The hottest Art & Illustration Substack posts right now

And their main takeaways
Category
Top Art & Illustration Topics

Diffusing the Everyday & Latent Animation

Cybernetic Forests • 19 implied HN points • 07 May 23
🎨 Art & Illustration AI Animation Workshops Artistic Process Photography
  1. A workshop on AI x Design and SubLab covered topics like AI's 'dreaming' myth and transforming videos with Stable Diffusion.
  2. An upcoming workshop with artist Fabian Mosele will focus on creating animation styles consistent across frames, offering insights into generating characters in motion with AI.
  3. Attendees in Seoul can join the Adrenalin Prompt zine-crafting festival starting May 11 to explore prompt-generated images and texts.

Portrait of a Painter as a Late Middle-aged (Old) Woodchuck

The False Consensus Effect • 59 implied HN points • 02 Apr 22
🎨 Art & Illustration Painting Artist Gallery Acrylic
  1. The painter feels a sense of frustration with the changing seasons, wanting spring to arrive fully and quickly.
  2. Receiving positive feedback from a client brought the painter joy and satisfaction in their work.
  3. The painter shared images of their recent paintings and expressed a mix of emotions about their creative process.

#70 Design illusions

Design Lobster • 139 implied HN points • 31 May 21
🎨 Art & Illustration Design Architecture Typography Perception Context
  1. Design can deceive our eyes through various techniques like overshooting in type design and visual illusions in architecture.
  2. Human visual perception quirks are important to consider in design to create effective and impactful visuals.
  3. Context and wit can be leveraged in design to playfully interact with surroundings, adding depth and interest to the design.
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Valentine’s Moon

The False Consensus Effect • 19 implied HN points • 12 Feb 23
🎨 Art & Illustration Paintings Visual art Creative Writing Imagery Artistic expression
  1. Valentine's Moon celebrates love and the temporary nature of life, promoting a moment of release and contentment.
  2. The text delves into the impact and significance of early love and courting experiences, suggesting a need to reclaim the poetic joy found in those relationships.
  3. The author ponders the influence of societal norms and the modern world on love and happiness, advocating for a reconnection with romantic love and wisdom.

Diary #13

Autoscriptorium • 19 implied HN points • 02 Apr 23
🎨 Art & Illustration
  1. Screens filled with data can be overwhelming; the text on screens can be more captivating than the events themselves
  2. Presentations can transform how we see ourselves; the camera's view of us can be startlingly different
  3. Daily practices like writing can lead to improvement over time; perfection isn't necessary, growth is more important

Strange Fool Moon Business Week

The False Consensus Effect • 59 implied HN points • 19 Mar 22
🎨 Art & Illustration Art Criticism Visual art Creativity
  1. The art industry is often influenced by cronyism and corporate models, leading to a disconnect between artists and genuine artistic expression
  2. To combat cronyism in art, there are solutions like boycotting third-party galleries and fostering local artist communities
  3. Artists should focus on creating genuine connections, nurturing local art scenes, and prioritizing artistic expression over corporate influence

Artists under Tech Censorship

Random Minds by Katherine Brodsky • 112 implied HN points • 25 Jun 23
🎨 Art & Illustration Censorship Digital Platforms
  1. Tech platforms have been de-platforming content creators based on speech, affecting regular individuals as well.
  2. Many artists face financial and professional repercussions when tech companies cut off their services without explanation.
  3. Balancing private company rights with free expression and addressing discrimination in tech censorship is a complex issue that requires more public discourse.

Perfect Days.

The Future Does Not Fit In The Containers Of The Past • 66 implied HN points • 25 Feb 24
🎨 Art & Illustration Film Visual Arts Creativity Photography Design
  1. The movie 'Perfect Days' explores finding beauty in the everyday moments, emphasizing the importance of living in the present and appreciating the small details around us.
  2. Creativity is about connecting dots in new ways, as showcased in the process behind the film and how it surprises in an AI-driven world.
  3. The film highlights the contrast between modern digital life and traditional analog elements like cameras, film, and cassette tapes, urging a deeper connection with the present moment and our surroundings.

To own a colour

On Looking • 59 implied HN points • 10 Jun 22
🎨 Art & Illustration Color History Philosophy Ownership Creativity
  1. The concept of owning colors through NFTs has sparked controversy and raised questions about the value and ownership of colors in art and society.
  2. Colors are a complex interplay of history, scarcity, and cultural significance, dating back to the Middle Ages and continuing through to modern controversies like Vantablack and International Klein Blue.
  3. The discussion extends to the philosophical and cognitive realms, where the idea of selling colors as NFTs challenges the immaterial nature of colors and the relationships between types and tokens.

