In the heart of a bustling cultural landscape, a revolution is taking place. As rising technologies meet traditional art forms, the art scene in Shanghai is undergoing a unique metamorphosis. Artificial Intelligence (AI) not only redefines creativity but also challenges conventional modes of artistic expression. By immersing ourselves in the crossroads of AI and art, we can explore how this fusion is altering the cultural identity of Shanghai.

This artistic revolution has no clear starting point, but has gained wide popularity in recent years. Sites for other immersive, otherworldly experiences like teamlab.art showcase art made by international art collectives, while adding cultural flair to the varying sites of their exhibitions, which span from Shanghai to Silicon Valley. What makes the Digital Art scene in Shanghai especially intriguing though, is the city’s eccentric technological take on art as a whole.

With the increased involvement of AI in artistic spaces, the artists being showcased are more diverse. The art scene in Shanghai had previously been promoting media that is ‘particularly Chinese.’ We now witness a rapidly diversifying pool of artists being showcased, coming from all corners of the world. The expansion of cultural representation in Shanghai’s art scene furthers the distinctiveness of the city’s scene compared to others, while also altering it in unique ways. In November 2023, West Bund Art & Design hosted its largest event to date, which had a 50/50 split between international and local participants and showcased a wide array of artistic genres. While AI as a lone entity is making headlines and drawing people to artistic species, it also affects many other aspects of the artistic scene in Shanghai, as it allows artists to engage in spaces that have previously been limited due to distance.

Anna Greenspan, media scholar and Interactive Media Arts professor at NYU Shanghai has a unique perspective. She shares, “[These] new generative models are really quite astounding in terms of what they can do, in producing images and video now. I think what artists do is kind of try to probe this space of what it is then humans can do with these machines.” As the capabilities of AI are further discovered and coded to perform different tasks, the world of art will continue to evolve as a separate but related entity. What will art look like in the future? Are internet sensations like NFTs a precursor to a new world of art? Greenspan suggests that AI’s prevalence in the realm of art may be just another trend that follows the same trajectory of every hot new topic. It will take over the internet, then overtime dwindle in relevance, slowly becoming the norm. However, she equates the “trend” of AI to computers and video phonography, referencing how people may not have thought that these technological developments would be as big as they are now. 

Regardless of how one may feel about AI in general, it is here, and it doesn’t seem to be going away. It is finding its way into many aspects of our life. The art scene in Shanghai specifically can be used as a model or a precursor to what the future of art may be. The integration of generative technologies in many ways spark human creativity, and create new artistic outlets. 

As AI continues to permeate artistic spaces, we may expect to experience an artistic and technological renaissance. We can see it through new and innovative exhibitions and immersive experiences throughout the city of Shanghai, and all over the world. Shanghai’s position as a techno-capital and artistic hub breeds anticipation for what may come next as these two realms continue to bleed into each other. The increase in artist representation, the blending of artistic genres, and the melding of cultures are only the beginning. As AI continues to develop, we will undoubtedly see it shape the art scene in many ways, with the techno-capital of Shanghai being one of the first to witness it.