AI Art Newsletter - 24 May 2025
AI ART MONTHLY
May 2025 Newsletter
BREAKING NEWS
Christie’s “Augmented Intelligence” Auction Makes History
Christie’s first-ever sale composed entirely of AI-generated art, titled “Augmented Intelligence,” proved a huge success with 28 of the 34 lots selling for a combined total of $728,784—far exceeding its low estimate of $600,000. The online-only sale attracted a younger demographic: Some 48% of bidders were millennials and Gen Zers, and 37% of the registrants were newcomers to Christie’s.
Featured Artists & Works:
- Refik Anadol - Machine Hallucinations series
- Claire Silver - Digital paintings and installations
- Holly Herndon & Mat Dryhurst - Embedding Study series
- Alexander Reben - Live painting robot installation
- Harold Cohen - AARON system drawings
- Sougwen Chung - Human-AI collaborative works
Artist Backlash and Controversy
Nearly 4,000 people have signed an open letter calling on Christie’s New York to cancel the AI art auction over concerns that the works exploit human artists. Many artists say they are concerned about AI’s ability to mimic certain styles, which artists have honed for years.
MAJOR EXHIBITIONS
MACHINE LOVE at Mori Art Museum, Tokyo
Running through 2025 MACHINE LOVE introduces around 50 works of contemporary art that employs game engines, AI, and virtual reality (VR), including a number that utilize generative AI. The exhibition explores the relationship between humankind and technology through large-scale installations and immersive experiences.
AI: More than Human Continues Global Tour
The exhibition is currently touring with upcoming stops in Miami, USA (31 May 2025 - 1 Sep 2025), exploring Artificial intelligence and humanity from 846 BC to the present day. The show features new commissions by Joy Buolamwini, Mario Klingemann, Lawrence Lek, Massive Attack, and Universal Everything.
CVPR 2025 AI Art Exhibition Call
At CVPR 2025, an exhibition of AI artworks will be presented at the Music City Center, Nashville, encouraging submissions from computer vision researchers and professional artists. The exhibition will only consider works created in 2024 and 2025.
“Blurring the Lines” at Indiana University
The exhibition showcases AI’s capacities in studio art, music, written word, performance art and more, featuring works like “Self Portrait” by humanoid robot artist Ai-Da and Ross Goodwin’s “1 the Road” project.
SPOTLIGHT: FEATURED ARTISTS
Refik Anadol
The Turkish-American media artist continues to lead the field with his data-driven installations. Anadol’s Machine Hallucinations were made with an AI model trained on curated images from NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter. He is also the founder of the upcoming Dataland AI art museum.
Claire Silver
Known for her pioneering work in AI-generated portraiture, Silver’s piece “Daughter” was featured in Christie’s historic auction. Her work explores themes of identity and consciousness in the digital age.
Ai-Da Robot
The humanoid robot artist Ai-Da created “Self Portrait” using giclee and oil paint, highlighting both AI’s capacity to work in physical media while questioning the impossibility of a selfless being creating a “self-portrait”.
Sougwen Chung
A pioneer in human-AI collaboration, Chung’s “Study 33” represents her ongoing exploration of mark-making between human and machine intelligence.
LEGAL & INDUSTRY DEVELOPMENTS
Copyright Ruling on AI Art
A federal appeals court in Washington, D.C., affirmed that a work of art generated by artificial intelligence without human input cannot be copyrighted under U.S. law. The decision involved Stephen Thaler’s AI system “DABUS” and its artwork “A Recent Entrance to Paradise.”
Artist Protection Movements
Joy Cardaño, who goes by Joyblivion on Instagram, said commissioned anime-inspired art work has nearly come to a halt, with many online users seeming to gravitate toward artificial intelligence-made art instead. Artists are increasingly vocal about protecting their work from unauthorized AI training.
TECHNOLOGY TRENDS
AI Tools Evolution
In 2025, AI art is no longer new. It’s part of how many people create. People use it for social media content, blog illustrations, presentations, game assets, and marketing materials. However, AI tools are not perfect. They often struggle with hands, text, or realistic faces.
Acceptance and Integration
AI art is most accepted when it is used with care. Many smart creators are finding ways to mix AI with other tools, making the art feel more original and showing that the creator put in effort.
UPCOMING EVENTS
Gallery Weekend Berlin
May 2-4, 2025 Various venues across Berlin will showcase contemporary art, with several galleries featuring AI-assisted works.
Venice Architecture Biennale
May 10 - November 23, 2025 The 19th Venice Biennale of Architecture explores “Intelligens. Natural. Artificial. Collective” with AMO/OMA presenting “Diagrams” at Fondazione Prada.
AI+ Expo Washington D.C.
June 2-4, 2025 Join 15,000 members of government, academia, and industry for discussions on AI and emerging technologies.
MARKET INSIGHTS
Collector Demographics Shift
According to Artsy’s Art Collector Insights 2024, 82% of collectors under the age of 37 said they had purchased art online. This group also grew up around technology, which is a key part of AI art’s appeal.
Authentication Developments
Germann Auctions in Zurich became the very first auction house to pilot the use of A.I. authentication to back the sale of three artworks by Louise Bourgeois, Marianne von Werefkin, and Mimmo Paladino.
DEBATE & DISCUSSION
The Human vs. Machine Question
Many artists are already using the inventions (and provocations) of AI in works of great substance, but of course the artists are still the ones bringing it into the room. The debate continues over whether AI can truly be creative or merely mimics human creativity through sophisticated pattern recognition.
Future Implications
A UN Trade and Development (UNCTAD) report forecasts the global AI market will surge from $189 billion in 2023 to $4.8 trillion by 2033, marking a 25-fold increase, suggesting massive growth potential for AI art markets.
LOOKING AHEAD
As we move through 2025, the AI art landscape continues to evolve rapidly. Key questions remain: How will copyright laws adapt? Will traditional art institutions fully embrace AI art? And most importantly, how will the relationship between human creativity and artificial intelligence continue to develop?
The Christie’s auction success suggests strong collector interest, while artist protests indicate ongoing concerns about fair compensation and creative integrity. The future likely lies in finding balance—leveraging AI’s capabilities while respecting human artistry and ensuring ethical practices.
