Who Creates Art? Artist–Machine Collaboration in the Age of Generative AI

(Lina M. A. Kattan)

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Abstract

This research examines the relationship between human creativity and generative AI, arguing that while AI art continues art's development, it also introduces a rupture that challenges core concepts such as authorship, originality, and artistic identity. Drawing on historical parallels with earlier disruptions - including the printing press and photography - the study traces recurring cultural tensions, fears of the artist's replacement, and debates around authenticity, while acknowledging the creative possibilities opened by generative systems. Using an interdisciplinary methodology integrates art-historical inquiry, philosophical analysis, and empirical research, the study investigates how AI models generate images, how artists adopt or resist these tools, how audiences perceive AI versus human-made artworks, and how the synthetic imagery destabilizes trust in contemporary visual culture. The findings suggest that generative AI intensifies longstanding questions about the artist's role while simultaneously expanding avenues for experimentation and creative exploration. The research calls for renewed critical and ethical frameworks to navigate a future in which machine-generated images are increasingly indistinguishable from human work. It recommends further studies on hybrid human–AI creative models, stronger legal protections for artists, and broader interdisciplinary research on perception, bias, and cultural meaning in the age of algorithmic art.
KEYWORDS
artistic authorship, contemporary art, creative practice, hyperreality, intellectual property, visual literacy

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