This past summer, an illustration generated by artificial intelligence took home the top prize at the Colorado State Fair’s annual art competition.

An internet uproar ensued, as social media users lamented a future in which artists would be supplanted by algorithms. “We’re watching the death of artistry unfold right before our eyes,” read one Twitter post. It racked up six thousand likes.

All the fatalistic hand-wringing was more than a little funny—and not just because a meager $750 prize prompted it. It was amusing because a predictable cycle was at play: As long as humankind has made technological advancements, there have been those who perceive them as threats to their humanity.

“To me, it’s a bit like people decrying the camera stealing your soul when you take a picture,” said Ian Cheng.

Cheng, too, is an A.I. artist, though his work doesn’t resemble anything like the fantastical Space Opera Theater scene that took home the ribbon in Colorado. Until recently, Cheng’s works often looked like glitched-out video games that used A.I. to play themselves. He calls them simulations.

And he won’t be competing in state fairs anytime soon either. Over the last five years, he has appeared in eight biennials and triennials, a feat that casts him among a small group of globe-trotting, zeitgeist-defining stars on that circuit.

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