[Kim Daesik & Kim Hyeyeon's AHA] Is Philosophy Still a Human-Only Domain in the AI Era?

② Curator Lee Dae-hyung Talks About AI, Art, and Philosophy

"An Era Where Technology Shapes Cultural Forms"
"In the AI Era, We Can't Help But Ask What Aesthetics Is"

Editor's NoteAsia Economy has decided to explore the changes that the rapidly advancing generative AI will bring to the field of artistic creation, and what 'humans' should contemplate, from the perspectives of engineers and artists. Accordingly, we have prepared a monthly corner where Professor Kim Dae-sik of KAIST's Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science and choreographer Kim Hye-yeon (CEO of Yeonist) either have dialogues with artists or discuss works. The title of the corner, 'AHA,' stands for 'AI, Human & Art.' Through Professor Kim Dae-sik, who passionately explores the future of generative AI, and choreographer Kim Hye-yeon, who boldly integrates generative AI with dance, we hope you will take a step closer to the profound themes of AI, humans, and art.

Curator Lee Dae-hyung / Photo by Jo Yong-jun jun21@

Curator Lee Dae-hyung (Art Director) is recognized as a leading domestic art planner who continuously expands his domain from contemporary art to popular culture, industry, and technology, creating unique and distinctive value. He uniquely contemplates the role of art required in the era of the Fourth Industrial Revolution, broadening his curatorial scope based on keywords such as society, environment, community, cutting-edge technology, and the future.

Having served as Art Director for Hyundai Motor Company and Artistic Director of the Korean Pavilion at the 57th Venice Biennale, Director Lee recently attracted attention with the ‘CONNECT, BTS’ project. This was a public art planning initiative that reinterpreted BTS's musical philosophy in collaboration with 22 artists across five cities: Seoul, New York (USA), London (UK), Berlin (Germany), and Buenos Aires (Argentina).

Recently, he worked as the general director of art projects within the passenger terminal at Incheon International Airport, where the kinetic art on the ceiling won the German ‘iF Design Award.’ Director Lee, who is diligently studying the history of AI, states, “Currently, the context of technology is dominating our lives at a level that surpasses the context of national borders.”

-You curate contemporary art and also work on technology-related projects. Interestingly, you also work in popular culture related to BTS. How do you define yourself?

▲My long-standing mission is to expand the space where art can exist and thrive. Therefore, when I look at an object, I do not see it only within its immediate frame but also consider the context outside that frame, which is why I introduce myself as a curator. When asked ‘What does a curator do?’ I tend to answer ‘context makers.’

"Technology → Culture 'Reverse Engineering'"

-Generative AI has completely changed the landscape of art. Since AI is beginning to create, could the context for art also change?

▲It has changed. When ChatGPT first came out, I did not think about this, but after ChatGPT-4 was released, my perspective changed. Technology seems to have become a philosophical domain. As Gerfried Stocker of Ars Electronica said, culture and technology determine form, but nowadays, technology is determining the form of culture, creating a kind of ‘reverse engineering.’

People often say that when AI becomes widespread, creative talents in the art world will become humanity’s stronghold, and one of the conditions for that is philosophy. But now, we have to question whether philosophy is something only humans can handle. Many futurists and AI experts say that versions a thousand times smarter than the current ChatGPT will emerge, and in ten years, AI will be a billion times smarter.

A billion times smarter means, as described in the book ‘Scary Smart,’ humans will become mosquitoes and AI will become Einstein. Would Einstein care about the thoughts of a mosquito? At that time, the ‘human mosquito’ will have to go and sting.

An image generated by entering a command into ChatGPT with the intent of 'creating a scene where artificial intelligence debates with philosophers.'

-More and more artists are still using AI technology as a tool. What is your honest opinion about this reality?

▲I think we are currently in a transitional phase where AI is treated philosophically. We can technically implement visible things too easily. What I appreciated about Refik Anadol’s work is that by granting autonomy to information and AI, it is not an aesthetic created from a human perspective, but a new aesthetic possibility expressed through the speed, color, form, or the entire moving module of forms created as AI and AI information relate and fill in blanks. From this perspective, I want to emphasize that we cannot omit the question, ‘What is aesthetics in the AI era?’

-The word aesthetics contains the concept of beauty. What is beauty in modern aesthetics? And what is aesthetics in the AI era?

▲Until the modernist era, the pursuit was of beauty, but as we moved into the contemporary art era, it seems all formal experiments have been done. Whether making holes in canvases, not painting at all, or painting black and burning for performance, all have been tried once, so now we create new meanings and perspectives and view narratives not linearly but multidimensionally.

Therefore, contemporary art works in a very layered way, drawing in cultural, historical, mythological, and legendary perspectives. It seriously contemplates what new originality is. Just as the aesthetic standards created within digital communities have overturned the mainstream, I believe we can no longer ignore the artistic currents occurring in generative AI and digital realms.

"Ecological Aesthetics - Many Future Narratives Decided Between AI"

However, there is one aspect to pay attention to. Due to ecological factors such as energy reduction, there is wisdom to be gained from the insect world or from the realms of animals and plants regarding architectural or structural matters. It is difficult for humans to design this because various mechanical information must be considered.

I think AI will handle these well. Just as elements of Islamic architecture are now incorporated into urban architecture, applying cooling systems that do not rely on air conditioning, I want to say that many future narratives will likely be decided between ecological aesthetics and AI.

An image generated by entering a command into ChatGPT with the intention of "creating an image where artificial intelligence produces artistic creations."

-This also makes us think about the physicality of the ‘body.’ In the past, people painted with brushes, but now they paint with digital pens or mice. So what about the future? Could works emerge without tools or even without the physical hand?

▲That’s an interesting question. For example, Thomas Heatherwick, an architect and designer who creates many impressive structures, gives a great answer when asked where he gets inspiration or ideas. He says, “By constantly touching and sensing clay or the material and repeating this process, the form is drawn in the mind.”

It’s not starting with a form, but starting and mastering one thing, then the next, and by touching every corner of the clay, thoughts about forms emerge. We usually think of the hand as a means, and materials as means, but the hand is communication.

"‘Social Physicality’ Will Become a Key Topic"

More than biological physicality, I think social physicality will become a key topic in the future. In the AI era, big data is important, and in the connected era, quantity will overwhelm quality. If we ever reach the level of hacking the body, first language will disappear, then bodily features, and even racial characteristics will vanish.

-Technology continues to advance. Suppose humanity finally ventures into space a thousand years from now and becomes a completely different existence. Art certainly existed a thousand years ago. If humanity continues in some form, will art still exist a thousand years from now?

▲I believe it will exist. Whatever is lacking a thousand years from now, art will sprout within that deficiency. We cannot predict what materials will be used or what will be created with them, but there will definitely be something that ought to exist but is missing. I think the greatest art will emerge at that point.

Curator Lee Dae-hyung, Professor Kim Dae-sik, and Choreographer Kim Hye-yeon (from left) in conversation. / Photo by Jo Yong-jun jun21@

Professor Kim Dae-sik, Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, KAIST

Choreographer Kim Hye-yeon (CEO of Yeonist)