“Tell companies it looks uncool”: Illustrator against AI art now helps artists in NYC fight back

Artist and illustrator Molly Crabapple discovered in 2022 that AI companies had scraped her distinctive artwork—including illustrations of Aleppo’s skyline and protest portraits—to train image-generation models that now produce crude imitations of her style. Her experience highlights a broader concern among creative professionals who argue that AI threatens artistic livelihoods while degrading the quality of visual content across the internet.

What happened: Crabapple led a workshop in Manhattan’s Lower East Side called “Artists Against the Slop Beast,” where she and tech editor Edward Ongweso Jr. outlined strategies for resisting AI adoption in creative industries.

The big picture: Silicon Valley executives predict AI will eliminate half of entry-level white-collar jobs and push unemployment to 10-20% within five years, but Crabapple argues this technological takeover isn’t inevitable.

What they’re saying: Crabapple describes the fundamental disconnect between AI developers and creative workers.

• “When AI founders use billions of images to train their programs, the only way they do that is through the profound hatred of the humanities,” she said.
• “The contempt for labor and effort and all that stuff that makes us human, for Silicon Valley is nothing but an impediment and a friction.”
• About AI-generated copies of her work: “It’s not a good knockoff. The ultimate goal is never to be as good as the art — the goal is to be good enough to get on the page, get the consumer to use it, and get rid of the worker.”

Industry impact: Several illustrators in Crabapple’s network have struggled to find work as companies increasingly use AI prompts instead of hiring human artists or photographers to reduce costs.

How to fight back: The workshop outlined practical resistance strategies for organizations and individuals.

• Encourage any organization—no matter how small—to pass rules barring AI use for tasks like drafting statements, generating social media images, or assisting with marketing campaigns.
• Use public shame as a deterrent by calling out companies that use AI-generated graphics online.
• “Tell them it looks uncool,” Crabapple suggested. “I’ve seen companies back down.”

Political context: The Trump administration has embraced AI-generated content, using it for memes targeting Black voters and supporting Immigration and Customs Enforcement deportation efforts, while resisting regulations for AI companies.

Broader adoption: AI programs have become integrated across the internet, answering search queries, writing student essays, and serving as virtual therapists, while critics argue they steal copyrighted content and diminish human creativity.

Community response: Crabapple’s 2023 open letter urging publishers and journalists to reject generative AI has garnered more than 4,000 signatures from supporters in the creative industry.