#(not just in historical orientalism - see also journalistic photography of swana people etc still using the same tropes)

[moodr1ng]

just learned about the people posting '19th century paintings' by a supposed "emile corsi", which is actually just ai art misleadingly and purposefully being represented as actual historical pieces, and i do think this is an issue for art history and culture that people are doing this (and that more people are being tricked into reposting these pieces under the belief theyre legitimate historical ones, furthering the lie).

however after looking it up a bit im finding that the only issue people have with this is that misrepresentation of art history. and id like us to also consider that many of these pieces are in the 19th-century orientalist style, in which white european artists fictionalized, fetishized and otherized swana people. and the use of ai art to create new pieces of a historical racist style (which still today colors the way swana people and our history are perceived in the west) should be as big a concern as the issue of fooling people into thinking an artist who didnt exist actually did. probably more!

(preemptive disclaimer that im not "anti-ai" and dont care about having that argument. post is about a racist thing. does not need derailing.)