Most Dismal Swamp: MUSH

Do Not Research • 39 implied HN points • 16 Oct 22
🎨 Art & Illustration Speculation Fiction Performance
  1. The term MUSH (Multi-User Shared Hallucination) originated in online text-based role-playing games. It reflects communal investment and social codes that create an immersive virtual space distinct from the real world.
  2. Most Dismal Swamp explores community-building in online and offline spaces, delving into encrypted cultures and the challenges of maintaining communities in digitally mediated environments.
  3. Most Dismal Swamp is a diverse art project operating as a model for collaborative speculation. It uses the concept of swamps to navigate the complexities and blurred boundaries of our mixed reality paradigm.

Spencer Longo: TIME

Do Not Research • 39 implied HN points • 16 Oct 22
🎨 Art & Illustration Visual art Folklore Conspiracy Religion Cults
  1. The 'TIME' body of work by Spencer Longo visualizes millenarian anxieties through unconventional juxtapositions of text and images on old Time magazine spreads, reflecting on modern conspiratorial mindsets.
  2. The Sovereign Citizen movement includes groups like Moorish Sovereign Citizens, who reject US citizenship for alternative beliefs and create customized legal documentation with a Middle Eastern aesthetic.
  3. Cult systems like the Heaven's Gate utilized control tactics such as strict diets to maintain power over followers, leading to drastic actions like mass suicide in pursuit of spiritual ascension.

Joe Iovino: Rivelino Hyper-Vigilance Apparatus

Do Not Research • 39 implied HN points • 15 Oct 22
🎨 Art & Illustration Design
  1. The Rivelino Hyper-Vigilance Apparatus provides real-time information on your stance angle, indicating strength or weakness.
  2. The apparatus uses an LED strip and accelerometer to communicate your stance's security to friends.
  3. There is no need for post-processing green lines with this cumbersome but effective invention.

The Grand Tour - Holiday Break

On Looking • 59 implied HN points • 03 Jun 22
🎨 Art & Illustration Artists Networking Essays Book Reviews Process
  1. The Grand Tour was a historical educational journey undertaken by young men from wealthy families to acquire cultural knowledge through firsthand experiences of classical artworks in Europe.
  2. The author's modern version of the Grand Tour involves networking with fellow artists in New York to create shared experiences and a sense of union beyond online interactions.
  3. The author is considering switching this newsletter to a bi-monthly schedule to dedicate more time to research and writing better essays, focusing on topics like colors, illustration AI, and exposure.

The Original Lyrics To “Hark The Herald Angels Sing”

Outlandish Claims • 19 implied HN points • 24 Jun 23
🎨 Art & Illustration Music History Literature Culture
  1. The Christmas carol 'Hark the Herald Angels Sing' was originally an ode to the Gutenberg printing press by Felix Mendelssohn.
  2. The song celebrated Johannes Gutenberg's invention of movable type, a pivotal moment in history.
  3. Many modern songs celebrate both the inventor and the invention itself, reflecting a shift from past celebrations focused solely on technology.

#73 Constraints are beautiful

Design Lobster • 119 implied HN points • 21 Jun 21
🎨 Art & Illustration Design
  1. Constraints can lead to beautiful designs, as seen in the architecture of Alberto Ponis and graphic design of Willem Sandberg.
  2. Embracing constraints can bring about unique and surprising solutions in design.
  3. Constraints, rather than hindering, can actually be keys to solving design problems effectively.

10 Proteases for the Price of One

The False Consensus Effect • 19 implied HN points • 15 Jan 23
🎨 Art & Illustration Painting Visual art Design Literature Poetry
  1. The artist painted microscopic proteases for a chemistry lab, creating Pacman-like images that were well-received by the lab founder.
  2. The artist, though not a graphic designer, was able to produce paintings that impressed the lab founder and received positive feedback.
  3. The artist's journey into writing and art reflects his desire for originality and recognition in the creative world, drawing inspiration from historical figures and personal experiences.

DALLE, AARON, Kata: Strategies for Legibility

Cybernetic Forests • 39 implied HN points • 28 Aug 22
🎨 Art & Illustration AI Art Image Synthesis Creative Process
  1. Harold Cohen developed AARON in the 1970s, an AI program that co-created art with him, showcasing a unique relationship between the artist and the machine.
  2. Artists can infuse their spirit into tools and images, as seen in the Japanese textile tradition, emphasizing purpose and repetitive practice.
  3. Strategies for artist legibility within sophisticated image-making systems like DALLE2 involve using prompts, selections, and exploring the concept of feedback loops through repetition and variation.

The sea in Valencia, 2003

The Leftovers • 79 implied HN points • 03 Oct 21
🎨 Art & Illustration Visual art
  1. The post is about 'The sea in Valencia, 2003'.
  2. The author, Fernando Sdrigotti, published the post on theleftovers.substack.com in October 2021.
  3. Readers can access the full post and archives with a 7-day free trial subscription to The Leftovers.

