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Gemini and the background of the expiration of Steamboat Willie (aka Mickey Mouse)

Image Analysis: An Abstract Mickey

The artwork presents an abstracted and distorted version of the iconic Mickey Mouse, specifically in his earliest form from the 1928 short film Steamboat Willie. The character's classic black-and-white design is visible, but it is stretched and warped, blending into a swirling, psychedelic background of various colors, including greens, purples, and reds. The image has a surreal, almost melting quality, which transforms the familiar character into a piece of modern, experimental art.

Character & Copyright Expiration

The character depicted is the original, non-speaking version of Mickey Mouse as he appeared in Steamboat Willie, which premiered on November 18, 1928.

The copyright for this version of Mickey Mouse was originally intended to expire several times but was extended by changes in U.S. copyright law. Under the initial law at the time of its creation, the copyright would have lasted for a specific term and then entered the public domain. However, a series of legislative changes, most notably the Copyright Term Extension Act of 1998 (also known as the "Sonny Bono Act"), extended the term for works created between 1923 and 1977 to 95 years from their publication date.

As a result, the first time the original version of Mickey Mouse from Steamboat Willie officially entered the public domain was on January 1, 2024, which marked the 95th anniversary of the film's publication. It's important to note that this only applies to the specific, non-speaking version of the character from that film and not to later iterations or the broader Disney brand and trademarks.

Pastime

Monet and Artificial Intelligence

Monet: Sunrise Wheatstacks brought to life in a new background using artificial intelligence. 

Gemini Analysis:

This AI-generated image is a compelling visual mashup that combines the iconic pyramids of Giza with the impressionistic style of Claude Monet's Haystacks series.

The background is a photograph-like representation of the Egyptian desert, featuring the famous pyramids under a clear, blue sky. This part of the image is rendered with a realistic level of detail, from the sandy texture of the ground to the sharp angles of the stone pyramids.

In stark contrast, the foreground is dominated by two forms that are clearly inspired by Monet's work. These "wheat stacks" are not composed of sand or stone, but of thick, visible brushstrokes of paint in shades of yellow, orange, blue, and white. The texture is rough and layered, mimicking the impasto technique of the Impressionists. One of the stacks even seems to have a glowing blue shard emerging from it, adding another surreal element to the composition.

The juxtaposition of these two styles creates a sense of anachronism and cultural fusion. The hyper-realistic desert landscape provides a stable backdrop for the vibrant, painterly wheat stacks, which seem to exist in a different dimension. This piece effectively showcases the ability of AI to combine disparate elements and styles to create something new and thought-provoking.

Claude Monet (French, 1840 - 1926)

Wheatstacks, Snow Effect, Morning (Meules, Effet de Neige, Le Matin), 1891

Oil on canvas

Unframed: 64.8 × 100.3 cm (25 1/2 × 39 1/2 in.), Framed [Outer Dim]: 88.6 × 123.2 × 7.9 cm (34 7/8 × 48 1/2 × 3 1/8 in.)

The J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles, 95.PA.63

ode Maurits Cornelis Escher

Gemini Analysis:

The image you've uploaded, while an abstraction, shares several key characteristics with the work of Maurits Cornelis Escher, particularly his use of tessellations and optical illusions.

Tessellation and Repetition

A central feature of Escher's work is the concept of tessellation, where shapes fit together perfectly without any gaps or overlaps to create a repeating pattern. The image here exhibits this principle. The central white shape, which is somewhat star-like, is surrounded by a network of interlocking, puzzle-like forms. These shapes seem to connect at various points, creating a seamless, interconnected design.

Distortion and Optical Illusion

The lines in the image are not perfectly straight; they have a subtle, wavy quality and a gradient of colors that creates a sense of depth and distortion. This echoes Escher's famous works that play with perspective and reality, such as Relativity or Ascending and Descending. While the image doesn't create an impossible structure like Escher's more complex pieces, the subtle warping of the lines and the way the shapes appear to move outward from the center creates a similar feeling of an altered perspective.

