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Show HN: I built an AI art installation at home generating new pieces on the fly

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Re: Show HN: I built an AI art installation at home generating new pieces on the fly

#131

Post by mfi »

A4ET8a8uTh0 wrote: post #82

First, I would like to say well done. Not just the project -- it is neat. I particularly appreciate the fact that it includes all the less obvious, to me, pieces like building appropriate box, sanding and so on. I wish more projects were like this ( as in, showed most of the steps ).

Thanks, I appreciate it!

I really enjoy writing these guides for others to learn, it forces me to think more about the process :)

If you liked this one, I've also written another guide where I built a full-size arcade machine from scratch: https://github.com/maxvfischer/DIY-arcade

Re: Show HN: I built an AI art installation at home generating new pieces on the fly

#134

Post by dheera »

mfi wrote: post #122
dheera wrote: post #74

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Interesting! I built a generative art frame based on "{Shan, Shui}" by Lingdong Huang https://dheera.net/projects/einkframe/ but also planning to use it for neural-net based generative art. I wasn't planning on putting a NX in it though, I was thinking of just keeping the Pi Zero in there and have it do all computations in "the cloud" or on a Nano/Xavier box sitting elsewhere on the same network. I'm currently workin…

That is amazing!! I actually looked into buying an E-ink screen for this project, but decided not to due to the cost and the lack of compatibility. Was the E-ink screen simple to work with?

As long as you get the HAT, yes. I had to desolder the header and solder on a 90-degree header to get my low-profile layout, that was a pain. They weren't able to ship me a HAT without pins soldered :(

The documentation is sparse but they do have one C++ demo example and that's pretty much good enough as a reference to do whatever you want.

One thing I will caution is to NEVER unplug or plug the display while the board is powered on, I fried one display by doing that, but Waveshare was nice enough to replace it for free one I got a hold of some employee's WeChat.

Re: Show HN: I built an AI art installation at home generating new pieces on the fly

#135

Post by mfi »

lazlee wrote: post #102

I'm curious about, beyond time and labor, how much $$$ the project ran you.

The Frame 32" and Nvidia Xavier NX cost ~$500 each (including import taxes etc), the rest (cable channels, screws etc) ~$50. So a total of around $1050

Re: Show HN: I built an AI art installation at home generating new pieces on the fly

#136

Post by nine_k »

This says a lot about building MDF housing for a Jetson (BTW why not plywood?), and devotes literally half a dozen pretty generic lines to the actual art generation code. The algorithm is not discussed, and even art examples are not shown.

This is sad, because wooden box building guides are abundant, but art generation guides are less so,

Re: Show HN: I built an AI art installation at home generating new pieces on the fly

#137

Post by mfi »

xrd wrote: post #78
mfi wrote: post #72

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Thanks! Yeah, I removed it as I want people to use their own generative art in their own build. But if you're interested, here's the implementation I used: https://github.com/taki0112/StyleGAN-Tensorflow

I'm struggling a little bit with using StyleGANs so far. Are you available for a (paid if you prefer) call where I ask you a few questions about it? If so, xrdawson@gmail.com. (I have a connection to Sweden, by the way. My brother lived in Eskilstuna in high school. So, I learned a little bit of Swedish when I visited him. His host brother thought it was really weird I met him and said "jag heter Chris, jag älska nat…

I've sent you an email :)

Re: Show HN: I built an AI art installation at home generating new pieces on the fly

#138

Post by mfi »

LegitShady wrote: post #68
xaedes wrote: post #38

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I think the generated pixels are not the art. The whole piece is the art, made by the artist, i.e. the OP.

perhaps the whole installation is art, if as a whole there's some kind of overall intention, message, or communication. Personally having trouble seeing that here. It's more a tech demo. It's a digital picture frame that generates its pictures procedurally from a neural network.

I'm glad that you're bringing this up, because it's an interesting (almost philosophical question) around what art is.

In my mind, the interesting part in this installation is not necessarily the generated artworks, but rather the fact that they are one push of a button away from being deleted forever. It adds a consumable aspect to the installation, which I think is interesting. Can that evoke emotions and be art in itself?

But that being said, I don't look at myself as an artist. I'm a simple Data Scientist enjoying building projects at the intersection of technology, woodwork and art (whatever that is).

Re: Show HN: I built an AI art installation at home generating new pieces on the fly

#139

Post by dvtrn »

itronitron wrote: post #103

Worth considering that you could purchase a very good painting from a local artist or gallery for much less than the money and time that was spent on this project. While I get that this is a fun project, an actual work of art will provide much more enrichment over the many years that it will outlive an AI art installation.

Incredible thing about art is that people value it differently and for different reasons, so maybe the idea of "enrichment" isn't something universal?
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