#82 Sit down design

Design Lobster • 99 implied HN points • 23 Aug 21
🎨 Art & Illustration Design Comfort Symbols
  1. Design is not just about functionality, but also about the symbolic power designs hold over us.
  2. Comfort is a culturally determined concept, not universally defined, which impacts design decisions.
  3. Inspiration for design can come from unusual sources, like the impression left in snow leading to the creation of the Karuselli chair.

Mastering the Alchemy of AI Storytelling

Daniel Pinchbeck’s Newsletter • 2 implied HN points • 21 Nov 25
🎨 Art & Illustration Film Digital Art AI Art Storytelling Workshops Ethics Media
  1. A six-week hands-on seminar teaches you how to create polished AI short films, giving practical tools like prompts, camera grammar, sound design, and a finished project to release.
  2. The program pairs technical training with ethics, philosophy, and somatic practices so creators learn to use AI responsibly, covering appropriation, attribution, and the social impact of viral media.
  3. It runs Jan 11–Feb 15, 2026 with live sessions and recordings, offers tuition tiers (including a $500 early-bird rate and a $1500 advanced option with one-on-one coaching), and provides scholarships and clear IP terms.

Fungal Architectures, R As A Game Engine, and Photoresistors

Generative Arts Collective • 105 implied HN points • 14 Apr 23
🎨 Art & Illustration Generative Arts Creative Coding Digital Art Exhibitions Book recommendations
  1. Fungal Architectures exhibition prompts exploration of life and nature through an artist's lens
  2. Using Photoresistors (LDRs) on Raspberry Pi with RNBO for creative projects and experiments
  3. R is highlighted as a game engine with potential for AI tools like Blockade Labs and Spline AI

The Antagonists

50 Years of Text Games • 87 HN points • 19 Jul 23
🎨 Art & Illustration
  1. In the 1980s, a unique type of computer game was created in the form of a book that also contained the game's source code.
  2. The game/book hybrid required players to read the book to solve puzzles in the game, creating a novel integrated experience.
  3. Although challenging to produce and limited in audience reach, this format represented a creative and experimental approach to interactive fiction.

P.S. The Likeness - Gizem Vural : Edweard Muybridge

On Looking • 39 implied HN points • 02 Sep 22
🎨 Art & Illustration Analysis Technique Time Visual Culture Medium
  1. The illustration 'The Likeness' by Gizem Vural is paired with a series of photographs by Eadweard Muybridge, showing the interconnectedness of different art forms and their exploration of perception.
  2. Both Vural's illustration and Muybridge's photographs capture moments that challenge our perception of time, demonstrating how visual art can manipulate time and space in unique ways.
  3. The juxtaposition of a static butterfly in Vural's illustration against the dynamic grid conveys the impact of human development on nature, showcasing how artists can push the limits of medium to convey powerful messages.

Sunday Notes

Opaque Hourglass • 19 implied HN points • 16 Apr 23
🎨 Art & Illustration Creative Writing Visual art
  1. The kids struggled to pick peas off the vine without damaging it, showcasing a lack of experience.
  2. Judgmental behavior was observed from the people parked near the author at the wildflower valley overlook.
  3. A surprising observation was made when a cow pie appeared dry on the outside but was actually wet inside.

#77 Design stitched up

Design Lobster • 99 implied HN points • 19 Jul 21
🎨 Art & Illustration Fashion
  1. Yarnbombing is a form of public art that uses knitting to add personality to urban spaces and challenge traditional gender norms.
  2. Cartwheel ruffs were extravagant, impractical accessories worn by Tudor nobility to showcase wealth, made possible by advancements in starch production.
  3. Designers should listen to what a project wants to be, rather than imposing their own ideas, in order to create something truly unique and meaningful.

The Manic American Humanist Show, Press Release by Abbey Pusz

Do Not Research • 19 implied HN points • 25 Feb 23
🎨 Art & Illustration Exhibition Contemporary Art Internet Art Political art
  1. The exhibition 'The Manic American Humanist Show' features work from four core contributors to Do Not Research, showcasing an exploration of niche politics and post-Internet art.
  2. The artists in the exhibition address themes of cultural and political shifts in America post-2011, reflecting on movements like Occupy, Trump's election, and Bernie Sanders' campaigns.
  3. The exhibition aims to break from the nihilism in contemporary fine art and millennial politics, focusing on human agency, spiritual liberation, and self-reflection.

ON EXPOSURE 3/3 - Why not.

On Looking • 39 implied HN points • 05 Aug 22
🎨 Art & Illustration Community
  1. Working for exposure erodes the chain of solidarity among creatives and perpetuates a culture of free labor, affecting marginalized populations in accessing the creative industry.
  2. Exposure logic mirrors capitalism by alienating creatives from their work, undervaluing it initially, then profiting from it later, highlighting the need for collective care and solidarity.
  3. Exposure lacks the foundational structures necessary for converting visibility into economic capital, making it a risky and incalculable gamble rather than a reliable form of compensation.