On the walls of Chicago’s Museum of Contemporary Art, displays of beautiful art showcase the eternal nature of painting in a digital age.

Though some may question the timelessness of the medium when challenged with technology, “The Living End” art exhibition, which runs through March 16, shows it is far from obsolete.

According to the museum’s website, the exhibition highlights the “renewal and rebirth” of painting in the midst of critics declaring that the medium was outdated.  The exhibit showcases many forms of art, from video displays to sculptures and installations — all of which feature painting.

“‘Painting is dead’ has been something art critics have said about painting specifically, since the invention of the camera,” said Corvin Mecklenburger, visitor experience assistant and private tour guide at the Museum of Contemporary Art (MCA).

Mecklenburger explained that because photographs were “faster” and “cheaper” than a painting, people began to feel like they didn’t need painters anymore. In centuries past, painters were popularly used for portraiture, so when cameras were invented, people felt they would replace painters.

Instead, photography inspired the artists.

“One panel (in the exhibition) talked about how photography was supposed to be the death of painting, and as we all know, it wasn’t. Artists’ reactions to it just changed over time,” said Josh Leib, a recent graduate from the Museum and Exhibition studies graduate program at the University of Illinois Chicago (UIC).

“Artists continued to adapt to new technology as critics claimed that whatever new advancement was coming would mean death to art,” Mecklenburger said.

“With all the different art movements that have happened with painting in modern and contemporary art each time, everyone’s like, ‘Painting is done,’” Mecklenburger said. “(But) people find new ways like with the Xerox machines, with the TV, with video cameras and it all expands the idea of what a painting is.”

While art has consistently adapted to change, some technological advancements pose new challenges. One of the most debated is artificial intelligence.

“I think our understanding is a little dangerous, that’s changing about art. I don’t think AI is art. I think it’s a crime,” said Akaela Flotho, another graduate  from the Museum and Exhibition studies graduate program at UIC.

Mecklenburger agrees.

“I’m like an artist in my own personal practice, but it’s like, you’re not an artist if you make something using generative AI,” Mecklenburger said. “You’re just not. You’re using artists’ work to make something else.”

The rise of AI-generated art has sparked widespread debate, with concerns over its ethical implications and impact on artists. Many artists have differing opinions about AI, specifically on whether it should be considered “real art” or not.

“That’s an example of a tool that exists that I think is causing a lot of harm currently to artists,” Mecklenburger said. “But I do think it’s something that in the future, if it’s regulated, it could become a really interesting thing.”

Mecklenburger referenced a painting in MCA’s exhibition by Siebren Versteeg titled “A Rose.”

The painting is an ongoing painting that is inspired by Jay Defeo’s work, which grew en masse over eight years. Unlike Defeo’s work, this painting was created using software authored by Versteeg.

“That artist was playing around to see how close tech can come to looking like actual human expression painting. So that is one of those aspects of that where I feel like you’ve got an artist who’s using it very much as a tool to create something new,” Mecklenburger said. “Versus a Coca-Cola commercial where it’s just ripping off all the swaths of information on the internet.”

AI remains controversial — some still have hope that it could positively impact art in the future,  but in a way that some feel technology already has. Technology allowed artists like Leib to explore the medium where they previously could not.

“Very formal paintings used to be very sealed off from the general public … ,” Leib said. “I remember messing around with MS Paint (Microsoft Paint) as a kid in elementary school and stuff when I didn’t have access to oils.”

While technology continues to influence art, Leib and others say painting remains resilient, constantly evolving and reinventing itself in response to new technological advancements.

“As long as there’s going to be humans painting, you’re going to get unique paintings,” Mecklenburger said. “That’s the beauty of art, and part of why I love it so much.”

Editor’s Note: A previous version of this story incorrectly stated that Siebren Versteeg’s work was created using AI. In fact, the painting was created using a software developed by Versteeg. This error has been corrected. 

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