In a Post-AI World, Is Traditional Art Making a Comeback?

Do you know about the Vinyl Revival? In about 2010, after more than two decades of music primarily being shared on cassette tape, then CD, then digital formats, people began buying vinyl records again. 

Interest in the older format was widespread enough that some music artists released new music on vinyl records. Stores had entire sections of new and used vinyl records, and record players became widely available from large manufacturers.  

Is traditional art–art made with paper, ink, canvas, paint and clay–also getting renewed attention in an age of digital art and pieces generated by artificial intelligence (AI)? What is the value of human creativity when computers can produce a piece at lightning speed with nothing more than a text prompt?   

While it’s yet to be seen where traditional art will land as AI increasingly permeates the culture, some patterns are emerging. 

You can think of the art market as a three-pronged entity, with each prong being a reason the buyers buy:

Depending on which area of the market you’re talking about, the value of traditional, digital and AI art are going to be very different. 

Traditional art has been bought and sold for enjoyment for hundreds of years. A small portion of those pieces may have functioned as investments, but, for the most part, art was purchased to adorn homes, religious centers and community spaces. 

Only in the 20th century did art become a serious investment. By the 21st century, many wealthy people are opting to make art investments part of their financial portfolios. That’s likely what’s driven a lot of the art market to buy and sell pieces at multi-million dollar price points.  

With the rise of the internet, digital art and increasingly accessible platforms, and the eventual availability of non-fungible tokens (NFTs) and AI, a segment of the art market did move online. A great deal of it exists to fill websites and commercial platforms with graphics that encourage sales of something completely different. However, the high-end, high-priced sales are still largely of traditional art in physical forms, sold offline. 

The main economic difference between traditional art and digital and AI art is volatility. While the traditional art market is well established, digital art is more subject to perceived value and trends related to the platforms for creation. In addition, traditional art has the benefit of being one-of-a-kind, while much digital art is easily reproduced or even stolen. 

Because of that volatility, traditional art is superior as a long-term investment. Even if you’re not working in the most expensive areas of the market, you’re likely to find more price stability in local galleries than selling digital art online. 

Art created by AI definitely has an audience and potential buyers. A piece sold in a traditional setting for over $430,000 and as an NFT for over $1 million. However, at least at the time of this writing, artists in traditional mediums aren’t seeing significant opportunities taken by AI pieces.  

Historically, an important element of art collection has been the one-of-a-kind nature of the pieces. Further, up until relatively recently, all art existed in a physical form made of paint, canvas, clay and other materials. This allowed collectors to display original art in their homes or other places with the knowledge that no one else would have the same piece.  

While digital assets can certainly be one-of-a-kind, the fact that they exist digitally makes it much harder to be 100% certain that you have something no one else does. In addition, digital art tools often erase the tiny marks and “imperfections” created by physical paint brushes, ink pens and carving tools. For many collectors, these human aspects of physical art give pieces not only value but interest. 

For example, an oil painting on canvas will have texture and brushstrokes and small marks from errant hairs in the brush or knicks from a paint knife. These details are nearly impossible to reproduce by hand, let alone in a print. Collectors and art enthusiasts appreciate such interesting details.   

Going a little further, traditional art can have a scent! Just as some people love the smell of old books or treated wood, art lovers appreciate the smells of canvas, fabric, paint and clay. Even when dry, traditional art can carry subtle smells if you get close enough. 

Digital art doesn’t come with any of this. In contrast, depending on the style, it can look so clean and polished that it’s easy to forget a human was ever involved. 

Interestingly, the sheer ability to see traditional art in person can drive its purchase. According to gallery owner and art entrepreneur Pearl Lam, even those who make an art purchase online still prefer to buy art they’ve seen in real life. The “face-to-face” meeting prompts an emotional connection, especially if it means meeting the artist themselves. 

Decision paralysis occurs when you have so many options that the wrong choice feels almost inevitable. Because digital art can be shared literally all over the world, potential consumers have endless options. It’s true that traditional pieces can also be sold online, but with services like print-on-demand and quick customizations, digital formats remain more prolific. 

One thing drawing people to traditional art may simply be the limited choice, especially if they prefer to see the work in person before purchasing. Add in the fact that digital art can be ephemeral and disappear should the artist remove it or you erase a file you purchased, and it just doesn’t feel as secure as a sculpture sitting on a shelf.    

For many art enthusiasts, local art stores and galleries are preferred resources. The choice is limited, and you can see the pieces in person quite easily. Better yet, it’s a way to support a local economy and community and build one’s own style.  

