In my last article there was a lack of horses, a tragic thing that must be rectified. As such, and by a turn of fate, this article pertains to our majestic pacers themselves.
I’m sure most of you have social media and have seen the Marywood Instagram recently. Being engaged in creating an oil painting at the time, I was blissfully unaware of what had been posted on the university’s blog.1 That was until a friend of mine showed me the post and asked for my opinion.
The Instagram post in question was a short clip of the pacer horse statue that was unveiled earlier this school year, as it stood on hind legs and posed dramatically. However something was off. This video was AI.
Initially the video was published with this simple description:
“Always moving forward, rising to every challenge, and embracing change with strength, the Pacer leads the way. 🐎💚”2
But after many comments from keen-eyed viewers, the description changed, now it includes this little note;
“Here is a video created by one of our art students using AI. As a University, we believe that preparing students for the real world means teaching them how to use the tools shaping it, not pretending those tools don’t exist.
AI isn’t a replacement for human creativity, it is yet another tool. Just like cameras didn’t replace painters, and computers didn’t replace designers, AI is just one of many emerging technologies that are constantly expanding what artists can do.”
And I, dear reader, do not agree with this statement. However, in the spirit of being positive, I will start with what this response does correctly. AI will not replace people.3
This sentiment is the one thing that I can agree with in this.
As an artist, and one who has been personally victimized by AI in the past, I have strong opinions about the subject. However, I understand that not everyone does, and I understand that not everyone really understands AI for what it is. So…
Let’s Talk AI
Imagine, if you will, a bakery where everyone makes their own unique cake, each individual baker has their own regulars that come just for their specific baked goods. Until one day a new baker comes in, but instead of making their own cake, this new baker waits until their co-workers are finished with their cakes and takes a slice from each to mosh together in a Frankenstein’s monster mash of a cake and presents the cake as his own creation. Regulars of the bakery may be able to tell this cake isn’t something they come in for, but new customers instead might be intrigued by this cake that seemingly has everything they love from other bakers and buy it anyway rewarding this theft. This doesn’t seem fair to the bakers who worked hard to make a signature cake, when someone who blatantly stole from them and the other bakers is getting the same if not more notoriety than the real baker. Now replace the cakes and bakers with art and artists, and the new ‘baker’ as someone who uses AI to create ‘art’. Suddenly it seems like a bigger problem, doesn’t it?
As, our video description stated, AI is a tool. I personally believe that AI is more of a thneed4, but for the sake of the argument let’s keep calling it a tool.
Assuming that AI is a tool. What is a tool and does AI really qualify for that label? My beloved dictionary of choice, Merriam-Webster5, gives a few definitions, of which these are the closest to fitting;
- a handheld device that aids in accomplishing a task
- something (such as an instrument or apparatus) used in performing an operation or necessary in the practice of a vocation or profession
- an element of a computer program (such as a graphics application) that activates and controls a particular function
The first definition could fit, if we replace “aid” with “completes the task for you”. The second doesn’t fit at all, AI is not necessary for any vocations or professions. AI doesn’t control or activate any particular function, you the user still need to tell it to do things.
But sure, let’s still call it a tool, that much is true enough. However, if we are treating it like any tool, then we must acknowledge that, tools, if used correctly can benefit everyone. And if used poorly it brings nothing but harm.
AI is one such tool that is used poorly. One of the most popular commercial uses of AI is for image generation, many companies and people market these services as a quick way to make art accessible6 for everyone in a fast, convenient prompt entry queue.
What they don’t say is where the program sources its ‘reference’ images, very few of the image generating software are fed with the original artists permission, which is normally considered theft. To get around such legality and occasional copyright laws, companies, such as DeviantArt7 and Adobe8 will change their terms of service agreements to allow AI scrubbers to fill their data banks with anything and everything on the sites without any real permission from their users. (These acts have since been turned over or changed due to user backlash, but that doesn’t mean it didn’t happen).
However, this isn’t just confined to image generation, while AI is incredibly useful in correcting spelling and grammar when writing, it is not a replacement for actual human writing. Many students and even some ‘authors’ disagree. It is incredibly easy to plug in the essay prompt into chatbots such as ChatGPT and have the entire essay completed in minutes instead of the hours it would take otherwise.
Plagiarism aside, this results in students without the capability to write out their point of view or complete reports without cheating. Unfortunately lazy students aren’t the only people looking for a shortcut.
