When Jason Allen submitted his “Théâtre D’opéra Spatial” into the Colorado State Fair’s fine arts competition last week, the sumptuous print was an immediate hit, beating 20 other artists in the “digitally manipulated photography” category to win the first-place blue ribbon and a $300 prize.
He used AI to win a fine-arts competition. Was it cheating?
One judge said the striking piece evoked Renaissance art. But some critics compared it to ‘entering a marathon and driving a Lamborghini to the finish line.’
By Drew Harwell