This question probably lurks in many minds. Whether you are already in the business of creativity, or you’re just entertaining the idea of becoming “more creative”, you probably hear a quiet voice in your head saying: “what’s the point?”

When AI can write a novel, compose music, or make visual art in three seconds, why would I bother?

Now, if we look at output purely as a commodity - something to be useful, consumed by an audience - then sure: arrival of infinite, instant AI generation feels like the end of the road. But viewing creativity as a factory line of outputs is incorrect. It neglects why humans make things in the first place, and how the act of creation changes us.

Does it still make sense to make art in the era of AI?

It still makes sense to make art in the era of AI because the true value of creativity is not the output, but your human, promethean, innate process of finding meaning. Creative work exercises unique neural pathways, improves complex problem-solving, and builds a deeply meaningful life.

You do not make art to compete with a machine, but to give something back to yourself; if you start with the concept of your creativity being “productive” or “useful”, you will always lose. Here is why the act of creation is more important now than ever:

  1. Creativity is a mechanism for meaning: Let’s set aside the debate of legitimacy of AI-generated art (whether visual or written) and focus on what’s internal. When you create something, regardless of how clumsy, you are actively processing your own experience and internal state, digesting your life into meaning. AI won’t do your emotional processing for you.
  2. It exercises a different part of your brain: Modern knowledge work forces us into a rigid, task-oriented mental state. Wrestling with creativity forces your brain out of the executive network and into a playful, open, curious state - the default mode network. This is not only fun, obviously, but a workout for your brain that keeps your cognition flexible.
  3. You become a better problem solver: Art is a series of micro-decisions with no right answers. Every time you paint a stroke or write a sentence, you are dealing with ambiguity, uncertainty, curiosity, and courage to put them down on paper (or screen). This practice of wrestling with your own uncertainty makes you more resilient and adaptable when solving problems in your career and life.
  4. It builds a meaningful life: A life spent purely consuming the outputs of others is a passive existence and I think the reason you’re here is because you realize it. The physical, frustrating, inefficient friction of making something with your own hands and brain is what anchors you to the present moment.

Getting creative is overwhelming. Where do you even start? Perhaps by committing to making one creative act every day, whether it’s for 10 minutes of a couple hours. Start your streak today.