite a downer. I don't mean it in a way that isn't grateful to those that does appreciate us and support us. Seriously, thank you. In fact it makes me appreciate yall even more.

But yeah, I really don't feel normal people care and that really saddens me. These AI accounts makes way more impact than us artists (except those in the upper echelons, sure, but not us peons) by simply prompting while we bleed like hell to create every single piece of art. They're favored better by socmed algorithms too because of the constant posting.

Being on the slower-side of art makes it all feel so much more fucked up. Like here I am rendering sweat while sweating blood, and as much as I love the process itself, there's that nag in the back of my mind that goes: "I'm doing all these crazy hard things but what am I worth to the world again?". Things are crumbling all around and it always feels like the clock is ticking and the bomb could explode at any time. All the toiling that we actually innately love to do, now haunts us. It just sours the whole experience.

In the end most people will just treat it as another piece of content on their TLs, look for a sec and move on. That's the value of the work. And I don't mean intrinsic value, or artistic value but more like.....social value?

Most of us artists really don't really ask for a lot... just to be able to live a decent life with our trade skill. I'm kinda lucky I'm already at a place where I'm not too desperate having to pick every little work that comes my way. But I was there a year ago. It feels demeaning to be reminded that you don't deserve a comfortable life because what is the utility of art?

Not saying I've made it either, I have plenty of other problems, but at the moment, yeah, a lack of commission requests is not it, thankfully. To you peeps who are struggling to get jobs landing on your DMs/emails, I truly feel you. That's why I try my best to help out smaller accounts, as much as I possibly can.

Alas, here we are in this together. A period of chaos unlike anything we've gone through before. A total pandemonium wreaking havoc out there. We're treading on thin ice now. We might be some of the ones to be discarded soon, once AI becomes good enough, but in time this is actually going to hit us ALL if we're not careful. I hope we as a civilization don't leave AI in the hands of corporations, because when has corporations ever care about people again?

Here's hoping we'll come together, painters, illustrators, voice actors, animators, writers, musicians, artisans of all kind and kindred spirits who find value in human expression - to wade through this tumultuous times, together. In a way, we don't have many who will look after us except our own kind. Please look downward, give a hand to those within your reach. We all really need it. I wish you all the best, my fellow creators.