Have people lost their creativity

I started this as a rant but stepped back a bit.

Have you noticed that people aren’t as creative as you remember when you were younger?
Do you think social media has played a big part, where people are just spoon fed stuff and they copy it, and never put their own spin on things?

I’ve noticed there are a few creators/influencers that are incredible. There are so many copycats, and when I say copycats I mean literally copying every single thing. I think about my own small world. I come from an incredibly artistic/creative family. We are getting copied all the time and it’s so blatant sometimes. My husband assures me it’s because I have really unique touches and people can’t think for themselves so they want to imitate. I’m seeing the same with my kids, and how their friend are emulating them. It happened today, something unique I did in my yard was copied exactly by one of my neighbors.

I think art, music, wood shop, home, foods class ect, played a huge role in my love for the arts. Some schools no longer provide those classes, and we know they aren’t getting it at home either. I think this has translated into adults that don’t know how to listen to their own voice, so they copy or have to receive “instruction” from others on how to live, which encompasses their house, their dress, their hair, their music….and so much more.

I think this has much bigger implications, this slides towards a communist type of mindset. We’ve even heard the term coined “hive mind”, don’t “gatekeep”. It is thought to be bad to keep a unique style, art, your own these days..

Everytime I see a "trend" in whatever form of social media..this is what I think. People are just dumbed down so much, they cannot be original/creative on their own, without being led by the nose.

People look to social media for entertainment as well, instead of getting off your ass and doing something, they have their nose in the phone.

originally posted by: vonclod
Everytime I see a "trend" in whatever form of social media..this is what I think. People are just dumbed down so much, they cannot be original/creative on their own, without being led by the nose.

People look to social media for entertainment as well, instead of getting off your ass and doing something, they have their nose in the phone.

A perfect example of this is that people will not buy an antique but instead get a cheap reproduction of that antique AND pay more for it to decorate their house with. The reproduction does not have the utility capabilities or the unique craftsmanship of the antique.

I see this all the time.

I actually had someone argue with me on social media because they believed something I had was lasercut because a lot of people can’t differentiate actual craftsmanship anymore…

a reply to: JAGStorm

"Artificially"..."Intelligently"..sadly. Hv a good 1, J.

originally posted by: mysterioustranger
a reply to: JAGStorm

"Artificially"..."Intelligently"..sadly. Hv a good 1, J.

I played around with AI art, and what’s in my head is a lot better.
Maybe for people that don’t have a creative mind AI is great for translating what they are looking for.

a reply to: JAGStorm

All creativity is in danger of coming to a screeching halt. Thanks to ChatGPT and the likes.

Why take the time and energy to create, when you can just ask ChatGPT?

originally posted by: NightSkyeB4Dawn
a reply to: JAGStorm

All creativity is in danger of coming to a screeching halt. Thanks to ChatGPT and the likes.

Why take the time and energy to create, when you can just ask ChatGPT?

I’ve seen some cool things done with AI art, but they all have something missing. The human touch shouldn’t be underestimated. There is beauty in flaws, in brushstrokes, in carving marks. Some of the most beautiful things on earth come from mistakes. (Yes people too) hopefully AI won’t dictate that in the future, who you can or can’t mate with!

I must agree with you from my creative perspective. I play D&D and othe table-top role-playing games. The current holder of the d&d trademark just keeps recycling ideas from thirty years ago. The difference is their brand of rules and the add-on of current politically correct thinking. The old " we must change this gender because of representation." Once upon a time these types of games dealt with some mature themes. Slavery, absolute evil and even absolute good all themes that require a mature mindset, but not anymore. They have infested fantasy with too much real-world baggage. I even had a conversation about those w/one of my players last night. Too many people need their hands held on how to play a game that should be all on the individual. How to play this race or this class articles are all over the net. All it does in my experience is stifle the individuals creativity. The assumption gets made that it's the official way to play this race or this class, ignoring the fact that individual Dungeonmasters or what not have their own versions that make these "official" articles a drag. Some races may be evil because of a societal choice to worship evil things like demons, but the way its all framed now they made it into politically correct "no race (species) is completely evil." It takes the potential heroism of one of those races bucking the norms of their society and makes into nothing. I know this is a rant that may not make any sense to those who don't play any of these kind of games or have only played for a short time but it is an issue I see with many other forms of media, like movies.

I wouldn't think that this ever was different? With every new medium we 'play' with like the invention of the opera, theater, cinema, books... you got a couple of really good contemporary explorers of that medium and a lot of people who'd love to be but are just participants.
You know 'talent'? It's when the stuff you make is just better than the average can make and you can tell because it speaks to more people.
That's not new. And not a scary sign of change.

a reply to: JAGStorm

Yes..

When you read a book its much more likely to spark thought, because you have to envision everything that you are reading.

When you look on a screen everything is spoon fed to you, and you stop trying to figure out another way for something to occur your brain follows the path laid out by whoever controls the information flow.

With the loss of creativity I think you also lose critical thinking.

originally posted by: JAGStorm

originally posted by: mysterioustranger
a reply to: JAGStorm

"Artificially"..."Intelligently"..sadly. Hv a good 1, J.

