My 3-month AI art phase ended when my mom called it 'fancy clip art'

I spent like 3 months generating these super detailed fantasy landscapes for my D&D group (you know, rolling hills, ruined castles, all that). I was so proud of them until I showed my mom and she goes "oh honey, it looks like fancy clip art you'd find on a broken greeting card." And honestly? Once she said it I couldn't unsee it - all those perfectly smooth textures and weird lighting just felt hollow. It hit me that I was more obsessed with the tool than actually making anything personal, you know? Has anyone else had a family member just totally kill your vibe with one blunt comment?

3 comments

3 Comments

jesser7921d ago

Makes you realize how much we settle for pretty stuff that means nothing.

tessa_clark7421d ago

Pretty stuff that means nothing" - see, I don't buy that at all. Beautiful things have value even if they don't change the world or solve problems. My grandmother had a fancy china cabinet full of delicate teacups she never used. People called it a waste. But looking at those cups made her happy. That happiness counted for something. Not everything has to be deep to matter.

jones.anna20d ago

My friend Sarah collects vintage salt and pepper shakers. Got a whole shelf of them. Little ceramic chickens, old cars, weird fruit shapes. People ask why she bothers with junk. But she tells me about finding them at flea markets and the stories behind each set. One was from an old diner that closed down 40 years ago. She likes seeing them on her counter, makes her smile every morning. That's not nothing, that's a little piece of joy she built for herself.