AI in Southeast Asia: Muse or menace? How artists in the region are grappling with new technologies

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SINGAPORE: From his home office in Manila, Mr Patrick Cabral has built a town. &nbsp,

The buildings have hive structures and nipa palm-thatched roofs, which are similar to Filipino indigenous bahay kubo houses, and the metropolis is standard. But it is also current. The photo-realistic pictures, which Mr. Cabral created in 2023 using AI tools Secure Diffusion and Midjourney, depict pre-colonial Philippines in a modern setting. &nbsp,

For the multi- disciplinary artist, who originally specialised in calligraphy, the latest technologies in artificial intelligence ( AI ) and machine learning have provided a new medium for his thoughts, and also a platform to reimagine his country’s history. &nbsp,

He told CNA, referring to the Philippines ‘ era under Spanish rule from 1565 to 1898, as well as various periods of American colonization and Japanese occupation,” My experiments aim to answer the question on how architecture and fashion would have evolved if we had n’t been colonized.”

Southeast Asia’s AI innovative potential has expanded beyond the walls of museums and producers over the years to artists like Mr. Cabral. Use of machine learning tools to expand one’s ability to earn money, advance medicine, and learn about identity and history has been a goal. &nbsp,

However, some people have begun to wonder if the AI race is moving too quickly because of concerns in the musical world about issues like copyright and mortal replacement.

THE START OF THE Artificial RACE&nbsp,

Although AI may seem like a contemporary occurrence, the first instance of it was in 1973 when British-born artist Harold Cohen created the computer program AARON, which was capable of producing simple black-and-white images. &nbsp,

The San Francisco Museum of Modern Art ( SFMOMA ) had an exhibition showcasing AARON’s work by 1979. &nbsp,

Mr. Cohen created the algorithms using lines of code that a mechanical arm would then use to train it to imitate the drawing process.

With the introduction of deep understanding in the early 2000s, technologies developed that could produce their own based on coaching data as well as produce photos. These were produced at a higher rate, unlike AARON, so there was no need for a mechanical arm to perform the task.

The first such wording- to- image program, AlignDRAW, was developed by therefore 19- year- older computer scientist Elman Mansimov in 2015. &nbsp,

Over the next decade, various fresh text- to- picture generators followed. Unlike AARON’s engine, present AI image generators generally use language prompts, and educate their algorithms by scraping data from swathes of existing images digitally.

For example, DALL- E, introduced in 2021, was able to mix taught concepts to depict philosophical ideas, such as an olive chair. Midjourney uses AI to imitate and get the unique designs of painters in 2022. &nbsp,

But for many musicians in Southeast Asia, like Mr Cabral, their use of these programs quickly posed some social issues.

” If you prompt ( an AI algorithm ) with’ bamboo house,’ it will give you bamboo houses that are statistically on trend”, he told CNA. ” But they do n’t understand regional concepts, like what I mean by bamboo houses from pre- colonial Philippines” .&nbsp,

According to Mr. Cabral, the lack of appropriate depictions of Southeast Asia that were available online prevented AI generators from capturing precise images of local clothing, people, or structures. &nbsp,

His research revealed that there is a lack of representation in the visual arts, which is one of the crucial limitations of Iot equipment. In the end, he was able to write code that he could use to educate his AI to restore Filipino landscapes and motifs. &nbsp,

He hopes his painting will help to reverse the trend on an ever-evolving cycle of AI painting trained on western-centric media and encourage local artists to regain their narratives. &nbsp,

Technology development offers specific guarantee for the local art scene, especially for those of us from nations whose artistic expressions are still not receiving widespread recognition, he said. &nbsp,

Rimbawan Gerilya, an Indonesian artist, acknowledges the potential of AI technologies to study post-colonial cultures, which might support local artists consider and challenge their personal histories and increase their account. &nbsp,

Instead of borrowing from dominant cultures to fill in the gaps, he told CNA,” They can use generative AI to reconstruct their identities, using their heritage as a reference.”

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Faced with overtourism, is Bali becoming a paradise lost?

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However, Bali wants to have more customers to make up for lost time, and lost hospitality receipts, when the crisis laid waste to its business. In 2021, just 51 international travellers visited the island, compared with 6.3 million in 2019.

Last season, that amount was near to 5.3 million, exceeding the goal of 4.5 million. This time, Indonesia’s Tourism and Creative Economy Minister, Sandiaga Uno, has raised the standard to seven million, cited Bali tourism key Tjok Bagus Pemayun.

” That’s rather high”, Tjok told the project Insight. ” Finally, we can reach the target because many airlines have added planes to Bali”.

Cement CANGGU

The influx of tourists is not just giving rise to occurrences of misbehaviour, yet. It is putting a burden on tools and tarnishing Bali’s picture because of prevalent development, overcrowding and chaos.

WATCH: Bali’s love- hate relationship with tourism on Indonesian island paradise ( 46: 24 )

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How this traditional courtyard house in Beijing transformed into a luxurious private clubhouse

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Beijing’s 62 sq m interior area, according to data from the China Research Center, was a largely traditional yard city in 1949. In 2004, just 539 courtyard homes in reasonably good condition were left in protection areas&nbsp, – a result of China’s moved desire for modernisation since the 1990s. &nbsp,

Thankfully, the authorities have now established tight conservation standards that must be followed in order to keep these structures. Due to their significantly reduced numbers, they are extremely sought-after properties, so it was a unique opportunity for Singaporean designer Gwen Tan of Studio should to work on restoring and renovating one for a second-generation Chinese businessman.

He moved to Beijing for labor after moving formerly from southwestern China. His primary residence is not this preserved siheyuan. Instead, it’s his private hall that is a small getaway place for him and for hosting specific guests”, shared Tan, who is also a co- founder of Formwerkz Architects.

Before they began designing the interiors, Tan and her style group had a lot of cleanup and repair work to perform. The existing buildings were being retrofitted and the design was not to our liking, she said when the customer first purchased the property. Tan’s goal was to show the beauty of the unique architecture rather than blindly copy the old.

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