Innovation and Art

The advent of disruptive technologies such as AI, neural networks, blockchain, smart contracts - to name a few – is having a very strong impact on how art is created, distributed, and collected.

Many artists are now creating art with the help of or by delegation to AI and neural networks: from the early experiments of Mario Klingemann with algorithms, we came more recently to the use of several types of neural networks (e.g. Convolutional Neural Networks, Generative or Creative Adversarial Networks), all raising entirely new questions about copyrightability and authorship. Not to forget other even more ambitious projects involving blockchain and smart contracts in the creation and (self)replication of artworks.

Also distribution and trading of art now occur through new systems of distribution of digital works through blockchain-powered platforms that permit to create the so called “artificial scarcity” of the digital content, or with platforms that even involve innovative ways of redistributing the proceeds of each subsequent sales of a digital work among the artist, the collector and the digital platform. We can then mention cryptocurrencies based on art and the first experiments in “tokenization” of artworks through the blockchain, to make them (fractionally) accessible to a larger number of collectors.

Finally, we have to mention the uses of new technologies to certify or assess the authenticity of artworks, to find looted art, to guess what works can be of interest to a collector, or to research and manage large collections.
Now, our panelists will share their experiences in these various fields, shedding light on this impressive amount of innovation that is disrupting the art world and market, that have remained linked to same practices for centuries.