This year’s State Fair rule changes are intended to give judges all the information they need, Stoller said, such as disclosing the media artists use in traditional paintings, like acrylic paints, and whether or not they used AI capabilities in software such as Adobe Photoshop.
“It was the decision they made in order to keep AI art eligible for inclusion in the digital category, and in the competition as a whole,” he continued. “So I asked them, ‘What is the purpose of having this knowledge?’ And they said, ‘Well, so judges can be informed whether or not you used AI to produce it.’ That is the wrong answer. You’re literally just saying we’re putting a discriminatory mark on their artwork before it can even be judged.
Jason Allen’s “Grand Finale” was created with the help of AI software, following his 2022 art competition win at the Colorado State Fair with another AI artwork. In Pueblo, though, it’s clear that Allen has generated increased attention for the fair’s art competition, Stoller said, with intrigue and conversations swirling around the displays.