Focus on Negative Space

Escher was a master of using both positive and negative space to create his images. The central white shape in your image is a great example of this. It's the primary subject, but its form is defined entirely by the lines and shapes around it. This is a common technique in Escher's work, where a figure and its background can often swap roles, or where one shape seamlessly transforms into another.

Madonna and Child

Analysis provided by Gemini

Visual Elements and Analysis:

• Subject: The central figures are a woman holding what seems to be a child. The woman has an intense, almost unsettling stare with wide, pale eyes. Her mouth is slightly ajar. The child figure is represented by a stylized, smiling face, reminiscent of a smiley emoji, complete with a small halo. This juxtaposition of the woman's pained or serious expression with the child's cheerful emoji-like face creates a striking and somewhat surreal effect.

• Color Palette: The color scheme is warm and vibrant, dominated by shades of peach, orange, brown, and turquoise. The background and figures are rendered with a painterly texture, featuring vertical lines that suggest a digital "glitch" or a streaky paint application. These lines are particularly prominent in the background and on the woman's face and clothing, adding to the digital or distorted aesthetic.

• Style: The style is abstract and expressive, blending elements of portraiture with a more modern, digital-art feel. The use of simplified forms, bold outlines, and the "glitch" effect gives the piece a contemporary and slightly unsettling quality. It evokes a sense of both the sacred (the halo and the Madonna-and-child archetype) and the profane or modern (the emoji, the digital distortion).

• Composition: The figures are centrally placed, occupying most of the frame. The composition is a close-up, focusing on the intimate connection between the two subjects, although the nature of that connection is ambiguous due to their contrasting expressions.

• Possible Interpretations: The artwork could be a commentary on motherhood, spirituality, or the modern digital age. The combination of the classic "Madonna and Child" motif with contemporary symbols like the emoji suggests a reflection on how traditional icons and relationships are perceived or represented in a technology-saturated world. The woman's anxious expression could represent the burdens or complexities of modern life, while the emoji child could symbolize a superficial or digitally mediated version of happiness and innocence.

Overall, the piece is a thought-provoking and visually engaging work that uses a unique blend of traditional and contemporary elements to create a powerful and ambiguous statement.

Red Rock petroglyphs & pictographs, Nevada

Five years ago, looking 800 years into the past.

What will happen to Art, now that AI entered the Art scene?

The images below are attributed to an original AI image generator through the Midjourney Beta project on Discord. 

What do you think of Rembrandt's philosopher reading? It's one of my favorite paintings. 

Well, I created an experiment to see what exactly an AI can create through the translation of my text input into the app. Given only my literal and description the bot generated 4 images literally translating "a philosopher reading in bed next to a lamp on the night stand". The resemblance to the original was eerily closer than I expected. The color and and shadows make up for what the images lack in human facial features. The end piece wasn't terrible, but in a way I think it is av vanguard both programmatically and emotionally (I was very excited to participate in the Beta).   

A library full of animals

"Looking out the window at a plumeria tree"

With the advent of what has become a well known and popular site. It takes about 60 seconds for your image to be rendered. You can increase the resolution and use keywords like gothic, modern, or futuristic; several requests used words like Van Gogh Style (with results resembling starry night).

The newbies who join get 25 free images, after that you must pick up a paid subscription.

Given my infatuation with digital art I'm very excited, while others may view this as a loss, I instead see this as an opportunity to revel in a new era of digital automation.

Looking to see what artists think? Well here are some links:

• Ars Technica: AI wins state fair art contest, annoys humans.  
• MidJourney AI: The artist’s new best friend or enemy?
• Sky News Australia: 'Definitely cheating': AI artwork sparks criticism.
• Flooded with AI-generated images, some art communities ban them completely
  
• This artist is dominating AI-generated art. And he’s not happy about it.
  

Petroglyph at the Hawaiian Royal Palace

We found a petroglyph in the garden of the Hawaiian Royal Palace in Kona.

Renew

I hope 2022 will be a time of renewal