With the rise of AI a special breed of writers has slunk out of their mother’s basement to show the world their hard work: series of entirely AI generated novels. This genre of stories are often sold on Amazon9 alongside and with similar appearance to real novels. Not only is this method of writing very much walking the line of plagiarism, as AI writing software will leave in complete paragraphs of the source text. These novels lack soul and exist as pale imitation of human creativity.
AI has become more and more prevalent in this modern day, while not inherently a bad thing as AI has many uses that can benefit the general public, not everyone uses it for the good of others. The poor use of AI is especially abundant in artist circles as their livelihoods and hobbies are replaced with a stolen product. As technology advances it gets harder and harder for those not in these circles to determine if a product is AI generated or not. Sometimes, even if the poster is forthcoming with their use of AI, the general public doesn’t care. This apathy only leads to more use of generators and more new artists questioning weather its worth pursuing art at all. Even if art holds no place in your life and reading is a chore, ask yourself: Would you rather have a homemade cake from someone who truly loves their craft or a cheap, stolen imitation?
AI is theft, but if art theft isn’t a concern for you, maybe the environment is.
Ouroboros: Environment and Impact
The ancients had a symbol, one that represented eternity, life, death, and rebirth. A snake eating its tail, devouring the same thing over and over in a sick cannibalistic cycle. It eats and eats and eats, but by now the food is spoiled, there’s nothing left, nothing but the slop that came out of it. So, it turns to that slop and keeps consuming. That, my friends, is what AI is.
It eats the slop it calls art and uses it to generate more slop. But for a moment let’s turn to the real world, not only is AI eating all the art that we humans put out and it’s own waste, it happens to be eating up real world resources as well.
Since I am no expert on the more science related sides of things, I turned to Dr. John Harrold to give me a brief overview of the subject;
“It is a little complicated. While massive server farms use energy, water for cooling, and require manufacturing, the same can be said for simple google searches, even manufacturing of pencils. So it’s kind of hard to compare apples to apples. The water usage argument is a little weak when put into context. However the overall energy usage is putting a large strain on the local communities and the grid as a whole. We actually just had someone from my energy group do a presentation on the impacts of the increased server farms in northern VA10. While yes, it’s an increase in the local resources, it’s not quite as much as some other arguments. There are more general health effects than just environmental. I suppose humans are also part of the environment so it’s relevant. Suffice to say that servers that do much more than just AI are having an impact, but AI is responsible for much of the increase in server construction.”
What he said boils down to data centers are the problem, which aren’t necessarily AI, but due to AI more data centers are in demand.
And where there is demand, there is the issue of where to build. Environmental Science student here at Marywood, Anna Rinehimer, tells me that her family’s generational farm sits on land where these companies are eager to set up shop.
Corporations are offering large sums of money per acre to local farmers to entice them to sell. However, as it often is in works of fiction and real life alike, if a corporation wants you to sell, it’s hardly for a reason that benefits the land owners.
The same is true in this case. As Rinehimer informed me these data centers are dangerously polluting the environment with forever chemicals1, which could in turn effect other farms or homesteads in the area, even if they choose not to sell.
Still, to get a clearer picture of what these dangerous effects are, I spoke with Environmental Specialist Alison Stidworthy, who explained the following to me.
As stated prior, “AI” is not what’s harming the environment, that wonderful burden lies on the data centers. Data centers being large buildings that house processors. However big you think those computers are, think bigger.
And with a bigger computer, comes a bigger need for energy. The processor chips used in data centers require a lot more energy than the chips the average Jane and Joe use in their computers, enough energy that a single data center would have to have it’s own power plant.
This, however, is not happening… Instead data centers are using emergency generators as their main power source.
Stidworthy explained to me that, if the companies were actually building the required power plants, it would be better for the environment, as natural gas power plants have control devices that are meant to limit the amount of pollution from them. Emergency generators do not have these fail safes, since they are meant to be used in emergencies and short bursts until the main power is restored, there is no reason for such fail safes.
If you’ve been on Twitter, or X as it is now known, then you’ll know of Grok. For those unaware, as I was, unfortunately Grok is not a gimmick account pretending to be a caveman fascinated by the modern world, and is, instead, an AI.
An AI whose data center near Memphis is causing quite a bit of negative effects on the community. In essence, Grok’s colossal amount of emissions are drastically impacting the air quality and causing dangerous amounts of NOx to be released11. “NOx” stands for Nitrogen oxides and is a group of highly reactive gases, composed of Nitrogen and Oxygen and is quite detrimental to the environment and those in it, such as;
- Respiratory Problems: Exposure to NOx can irritate the respiratory system, causing coughing, wheezing, and difficulty breathing. Long-term exposure can worsen asthma, bronchitis, and other respiratory conditions, particularly in children and individuals with pre-existing respiratory conditions.
