“I have a feeling that AI is quickly changing a lot of things about the way we work and interact with and experience the world.”
Joshua Vermillion’s Early Career
Joshua Vermillion, a tenured associate professor at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas School of Architecture, has built a distinguished career in the realm of “Digital Craft.” With a strong background in architecture and design, Vermillion’s creative process is heavily influenced by his understanding of space, light, and materials—elements he expertly manipulates to produce captivating effects. Presently, he focuses on generating AI-driven art pieces that showcase his innovative approach.
Drawing from his architectural training, Vermillion has long been fascinated by the integration and subsequent evolution or disruption of digital technologies within the design process. He has extensively explored parametric and generative design, as well as digital fabrication, examining how these techniques transform the way objects are designed and manufactured.
In recent years, Vermillion has been captivated by the emergence of accessible AI latent diffusion models. He actively investigates these models to better comprehend their capabilities and limitations, and to discern their potential as a creative medium. As Vermillion continues to delve into the possibilities offered by these cutting-edge technologies, his work promises to push the boundaries of art and design.
Joshua Vermillion’s Approach to AI-Driven Art
In the earlier stages of his career, Joshua Vermillion primarily concentrated on digital fabrication, utilizing technology to transform abstract concepts into tangible objects. He contributed to numerous collaborative spatial installations, devising innovative methods for altering spaces through the interplay of light, texture, and materials.
With the advent of artificial intelligence, Vermillion has ventured into the realm of virtual reality, exploring the potential of combining human creativity with AI language models. By relinquishing a degree of control to these intelligent systems, he has discovered a wealth of unexpected, strikingly unconventional designs. The AI-driven collaboration has served as an extension of Vermillion’s own imagination, presenting him with fascinating outcomes that frequently challenge his initial design concepts. This innovative approach blurs the boundaries between human ingenuity and machine learning, generating an exciting fusion of artistic expression.
Joshua Vermillion’s Exploration of MidJourney and ChatGPT
Joshua Vermillion is a passionate advocate of AI-generated art, and is currently using MidJourney to create a series of spatial tableaux that reflect his vision of light and texture. He employs ChatGPT to co-author generative time-based art scripts for Processing, allowing him to harness the power of computational art and design without the need for extensive coding. Vermillion recognizes the profound impact AI is having on the way people work, interact, and perceive the world. He envisions that the art he produces today might one day serve as an archeological record, illustrating the initial stages of AI technologies being introduced to the consumer market.
For Vermillion, inspiration is ever-present and has never been an issue. He acknowledges that countless brilliant ideas often go unexplored. In the past, the exploration of these ideas would have been limited to pen and paper or a sketchbook when available. However, now Vermillion is able to quickly capture his thoughts on his phone and, within a matter of seconds, receive AI-generated visual interpretations. This newfound freedom has led to a surge in his creative output, with each concept demanding further refinement and the addition of a human touch in the future.
The challenge of articulating his ideas through words instead of drawings has been an intriguing shift for Vermillion. This novel approach has compelled him to think more critically and clearly about the most significant concepts and their prioritization.
From the Mojave Desert to the University Workshops
Joshua really enjoys residing and creating within the arid expanse of the Mojave Desert, which includes Las Vegas. In terms of his workspace, Vermillion has successfully transitioned away from the constraints of traditional desktop and laptop computers. With the advent of advanced AI technology enabling seamless verbal communication with machines, he has found liberation from the dependence on conventional input devices such as mice and keyboards.
In addition to embracing the cutting-edge technology, Vermillion relishes the opportunities to engage with tangible materials within the workshops and laboratories of the university where he imparts his knowledge. These spaces offer him the chance to immerse himself in the physical aspects of his craft, as he delves into the process of transforming raw materials into works of art.
Currently, the artist is exploring innovative methods to integrate AI-generated renderings into the creation of actual physical spaces. Though this endeavor may seem more straightforward in theory, Vermillion acknowledges that the practical implementation presents its own set of unique challenges and complexities.
