As I see it

...manifesting itself in the form of artificial intelligence.  While developments such as self-driving cars, facial recognition software, and voice assistants have steadily advanced in recent years, the emergence of computer programs capable of generating poetry, music, and images of indistinguishable quality from human creation represents an entirely new paradigm shift—particularly to me. Throughout my life, I've nurtured a dream of becoming a songwriter or an art photographer, dedicating countless years to honing my skills in these disciplines. Now, a child who can merely switch on a computer, without the need to read or write, can generate poetry, music, and imagery by instructing a voice assistant. This realization is both liberating and disconcerting. While it makes me somewhat relieved that I didn't wholeheartedly pursue my creative dreams, it also underscores the unsettling thought that the knowledge I've accumulated over decades may now be rendered obsolete....

...or how a Chris de Burgh album cover helped me come up with the idea for a self-portrait Despite my fascination with conceptual photography as well as the art of compositing images, I rarely create such myself. In 2020 however, I had the idea for a picture in which I would be playing chess against myself. The inspiration probably came from the surrealistic cover of Chris de Burgh's " Best Moves " album, a stylized 'double portrait' of CdB that has always been a favourite of mine. It took me a while to figure out how to get the "opponent" version of myself reach his hand out of that mirror. Looking at this self-portrait today, I can' t really interpret my facial expression, but I like the overall result . What do you think?   See more of my works on my website www.robertmarcusklump.com