- Acid Rain: NOx plays a crucial role in the formation of acid rain, a phenomenon resulting from the interaction of NOx and sulfur dioxide (SO2) with water vapor in the atmosphere. Acid rain damages forests, lakes, and streams, altering ecosystems and harming aquatic life.
- Ground-Level Ozone: NOx undergoes complex chemical reactions with other pollutants, such as volatile organic compounds (VOCs), in the presence of sunlight to form ground-level ozone. This harmful pollutant damages vegetation, reduces crop yields, and can cause respiratory problems, including asthma attacks, chest pain, and coughing. 12
Or even more locally, in Salem Township PA, a data center is being built2 which has 53 mobile generators that all run on diesel.3
With all this risk and negativity surrounding these types of energy use, it’s no surprise that some companies are looking to move to an emission free alternative. Specifically, nuclear.
Now, nuclear energy is not as scary as it’s reputation. In fact, nuclear power plants work about the same as every other power plant. They heat water to turn a fan, only this time it’s with a controlled reaction.13
The problem with nuclear power is when it’s no longer controlled. The most famous of these occurrences is of course, the Ukrainian plant, Chernobyl. However, you may be unaware that there was one melt down seven years earlier and 4,512 miles closer.
Three Mile Island, located in our very own Londonderry Township, PA, and about 128 miles from campus, had a partial melt down in 1979. While not as bad as the aforementioned Chernobyl disaster, Three Mile Island was and remains the worst meltdown in United States History.14
Why do I mention this? Simple. Microsoft plans on restarting Three Mile Island as early as next year to power their AI data centers.15
Naturally, people are hesitant about this and for good reason. We still don’t know everything about radiation and the complicated matter of the half-life of the materials there makes reopening the plant seem just plan stupid. I can’t deny agreeing with this opinion.
Additionally, I am of the opinion that if we were to reopen Three Mile Island it should be for the benefit of the people and as we’ve hopefully established, data centers are not benefiting people.
Stidworthy ended the interview with a potent line that I feel neatly recaps everything;
“If you take care of the environment, you take care of people.”
What About People?
Every generation has had its thing, right? From stone tablets to parchment to chalk to whiteboards to paper to computers, everything is always changing and there are those who are stuck in their ways resisting it.
Usually the younger generations embrace this change and mock those “boomers” for being so old fashioned, but strangely this isn’t really happening with AI. Old and young alike are embracing it with only those in the effected fields resisting the sudden shift.
I find this concerning, but everywhere I look seeks to soothe those concerns with a simple “Cameras didn’t replace painters and computers didn’t replace designers”16.
I can’t say this has the intended effect on me. Instead it feels like my concerns and opinions on the subject are being trivialized.
However, in the spirit of fairness, I will take what these CEOs are saying and look at it critically. I know, I’m an artist, but let’s play surgeon and dissect this statement;
“Cameras didn’t replace painters”
True. Cameras didn’t replace painters at all. Cameras capture moments and photography is all about how best to seal away that moment in time. You have to work with what either exists in nature or what you can put together for a scene. You cannot photograph something that isn’t there.17
Painting however does not abide by those limitations. It is very easy to paint something that isn’t there and quite a bit harder to paint something that is. I would wager that the vast majority of paintings aren’t capturing moments, they capture feelings, stories, but not truly moments. Church frescoes with their rolling Italian hills in Bible stories, and ancient paintings depict animals in ways that would make sense to them but now cause debate as to which shape is which; such things aren’t what can be photographed and not just because the subject and cameras didn’t exist at the same time.
A painted mural and a big photograph on a wall are two very different things and it would be unfair to both art forms to call painting a less developed form of photography18
“Computers didn’t replace designers”
Which is also true, digital art became another medium for artists to play with.
“But!” you may say, “What makes AI not another new medium for artists to use?”
What makes AI not a new medium is that it’s nothing new. AI cannot create something new, it cannot create, period.
AI is a misleading name, as it is not intelligent, nor is it sentient. What AI is, is pattern recognition. It is coded to identify and replicate these patterns to the specifications of the user. To do this it takes pre-existing media.
Digital art on the other hand, still needs the user to make everything, assuming they aren’t engaging in plagiarism, of course. The artist software uses a variety of things to imitate how mark making would occur on paper or in other traditional mediums and frankly it’s a little beyond me. All this coding stuff is fascinating, and I am so grateful that it’s accessible since I would not be able to do any of it.19
The ‘Can Computers Create Art?’20 series by one Aaron Hertzmann explains many of these things far better than I feel I have done here and I encourage you to give the series or his larger academic paper a read to get a more complete understanding of the subject.
