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GenAI Is Our Polyester
The best way to understand generative AI art and aesthetics is to consider how previous "synthetics" lost value in the long-run For the first half of the 20th century, white-collar workers wore business shirts made from cotton or linen that wrinkled in the wash. Ironing them into a presentable shape
Science swept in to solve this problem: Chemical conglomerate DuPont learned from experimental research that mixing carboxylic acid and alcohol produced “polyester” fibers that could be used in textile production. There has always been an internal tension in the intellectual debate around “postmodernism.” Thinkers like Fredric Jameson or Jean Baudrillard theorized about the postmodern era as a warning about how contemporary media and economic structures degrade the human experience. About 20 years ago, Momus and I used to argue bitterly about this idea, but I agree with his point that Japan's brand as the world's most “postmodern nation” helped make it cool.
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