I played around with AI art, and what’s in my head is a lot better.
Maybe for people that don’t have a creative mind AI is great for translating what they are looking for.

Hi, as a graphic artist with a lifetime of creative experience I have to say that A.I. art in my opinion is a TOOL, not able to create anything on it's own. It is absolutely dependant on input from a third party. Results reflect this across the board.

As a technical artist, I have found it useful to bridge the gap between imagination and the real world where the results can be shared. I am currently in the process of having work printed as an experiment to see how I CAN USE "IT" to share things that give pleasure to others.

I have used a phrase for many things over the years and it goes like this...

"It's not what you do to a mind but the mind you do it to".

Anyone can create images using programmes like "midjourney", but to hone those images with the creative imput (prompts) and end up with something truly amazing takes time and creative skill to understand how to get the best from the source.

I do agree however, that many people have become ignorant and lazy with their minds due to the need for instant gratification, something that seems to have shaped individuals from outside sources and a desire for satisfaction the easy way. It is short lived and affords no real connection to the self as the source.

We also mustn't forget that A.I. can also afford those with little creative abilities the chance to have fun and a sense of achievement where there was little opportunity before.

Time is all that is needed to find an "even keel" with things like this, and similar to things like Photoshop and Autocad, once the benefits are more widespread, the standards will be accepted more and the fear and/or resentment will dissipate to fit in with everyday life.

Imagine how many resources and how much time can be saved in designing a personal flying craft that still holds some of the wonderful aesthetics we can enjoy as creative thinkers who perhaps struggle with the technical paths that must be travelled to accomlish those sort of goals.

An early "Midjourney" creation that helped inspire me to dig deeper into the unfolding world of these kind of things...


Anything that inspires anything in a positive way is a good thing in my book.

Cheers.

a reply to: JAGStorm

I think people are afraid to be themselves. Do one, tiny thing wrong and the thought police come for you. So everyone copies everyone else. If it's already out there, then it's usually safe.

Once people stifle, creativity goes.

a reply to: JAGStorm

I think people are just stupid.

See my avatar.

originally posted by: ketsuko
a reply to: JAGStorm

I think people are afraid to be themselves. Do one, tiny thing wrong and the thought police come for you. So everyone copies everyone else. If it's already out there, then it's usually safe.

Once people stifle, creativity goes.

I think this is a big part of it. There is so much pressure to fit in. I just hate that.
I used to work in a very high end designer type of showroom.

The ultra rich would pick things that were conventionally “ugly”, because it was what they really like, the colors, the textures etc.

The poor would pick “safe” choices.

The middle class wanting to portray wealth would pick the most awful of them all, because what they thought was expensive looking, and what really portrayed wealth was very different. You can see that with fashion too, like Louis Vuitton purses etc. UGLY!

a reply to: JAGStorm

I was stunned to find this out Jagstorm the vast majority of people have no inner monalogue or inner voice , I also have a annoying neighbour who copies everything I do I go out in the garden and work and he is out shortly after , I put on a radio station while I am out that is easy going but he plays mad Jethro Tull type stuff or heavy metal and he is 60+ .

One thing I notice nobody copies is my impression of forest gump ..

If I see a local garden that the grass needs cut in I just go in and cut it for the he'll of it and nobody moans yip nobody does mine I did 4 neighbours gardens last week , in one garden alone I filled 2 packed down brown bins 600 plus litres of grass , I have cleaned all their gutters out as well last year and started on the ones with bushes growing onto the footpaths today , ain't no one copying that

a reply to: JAGStorm

Have people lost their creativity

I helped produce a film for a festival...this one.

www.48hourfilm.com...

It was a pleasure and an honor to work with such a fantastic group of talented, hardworking, dedicated, content providers/artists/actors/crew/editors/musicians/volunteers. No prize money....just doing it to make art and for the experience.

I guess some people don't consider film/video creative. Even social media needs to be created by someone and it takes work!!

a reply to: JAGStorm


" Have people lost their creativity "


Yes , and Some have even also LOST Their Sense of Humor .

Have people lost their creativity

Read the Short Story contest offerings here on ATS... and tell me that's not creative.


www.abovetopsecret.com...

You got a point there JAGStorm...

AI does resembles a communist system in some respects. On platforms like Midjourny, for instance, intellectual property appears to be collectively owned, and freely available for anyone to utilize and imitate.

Note:
No need for individuality, clothes designers are already using Ai... Soon we'll have the same clothes and the same thoughts!!!😂

a reply to: JAGStorm

I blame it partly on schools and partly on social media.

Schools stopped teaching people how to think, reason, and learn, and started teaching all kinds of other crap that squelches individualism and creativity in favor of indoctrination and reciting memorized data to pass a test. They also took out the majority of classes that required creativity and ingenuity. I don't think shop classes even exist any more. Its a shame.

Social media has created a generation of watchers rather than doers. Why figure out how to do something for yourself when you can google it? Learning and creativity have been replaced by convenience and a consumer mentality.