Why The Horse Matters
You may be thinking, why in a sea of AI out there, why does this one matter?
And to that I say; This one matters because we can do something about it. We’re not allowed to use AI in our portfolios, so why are we allowing it represent our school?
I admit, that with large scale AI we are pretty powerless, boycotts only work if everyone participates in not participating. And it’s pretty safe to say that’s not going to happen.
I can’t stop people from using ChatGPT to write their essays, I can’t take a sledgehammer to the mainframe. But what I can do is speak out here on campus. We can speak out here on campus.
And people are speaking out! Alex Schlosser, a student here, started a Change.org petition which has garnered quite a number of signatures.21
Art is the deliberate act of creation, a computer can’t do that. You can. So what if you can only draw a stick figure? You made that, you choose to make it. Start making it! Start making bad art, keep at it! Show everyone that AI isn’t going to snuff out our creative flame, show them that no matter how “bad” it might be it’s still art and that is one multiplujillion, nine obsquatumatillion, six hundred twenty-three and sixty-two times better than letting a computer do it for us.
The artists here on campus are eager to show off their work, so let them. Encourage us to keep creating, even if you think it’s terrible, even if it’s hard. Help us paint the future, not have it painted for us.
Our Horse
To help fight this I have reached out far and wide across campus and asked for any and all drawings of the pacer horse, they didn’t have to be “good” or 3D or anything in particular, except human made.
I would like to share with you every horse I have received, some of which have been featured already in the article and I would like to thank everyone who drew a horse with me.
Some horses are colored, some are just pencil sketches, some are cartoons, some are jokes, one particularly determined person even went to far as to animate it!22 But one thing they all share is being authentic, not just authentically human, but authentic to the spirit of this school. Let’s keep setting this pace with community, yeah?
1 Are they still called blogs in the year of our lord 2026? [Editor’s note: in this context, it’s a social media feed or profile or posts]
2 https://www.instagram.com/reel/DU1KJRukjDK/?igsh=eXY0cHBtejNoMHRl
3 Though I will invite you to notice that no student was named or credited in the original posting or after its updated remarks
4 Source: The Lorax by Dr. Suess.
5 https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/tool
6 Art has always been accessible, and if you need proof, Here: https://www.jhrehab.org/2016/11/30/matisse-innovation-in-the-face-of-physical-limitations// in fact, check out the entire site if you are so inclined.
7 https://www.creativebloq.com/news/deviantart-dreamup-ai
8 https://www.reddit.com/r/AdobeIllustrator/comments/1cwryan/adobe_new_terms_of_service_is_nuts_they_will/
9 https://www.npr.org/2024/03/13/1237888126/growing-number-ai-scam-books-amazon
- 1https://www.msn.com/en-us/science/environmental-science/concerns-raised-about-forever-chemicals-in-data-centers/ar-AA1S1BDe ↩︎
- https://www.pa.gov/agencies/oto/fasttrack/salemtownshipdatacenterdevelopment ↩︎
- Anna Rinehimer ↩︎
10 https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/climate/articles/10.3389/fclim.2026.1648912/full
11 https://time.com/7308925/elon-musk-memphis-ai-data-center/
12 https://www.cecoenviro.com/understanding-and-mitigating-nox-emissions-a-comprehensive-guide/
13 https://www.iaea.org/newscenter/news/what-is-nuclear-energy-the-science-of-nuclear-power
14 https://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/doc-collections/fact-sheets/3mile-isle
15 https://penncapital-star.com/economy/microsoft-describes-three-mile-island-plant-as-a-once-in-a-lifetime-opportunity/
16 https://finance.yahoo.com/news/generative-ai-won-t-kill-165313935.html , https://fortune.com/2023/10/10/adobe-exec-says-generative-ai-wont-kill-graphic-design-jobs-like-cameras-painting/ , https://www.businessinsider.com/ai-wont-kill-creative-jobs-camera-didnt-kill-paintings-adobe-2023-10
17 Photoshop and CGI are added in later and as such cannot be captured by a camera. These are different art forms or at least different subcategories of photography.
18 Star Wars uses painted stills to create illusions, which is a fantastic example of each medium working together to complement each other.
19 For those of you who are technologically inclined, the art program Krita’s source code is entirely open to the public and can be found here!
20 https://medium.com/@aaronhertzmann/how-photography-became-an-art-form-7b74da777c63
21The petition can be found here, and the document with the concerns of the students can be found here