Beyond the Tool: Rethinking Authorship and Artistic Agency in the Age of AI

Marcin Nowicki (Warsaw, Poland) presents a talk on the role of the artist in collaboration with autonomous or semi-autonomous AI systems

5/8/2025
5:00 pm - 6:30 pm
Location
Carpenter 013
Sponsored by
Institute for Writing and Rhetoric (IWR)
Audience
Public
More information
James E. Dobson

As artificial intelligence systems increasingly shape artistic practices, they challenge long-standing authorship, agency, and creativity concepts. This talk explores the shifting role of the artist in collaboration with autonomous or semi-autonomous AI systems, drawing from both philosophical and practice-based perspectives. Tracing a trajectory from early conceptions of AI to contemporary generative tools, I examine how art made with and through AI reveals new epistemological and aesthetic paradigms.

In addition to philosophical and creative questions, I will address emerging ethical and legal challenges surrounding AI-generated art. While the U.S. and Europe offer different legal frameworks, both regions operate within a largely undefined grey zone regarding authorship, intellectual property, and creative responsibility questions. These unresolved tensions call for a rethinking of legal categories and the cultural assumptions underlying them.

By analyzing examples of collaborative artworks and reflecting on my creative practice, I propose that AI is no longer just a medium or tool but an active participant in the creative process—redefining the boundaries of authorship and calling for a broader ontological rethinking of the artwork itself.

This event in sponsored by the Office of the Provost.

Location
Carpenter 013
Sponsored by
Institute for Writing and Rhetoric (IWR)
Audience
Public
More information
James E. Dobson