Works using AI, 2019 - Present
Travis LeRoy Southworth became interested in the possibility of using artificial intelligence in his work shortly after he participated in an artist residency in Switzerland, that involved a project with the Large Hadron Collider at CERN in 2013. It was here Southworth became inspired by the colliding of subatomic particles to find hidden ones. Later that same year he wrote a proposal about the possibility of ‘colliding’ different types of digital images to form new ones, predicting the development of GAN imagery. At the time, however, when Southworth tried to generate interest in the proposal, there was little understanding of how such an idea could be realized—or even where to begin. It wasn’t until several years later that Southworth focused more on neural networks in 2018 and directly integrating machine learning in his practice in 2019. He was also one of the first artists to create work on SuperRare in 2018 and helped beta test Playform 2019. He was also using Runway ML in 2020, Midjourney, ChatGPT and Dall-E in early 2022.
Below of are some projects Southworth has created with the use of AI tools.
Thresholds, 2019 - 2023
Thresholds is a series of three projects of digital artworks created through GANs (Generative Adversarial Networks) and later on with the addition of my own computerized brush strokes. I use the word 'threshold' as it can be a boundary or a starting point of an experience. I like its connection to the words 'thresh,'meaning "to separate seed from a plant using a machine" and 'thrash,' meaning "to beat soundly or go over again and again." Link to project
New Beginnings, Old Endings, Secrets Secreting, 2019-20
JPEG: Just Poetic Electronic Glitches, 2021
JPEG: Just Poetic Electronic Glitches is a series of 24 images, where the familiar acronym 'JPEG' is reimagined into various creative phrases. Each unique wording serves as a prompt for an early text-to-image AI to generate pixelated visuals. Link to project
Algorithmic Ennui, 2022
In dialogue with John Baldessari’s 1971 seminal conceptual piece “I Will Not Make Any More Boring Art,” Travis LeRoy Southworth’s Algorithmic Ennui (I Will No Longer Make Boring AI Art) shifts the performative task of repetitive writing from human to machine, challenging notions of authorship, intent, and the aesthetics of boredom versus beauty Southworth outsources his slighly altered phrase to an early text-to-image generative artificial intelligence program, prompting the algorithm to endlessly simulate handwriting within notebook pages. Yet, as the AI system repeatedly fails at literal replication—generating scrambled phrases such as “I Art Longer,” “AI Not Me” and “I Will No Longer Art Or AI”—it produces moments of accidental poetry and mesmerizing abstraction. Link to project
Terms of Service, 2022
Terms of Service is a series of introspective text-based artworks surrounding existence, labor and value. The artist Travis LeRoy Southworth uses computer programs, not just as a tool but as an entity with which he attempts to outsource personal grief and contemplation through ‘artificially intelligent' software and machine drawn messages. Each piece exists a physically machine plotted drawing. Black and white plots are created on letter-sized paper, suggesting the possibility to be physically mailed, in hopes to initiate further communication. Link to project
REVELATIONS, 2022
REVELATIONS is a series of 256 works by Travis LeRoy Southworth that explores moments of quiet absurdity to existential crisis linked to the growing marketplace of algorithms and artistic production. Southworth uses text and image to reveal shifting sentiments and further question how the tools we use attribute to digital identity and social relationships. Link to project
Origins, 2023
Origins is series of AI generated artworks by Travis LeRoy Southworth that bridge ancient human expressions and contemporary digital communication. Drawing inspiration from Argentina's Cueva de las Manos, where prehistoric handprints serve as age-old testaments of human existence, Southworth crafts a series of works delve into the primal and symbolic nature of caves, mirroring our evolving journey into the digital realm. Southworth employs a combination of portraiture and color field images as the foundation of each work, feeding these into a Generative Adversarial Network (GAN). From these ‘under-paintings’ the artist further employs an array of AI algorithms to shape each work. At first glimpse each cave appears still, but then slowly starts shift, seeming to breathe and have a life of its own. Link to project
The Revenant, 2024
The Revenant: Sovereign Portraits for a Faceless Future is a series of 476 animated works by Travis LeRoy Southworth. This collection delves into the themes of identity, resurgence, and the enduring nature of bitcoin and digital art amidst a backdrop of repeated dismissals and skepticism. Drawing inspiration from his engagement with machine learning technologies since 2018, Southworth utilizes synthetic photography (A.I. text-to-image prompting) to craft the portraits that symbolize a future where identities are ambiguous and fluid. These portraits are set against a vague, cloud-like milieu, embodying both the universal and the anonymous. Shrouded in a thick, swirling mist, they resist easy recognition, mirroring the enigmatic character of digital identities and the fleeting attention given to cryptocurrencies. Link to project
Omnia Ludens, 2024
Omnia Ludens—a poetic translation from Latin for “Everything in Play”—is a reflection on authenticity and artifice in the age of image creation and artificial intelligence. In this project Southworth seeks out the essence of AI diffusion models, which are trained on vast image datasets. His process involves repurposing printer test images—those ubiquitous mosaics of generic photographs, colors and shapes designed to maintain color accuracy—into AI prompts to generate new works. This intersection of mechanical reproduction and neural network appropriation reflects a new paradigm where anything imaginable can be manifested. Link to project
Artifacts, 2025
Artifacts is aseries of abstract works by Travis LeRoy Southworth. “Artifacts” is composed of 3:4 portrait sized fragments, merging human intention with machine-learning distortions in a symbolic interplay of form and error. Southworth chose the word ‘artifact’ due to its multi-layered meaning; from an object shaped by human craft to a distortion produced by technological interference. The work is meant to echo both the creative eye of the artist and the “glitches” that arise when machines interpret reality. By embracing the possibility of inaccurate observations or unwanted features, these compositions highlight the interplay between deliberate intent and the unpredictable outcomes of AI generative algorithms. Link to project