DOES AI DREAM?
In Does AI Dream?, I explore the intersection of artificial intelligence, human emotion, and the surreal nature of consciousness. Everything you see was photographed, manipulated, or painted by me.
At the core of the work—the human element—is a female model, photographed in the studio. Beyond the studio, I sought out the pieces AI might pull from the world, using wide, medium, and macro lenses: butterflies, wires, circuitry, an iris, and, most importantly, the "dream" itself. Each “dream,” or landscape shot, is a moment in time, place, and space—intertwined with a personal memory and emotion of mine.
Unlike AI, which pulls from the indiscriminate consumption of Everything, this collection was created with intention, narrative, and personal experience. Every decision—the placement of a fragment, the blending of a texture, the contrast between organic and mechanical elements—was made with a clear vision in mind, yet guided by an inquisitive, free-flowing artistic process.
To mimic AI, I sought to build the collection in stages, or iterations—Version 1, Version 2, and Version 3—with Version 3 being the final work you see. Each iteration expanded upon the previous version, adding or manipulating elements to push the artwork further. Details from earlier works resurface in future pieces, reshaped and repurposed, bridging (sometimes unseen) connections between individual works, much like AI unknowingly carries remnants of what came before.
Through this collection, I pose a question: If AI could one day dream, what would it envision? As its algorithms grow and models learn, will its dreams remain a reflection of its creators, piecing together fragments of human thought, or will it one day transcend into something entirely its own—a standalone work?
Each artwork is named after a quote or poem, words that once belonged to a singular mind but now, much like AI itself, are reassembled and reinterpreted. As you engage with these works, I invite you to see the art through the lens of repurposed words.
*Postscript
I normally don’t do this, but feel this collection especially warrants the question about form: I used a Canon 5D MIV, Canon and Zeiss lenses, Astera Titan lighting, Mathews grip gear, Manfrotto tripods, monopods, and Panoramic Background. In post, I used Adobe Lightroom Classic and Photoshop.
The collection can be viewed on-chain in a Parent-Child family tree: Does AI Dream?
“He had thought it barren: he saw now that it was the womb of worlds, whose blazing and innumerable offspring looked down nightly even upon the earth with so many eyes.”
— C.S. Lewis
1 – Womb of the World – “He had thought it barren: he saw now that it was the womb of worlds, whose blazing and innumerable offspring looked down nightly even upon the earth with so many eyes.” – C.S. Lewis
2 – Behind the Clouds – "My life is cold, and dark, and dreary; It rains, and the wind is never weary; My thoughts still cling to the mouldering Past, But the hopes of youth fall thick in the blast, And the days are dark and dreary. Be still, sad heart! and cease repining; Behind the clouds is the sun still shining; Thy fate is the common fate of all." – Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
3 – A Thousand Forests – "The creation of a thousand forests is in one acorn." – Ralph Waldo Emerson
4 – Gold Wanderer – “All that is gold does not glitter, not all those who wander are lost.” – J.R.R. Tolkien
5 – Into the Universe – “The clearest way into the Universe is through a forest wilderness.” – John Muir
6 – To The Sea – “For all at last return to the sea—as every flower fades and all youth departs.” – Rachel Carson
7 – Conquering Mountains – “It is not the mountain we conquer, but ourselves.” – Sir Edmund Hillary
8 – The Great Connector – “The soil is the great connector of lives, the source and destination of all.” – Wendell Berry
9 – River in the Desert – “Behold, I am going to do something new, Now it will spring up; Will you not be aware of it? I will even make a roadway in the wilderness, Rivers in the desert.” – Unknown
10 – In The Depths – I have a feeling that my boat has struck, down there in the depths, against a great thing. And nothing happens! Nothing…Silence…Waves… Nothing happens? Or has everything happened, and are we standing now, quietly, in the new life? – Juan Ramón Jiménez
11 – The Sound of Wind – “Winter solitude—in a world of one color—the sound of wind.” – Matsuo Bashō
12 – Wild and Free – “All good things are wild and free.” – Henry David Thoreau
Version / Iteration 1
Version / Iteration 3