arthistoricum.net

This paper explores photorealistic AI-generated images as devices for experimentation with documentary realism. In contrast to deepfakes created with the intent to deceive, the AI-generated images addressed in this paper explore the latent space of that which didn’t happen. While lens-based photography claimed to be a visual record of the past, algorithmically generated, photorealistic images seem to ‘document’ events that (may) never (have) occurred. While it is commonly known that photographic film has been retouched and manipulated early on, AI-generated images construct a new type of pseudo-photographic ‘evidence’ tied to processes of statistics and speculation, that convey a sense of plausibility. Beyond fleeting image discourses taking place in the form of memes, decolonial artistic practices as well as memory-related cultural initiatives and forms of therapy have recently started to tap into this potential – begging the question: How may we seize photorealism’s mnemonic powers in a post-truth era?