AI is the focus of this year's art exhibition

The China Academy of Art is hosting the Fifth Zhijiang International Youth Art Festival in an effort to honor the academy's graduating students while also inspiring young artists.

The event, which runs until June 18, features both online and offline art exhibitions and shows.

"Through the festival, our aim is to develop Hangzhou into a wall-less university with a vibrant culture, capable of attracting more talented and creative young people," said Gao Shiming, president of the academy.

This year's theme is "Brain Garden," with over 3,000 exhibits and performances by 2,000 graduating students. Top art and design contributions will be presented with gold, silver and bronze prizes.

The theme "Brain Garden" evokes historical innocence, such as the Garden of Eden, Arcadia, Utopia, or Marco Polo's "Xanadu." Flowers flourish everywhere in such a never-never land, and everything seems perfect. There are no disputes or sufferings, and all living beings dwell in harmony, freedom and happiness.

Ti Gong

"A university is unquestionably a garden," Gao said. "Learning art in an academy is a journey of living with nature and growing with beauty, not just an experience of wandering in a garden."

The festival is split into two parts: offline and online. The online element is centered around the CAA Cosmos, which is an art community that permits real-time interaction between multiple individuals.

By creating their own digital identities, sharing their unique artworks, and organizing and participating in art events, users can learn, socialize and play games. In addition, the community is about to delve deeper into AI and other new technologies in order to develop a meta-social application.

The festival's opening ceremony began with an AI-generated animation titled "Oddinary," signifying that humans are at a crossroads in AI civilization. The AI garden inspires people to imagine a future in which humans and virtual reality coexist.

Invited guests wore a brainwave gadget to enable "Lianxiang," one of the show's artworks that stored brainwaves to generate a brain garden. That was the thrilling part of the opening ceremony.

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The Meta Art Academy set up the opening session by creating a virtual world through hyper-immersive, realistic audio-visual events and performances that combine art with technology and science.

Over the previous three years, alumni and staff used the COVID-19 outbreak as inspiration for their works and paintings, expressing thanks to medics and kindness toward humanity.

The pandemic that prompted deeper reflection on the global sharing of life is now over. Humans are now facing new obstacles in their digital lives.

"The year 2022 was the year of the meta universe, while the year 2023 will be the year of AI-generated content," Gao predicted. "AI, in my opinion, refers not only to artificial intelligence but also to creative intelligence. As artificial intelligence advances, humans will require more artistic intelligence.

"Human brains are now in competition with artificial intelligence. Art has evolved into a brain garden filled with devious complexities, diverging routes, endless processing capacity and limitless inventiveness. In the post-pandemic period, everyone is cultivating their own brain garden, producing a beautiful and life-filled landscape."

Zhejiang Art Museum, West Lake Gallery, West Lake Museum and Zhejiang Exhibition Hall are among the six venues hosting the offline event. The display at the Zhejiang Exhibition Hall ended on June 10, while the other venues are open until June 18.

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Venue 1: Xianghu Lake Exhibition Hall

Address: 1368 Xiangxi Rd

湘溪路1368号

Venue 2: Zhejiang Art Museum

Address: 138 Nanshan Rd

南山路138号

Venue 3: Quan Shanshi Art Center

Address: 88 Jianghan Rd

江汉路88号

Venue 4: Phoenix Creative Park

Address: 1 Chuangyi Rd

创意路1号