After boycotting the Brisbane Portrait Prize over its decision to allow AI-generated entries, several artists have returned to the competition to challenge the technology with human-made work.
Key facts
- •The Brisbane Portrait Prize's main Lord Mayor’s prize is worth $50,000.
- •The 2024 policy change allowing declared AI entries led to public boycotts from artists including Russell Shakespeare and Birrunga.
- •BPP director Anna Reynolds states the competition requires that AI works do not infringe on copyright.
- •Only one of the 49 works in this year's main competition declares the use of generative AI.
- •First Nations artists including Kane Brunjes and Elysia Love-Anderson are among this year's finalists.
The Brisbane Portrait Prize (BPP) is preparing for its upcoming exhibition following a period of controversy regarding its inclusion of generative AI. In 2024, the competition opened its doors to AI-generated art, prompting boycotts from several prominent artists who criticized the move. This year, some of those artists have chosen to re-enter the competition, aiming to contrast their work with AI-generated entries and assert the value of human creative control.
By the numbers
AI in the Competition
The BPP allows generative AI works provided they do not infringe on copyright, a policy BPP director Anna Reynolds says is intended to regulate the technology. Of the 49 works selected for the main competition this year, only one, titled The Catch by artist Jackie Ryan, declares the use of generative AI. Ryan used the software Krea to create a portrait of comedian Alice Fraser, incorporating multiple prompts to refine the final image.
Artists Respond to Policy
Following the 2024 decision to allow AI, artists such as Birrunga and photographer Glenn Hunt boycotted the prize, with some comparing the inclusion of AI to the use of drugs in sports. Birrunga, a Wiradyuri artist, stated that AI lacks cultural content and connection to ancestral practice. This year, Birrunga and five other First Nations artists returned to the competition to present work focused on "ancestral integrity." Similarly, photographer Glenn Hunt, who led the 2024 boycott, is a finalist this year with a portrait intended to emphasize human reality.
Timeline
- 2020Photographer Glenn Hunt won the BPP digital prize.
- 2024The BPP opened the competition to AI-generated art, triggering boycotts from several artists.
- Friday nightWinners of the Brisbane Portrait Prize are scheduled to be announced.
- SaturdayThe prize exhibition opens to the public.
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This article was independently rewritten by ManyPress editorial AI from reporting originally published by Guardian AI.
