Curse or blessing, opportunity or threat? Artificial intelligence (AI) is hotly debated worldwide - also in the creative industries. Interested parties will find out what impact generative AI has on the work of creative professionals on Thursday, October 19, starting at 2:30 p.m. (admission from 2 p.m.) in the main auditorium (Frankenring) of the Hochschule Niederrhein (HSNR) at the Krefeld West campus.
The free event "AI - Boom or Bääm?" marks the start of the new educational initiative "ADC Creative Campus". It was initiated by the Faculty of Design at HSNR and the Art Directors Club (ADC), a renowned non-profit organization in the creative industries that promotes excellence in all areas of communication design.
The format regularly offers inspiring lectures, practical insights and discussion panels for students, lecturers and professionals in the creative industries. The ADC Creative Campus sees itself as a platform for knowledge exchange, cooperation, inspiration as well as creative industry impulses and connects business, culture, politics and education.
In the course of digitalization, numerous new creative application and business fields have emerged in recent years. This diversity is both an opportunity and a challenge. "New technologies expand creative business potential, but also intensify competition, increase the complexity of work and make apprenticeships more demanding," says Prof. Richard Jung, honorary ADC Executive Board member for Research & Teaching.
Especially in view of the influence of AI, the new event series is more necessary than ever, he adds. Jung: "More than other industries, creative professionals have already been experiencing a profound change in all areas of work for years. It will intensify as computers and software can increasingly take on tasks that resemble human creativity."
The challenges for creatives: not only must they learn to use AI effectively, but more importantly, they must understand the foundation courses to help shape the changes brought about by generative artificial intelligence. In addition, they must ensure that AI is used ethically and responsibly to respect human values and cultural diversity.
Design work with imaging artificial intelligence has been an integral part of the programmes at the Faculty of Design at HSNR since 2020. There, Prof. Richard Jung teaches communication design. Together with his colleagues and AI experts Prof. Thorsten Kraus and Ümüt Yildiz, he organizes the ADC Creative Campus.
At the kick-off event on October 19, six renowned and internationally awarded creative AI experts will share their knowledge about design studies and the daily business of creative professionals. Among the guest speakers from the fields of photography, film, branding, editorial, advertising and art is Boris Eldagsen from Berlin. His surname went around the world when he turned down the Sony World Photography Awards in April 2023. The reason: his submitted image was AI-generated. Eldagsen deliberately wanted to spark a debate about the relationship between AI-generated images and photography.
Other speakers include digital artist Claudia Rafael, Chief Creator Office Mieke Haase, Art & Creative Director Miguel Schmid, Ümüt Yildiz as university teacher / lecturer for Creative Coding at the Faculty of Design, and agency founder Misch Strotz.
The Creative Campus is supported by the Krefeld Economic Development Corporation, so admission is free. A free e-ticket is nevertheless required. Registration and detailed information on the program at www.adc.de/events/creative-campus
