Artificial Imagination: Anna Bell

Anna Bell

Dreams of the New World

Soft mist attracts and soothes. I want to drown in it and not wake up. Few flowers are reminiscent of Earth, but the crystals and holographic sky speak of something new. I explore the theme of sleep as an escape from the reality of recent years when you want to fall asleep and wake up in a new beautiful future.

But you either wake up where there are no guarantees, or you don't wake up at all.

“I’m Anna Bell, AI artist from Belarus.
I create surreal works, primarily portraits, full of references to magic, illusions, mystical practices, space, games, sci-fi books and childhood dreams, with a nostalgic feel for a lost paradise.
So in my art, you can see a lot of flowers, magical creatures, levitating objects, and, of course, mesmerising main characters. They are magical, sometimes strange or dark, but always full of hope and asking essential questions.

I’ve been a graphic designer and illustrator for a long time, but I see absolute freedom and the future in AI art and the NFT community. I’ve been here since 2022 and enjoy it.
”

— Anna Bell

What was your path to doing what you’re doing now?

I have been a freelance graphic designer, illustrator and creative entrepreneur for over ten years. I'm always exploring something new, but I see true freedom and the future in the art of AI and the NFT community.

To be honest, nft brought me back to creativity. Even though I create works using AI, I now draw more with my hands on a tablet than in the last few years.

I've been in nft since 2022, and I love it, although sometimes it's not easy. But I'm here for the long haul, and this is just the beginning.

Did you have an “Aha!” moment when you knew that working with AI was what you wanted to do?

This was the first time I got incredible images that were strange and contrary to all laws of logic. But they were magical. And I fell in love. But it took a long time to catch this wave and tame the technology. At first, I was just curious, but the first results were far from any art, and I felt like a first grader next to the older guys)

Thank God I did not back down and tried repeatedly, finding new approaches. My first AI work is minted for me, and I love it very much; it's incredible

How does AI influence your way of doing work now?

All creative process is accelerating, and this is important. The artist became an art director, a brain. And the AI is an executive artisan, the hands of creativity. Of course, I do post-processing most of the time and can draw a lot in PS to better represent my ideas. Sometimes I can only fix something, like eyes or hands, if I don't need seven fingers or blurry and different eyes. I’m so glad AI learning creates hands better and better. Better me, it’s true) It helps make pure AI Art. But honestly, I like this “early AI style” with all these strange decisions.

As a creative person, do you ever have those moments where you feel like everything you create is just shit?

Every time I try something new, new prompts, new characters or whatever. I feel like this is my first time, or I think this artificial intelligence is broken today. This time, the worst idea is to scroll through Twitter. Everyone here is so talented, just brilliant. But we don’t know the whole history of their work, but the entire Twitter feed looks like something amazing, simple and easy to sell. I just rest and then try again and again.

Is it necessary to you to be a part of a creative community of people?

The community can give you the support you need, and it's important to feel safe in a group of people like you with the same interests and fears, goals and ambitions. It helps to grow up to artists and the NFT market in general.