Ansel Adams’ Trust Says AI-Colorized Model Of His Work Was Exhibited With out Permission

The Ansel Adams Publishing Rights Trust launched a statement this weekend condemning the unauthorized use of the photographer’s identify and work for the creation of an “AI-generated color version” of Adams’ “Moonrise, Hernandez, New Mexico.” According to the belief, the piece was up on the market final month on the Association of International Photography Art Dealers’ (AIPAD) The Photography Show. The exhibit by Danziger Gallery “exploited Ansel’s name, reputation, and his most iconic image, while failing to identify any human artist responsible for its creation,” the assertion says.

Interestingly, the belief did not take subject with the involvement of AI, noting that Adams “was remarkably prescient about—and excited by—the potential of computers to transform photography.” The subject is that the exhibitor allegedly simply straight up ripped off the artist’s work to generate income off of it.

“The Trust was not consulted or notified before the work appeared,” the Ansel Adams Publishing Rights Trust mentioned. “Once alerted, we reached out to James Danziger in real time, notifying him of the Trust’s rights, and asking for the work to be removed. Correspondence shared with the Trust shows that, despite our formal notice, Mr. Danziger subsequently leveraged Ansel’s name, ‘Moonrise,’ and the AIPAD presentation while pursuing a proposed commercial AI colorization venture involving other artists’ estates.” The assertion goes on to denounce the nonconsensual use of an artist’s identify and work for business functions, calling the incident “a gross failure of ethical and professional judgment.”