Art is, ideally, a deeply human expression. The interplay of the five senses with tiny imperfections and the visible representation of a physical process can’t ever be replaced by digital or AI art. For many creators and consumers, this makes it more desirable. 

No matter how you feel about traditional versus digital and AI art, the prevalence of art created and sold on computers is undeniable and only likely to grow. It’s an important part of the conversation. 

In addition to the decision paralysis discussed earlier, artists and enthusiasts have another obstacle between them–other online content. Anyone can post their art online, and sometimes, their marketing skills exceed their artistic skills. This means more people might find them online, and higher-quality work can get lost in the noise. 

For example, much of being found online involves Search Engine Optimization (SEO). SEO is a range of practices and techniques that help content rise to the top of the results pages. If an artist is savvy enough or can afford to pay an SEO or marketing professional, they’re far more likely to be on the first page of results when a potential buyer makes their query. 

Because any search query can return literally thousands of results, that buyer will probably focus their searches on the first page, which includes just a handful of options and ads. They want to avoid feeling overwhelmed and will stick to the results most suited to their search (even if the art itself isn’t that, the right SEO can override subpar quality). 

If you plan to sell traditional or digital art online, it’s worth your time to learn basic SEO or pay someone to do it for you. Of course, nothing guarantees that you’ll be at the top of the search results, but the better your SEO genuinely matches what you offer, the more likely the right consumers will find you.  

Still, the oversaturation of digital art and the domination of tools like Adobe Photoshop, Procreate, Blender and others allow traditional artists to make the most of physical materials, local art communities and buyers who appreciate the human elements of one-of-a-kind art. 

You can use AI in many different ways during the art-making process–it’s not just about providing a simple prompt and letting the program create the entire piece. 

Although it’s possible to let AI do all the creating based on a simple text prompt, most artists and enthusiasts don’t consider that anything like an original traditional or even digital piece. Further, at this point, it’s often quite easy to tell when something is fully AI-generated, which tends to sort of take the magic out of it. 

The reality is, unless you’re letting AI completely take over, others aren’t necessarily going to detect the use of AI in your work, as long as you use it only as a tool. Just as things look a little different through a camera lens, or a digital art program provides tools that increase your options, AI can nudge you toward expanded versions of your ideas. 

For example, some artists provide AI programs with art and data they’ve already created, and let the program pick out patterns, organize the images or find themes that the artist hadn’t even noticed. With that, you can create an entirely original traditional piece, or bring the AI into the digital space. 

Buyers have already paid a lot for AI pieces. While AI isn’t likely to significantly shift the market, especially within established circles, it’s probably going to become a bigger part of the mainstream art market in the coming years and decades. Perhaps the market will form niches where AI is a known and respected part of the work for one group while another sticks to AI-free work as a rule.  

Artists, whether working in the traditional or digital space, aren’t a monolith. Some are having a great time using it to make their wildest ideas come quickly to life, while others bemoan the fact that AI learns from their work and requires next to nothing in the way of blood, sweat and tears.

After all, no matter how amazing an AI piece looks, it can never reflect human thought and experience the way traditional or even digital art can. 

Artists are having conversations about this exact thing in places like Reddit. It seems like artists working in traditional media (painting, sculpture, etc.) aren’t experiencing much difference because of AI, though some might use it to revisit older ideas to jumpstart their imaginations. 

One digital artist mentioned that AI pushes them to use more traditional materials because they feel a little redundant in the digital space. 

Still, even if they’re not seeing tangible impacts now, some artists mention feeling a mental toll just from the increased conversation about AI and what it might mean for their industry. 

It’s important to remember that the art world has seen a great deal of technological advancements over the centuries, from the canvas and printing press to the camera and ready-made paint. It’s likely that artists and enthusiasts were always a bit unsettled by something that might seem like a “shortcut” between the idea and the product. 

Still, something like AI is an entirely different animal. We see it used by people who aren’t artists but simply want to see a visual representation of a random idea.  

One suggestion is that you’ll see more personalized and immersive art experiences, where virtual galleries can respond to guests’ emotional states and build a unique experience for every visitor. 

The most important thing is to move forward thoughtfully. If you love creating traditional art, you have every reason to keep doing so, and connecting with the communities, enthusiasts and investors who recognize the value a human brings to artistic work. 

At the same time, be mindful of AI. If you can find ways to incorporate it as an assistant, organizer or brainstorming tool, gaining familiarity with it could benefit you. 

That said, traditional art is poised to gain popularity against an increasingly digitized and “generated” world. There will always be a market for high-quality, original, human-made art. 

Skillshare offers a wealth of classes for artists of all types. If you’re looking to advance your skills and connect with a global art community, check out classes on:

Now go make art!