Becoming A Cyborg
AI can enhance our creativity. It's actually not a matter of replaceability but reflexivity.
Let me explain.
I was trying to figure out how I could turn this image into a cool abstract graphic with my personal aesthetic added to it:
I was actually going to recreate it completely from scratch but my fiancé suggested I try playing around with Stable Diffusion.
So we sat together and begin prompting.
30 minutes into the process with tons of images generated, I felt that what was on my mind was not really getting translated onto the screen.
I was on the verge of giving up. But then, this image was generated:
And just like that, a feeling of aesthetic satisfaction rippled through my mind and body.
This is it.
A black hole.
A spiral staircase.
The rabbit hole to now.
The warping of space and time.
The fractalized nature of reality.
Pink and black to symbolize beauty and pragmatism.
I got what I wanted and more.
The unfinished lines (dots) on the right side were an interesting touch by the AI.
Rather than just the spiral staircase, it now also looks like a clock--bringing the essence of time to the forefront of the image.
I was falling in love. And then, I noticed another thing.
The slightly distorted area at the bottom of the spiral looks psychedelic.
What an enchanting feeling.
I had no intention of evoking such an aesthetic but now I'm excited to see how far I can take this graphic.
This is what I mean by reflexivity.
AI did not just replace my creative capacity, it triggered new pathways to open up. Pathways I may have never considered had I not engaged with it.
It reflected creative potentiality back to me.
I guess I'm turning into a cyborg now...
For now, this will be the v1 design for my upcoming newsletter The Deep Now.
I've also changed my X banner to reflect this new chapter of my online presence.
The Deep Now is launching on Wednesday, August 16th.
On a bi-weekly basis, I'll be sharing insights on the archetypal patterns that govern our world from fashion to politics.
In essence, we'll be tumbling down the rabbit hole of our collective unconscious.
I hope you'll join me on this enchanting journey.
