CK Maurer
Germany
Where do you locate yourself in relation to the systems you work with?
I see myself as both a contributor to and an observer of the systems I work with. I occupy a space between design, photography, and fine art, shaped by my background in visual communication. I approach AI not from a technological standpoint, but from a visual and emotional one — always asking: how does this system reflect or distort the way we see the world? My position is one of curiosity and cautious optimism. The system doesn’t just serve me — I respond to it, adapt to it, and sometimes even let it lead. It’s a fragile balance and I try to stay aware of how that dynamic shifts with every image I make.
Where are you heading, and what is pulling you there?
I’m moving toward a deeper understanding of this medium rather than toward a fixed destination. What pulls me forward is curiosity — the feeling that I’ve only seen a small fraction of what is possible. I’m not chasing technical perfection as much as I’m searching for a visual language that feels unmistakably mine within this shared technological space.
At the same time, I’m drawn by the tension between the familiar and the unknown. I like starting from cultural references, art history, or everyday imagery and then letting AI shift them into unexpected territories. That friction — between control and surprise, intention and accident — is what keeps me moving.
There are also forces I resist: the speed, the pressure to constantly produce, the temptation to follow trends instead of intuition. So my direction is less about acceleration and more about refinement. I’m heading toward clarity — not in style alone, but in understanding why I create and what I want these images to communicate beyond their surface.
How would you describe the space your practice is currently unfolding in?
Right now, my practice is unfolding in a space of constant negotiation — between human intuition and machine logic, between cultural memory and synthetic imagination. A shifting terrain where I test what’s possible, what resonates, and what still needs questioning.
This space is expansive but unstable. It’s full of potential, but also full of contradictions: images are easier to make than ever, yet meaning is harder to hold onto. There’s freedom here, but also a kind of vertigo. I’m surrounded by a flood of visuals, aesthetics, and ideas — some mine, some generated — and the challenge is to carve out a voice without getting drowned out.
At the same time, it’s an incredibly rich, hybrid field. I bring my background in graphic design, visual culture, and analog photography into this arena, which helps me anchor the work. The space isn’t just digital or conceptual — it’s also emotional and reflective. It stretches outward with each new image, but it’s also circling inward, helping me understand what kind of stories I want to tell in this new visual language.
Artist Statement
What drives my work with AI is a constant negotiation between freedom and intention, control and unpredictability. The central idea that shapes my creative code is the question of authorship in the age of intelligent systems. I’m fascinated by the notion that we are no longer the sole creators, but rather participants in a dialogue with something that doesn't think, feel, or understand us—but can still generate results that move us, confuse us, or even reflect us back to ourselves.
At the same time, I have doubts. Is AI truly creative, or is it just mirroring our cultural archive? Am I using the machine, or is the machine shaping me? These are questions I don’t pretend to have answers to—but they’re embedded in every step of my process. I try to stay aware of the systems I’m engaging with: the data behind them, the aesthetics they default to, the biases they carry. That awareness becomes part of the work.
Working with AI is not about outsourcing creativity—it’s about filtering infinite potential through a personal lens. I start with intention, but leave space for misinterpretation and surprise. I deliberately avoid being too descriptive in my prompts, because I want the machine to bring something unexpected to the table. When I see something that resonates, I refine and shape it. In that sense, AI becomes more than a medium; it becomes a sparring partner—provoking ideas, revealing patterns, and challenging assumptions I didn’t know I had.
As for my artistic truth—it’s not a fixed point. It’s a process of questioning, responding, and re-evaluating. But what I keep coming back to is the human emotional core of the work. No matter how strange, surreal, or machine-assisted the images may be, I want them to say something about what it feels like to be alive right now: uncertain, curious, fragmented, searching. AI helps me explore that, but the meaning—at least for now—still comes from me.
AI Art experience
What continues to captivate me about AI-generated art are two key aspects. First, the incredible possibilities these tools offer: for the first time, individual artists can bring to life ideas that once required significant investments of money, manpower, or time. Concepts that have long existed solely in the realm of imagination can now be realized effortlessly, transforming creative potential into tangible works.
But beyond that, AI is more than just a tool. The more I engage with it, the more I discover that it opens the door to a dynamic, evolving dialogue. You can push AI to its limits, throw a multitude of ideas at it—some contradictory or vague—and see how it interprets and transforms them. Personally, I prefer a looser approach to prompting, allowing room for unpredictability and serendipity. This back-and-forth interaction with AI often leads to surprising, even thought-provoking, results, sparking new directions in my creative process.
Personal experience
Working in the creative industry for almost three decades there is a multitude of influences that has accumulated over time. From fine art, movies, from haute couture, pop culture, each facet has contributed to a kaleidoscope of images swirling in my mind. Yet, amidst this eclectic tapestry of inspiration, one era consistently beckons me back: the epoch of pop art. With its fusion of the quotidian and the iconic, pop art resonates deeply with me. The marriage of everyday objects with elements of popular culture and fine art strikes a chord, evoking a potent blend of nostalgia and innovation. Moreover, I like the infusion of humor and irony that adds another layer, transforming the mundane into the extraordinary.
Unexpected thought
I often catch myself wondering, especially when I’m crafting some really bizarre or absurd prompts: What does the AI make of this? Is it thinking anything at all, or is it completely neutral? Does it have preferences, maybe even reacting like, "Oh, this one’s easy," or "Oh no, here we go again with this nonsense..." It’s amusing to imagine the AI having its own little opinions about the prompts I throw at it!
Prove you are human
I believe it's our flaws or weaknesses that make us truly human. Take mine, for example—chocolate. It’s always been my guilty pleasure. But lately, I've noticed that when I'm deep into creating AI art, I don't even think about chocolate anymore. Could it be that AI has become my new addiction?
