Press Feature | m&k – Markt und Kommunikation | September 2026
Don't Fall into the AI Art Trap
In the September 2026 issue of m&k – Markt und Kommunikation, journalist Irmela Schwab explores one of the central questions facing contemporary creative culture: Can artificial intelligence create art, and what determines its artistic value?
The publication brings together perspectives from Andrea Kaul, Yu Zhang, Margit Rosen and Lorenzo Montalvo, addressing the relationship between technological innovation, artistic intention, perception and creativity.
As part of this broader editorial discussion, Kate Vass, founder of Kate Vass Galerie in Zurich, contributes a four-page interview titled “Tappt nicht in die KI-Kunst-Falle” (Don't Fall into the AI Art Trap), published on pages 40–43.
Drawing on her experience curating and collecting historical computer art, generative systems and AI-based practices, Vass discusses the distinction between technological novelty and sustained artistic research.
The interview explores the growing recognition of AI art by collectors and institutions, the changing concept of authorship, intellectual property, and the responsibilities of technology companies, galleries and digital platforms.
Rather than treating AI-generated imagery as a single artistic category, Vass emphasizes the importance of intention, conceptual coherence, provenance and the continuity of an artist's practice.
The interview includes artworks by Mario Klingemann and Sasha Stiles, whose practices represent different approaches to the relationship between artistic intention and computational systems.
Mario Klingemann is a pioneer of artistic experimentation with neural networks and machine learning. His research into generative systems, image synthesis and human perception predates the widespread adoption of commercial AI image generators, demonstrating the deeper artistic history behind today's technological developments.
Sasha Stiles works across poetry, artificial intelligence and sculpture, exploring the relationship between human authorship, machine collaboration and language. Her neon poetry sculptures translate computationally mediated writing into physical form, making questions of authorship, interpretation and materiality tangible.
Together, their works illustrate how AI can become part of a sustained artistic investigation rather than simply a tool for automated image production.
Beyond Technology: Context, Authorship and Artistic Value
A central theme of the conversation is the growing importance of artistic context in a world where AI-generated imagery is increasingly abundant.
As technological tools become widely accessible, the significance of an artwork depends less on the novelty of its production method and more on its artistic questions, conceptual development, provenance and cultural relevance.
The interview also considers how digital platforms are changing artists' relationships with audiences, and how responsibility for visibility, documentation and cultural legitimacy is increasingly shifting toward individual creators.
For Vass, the long-term significance of AI-based art lies not in the endless production of images but in the development of meaningful artistic practices that engage critically with technology and its consequences.
Publication details
m&k – Markt und Kommunikation, Issue 3/2026
Interview: Tappt nicht in die KI-Kunst-Falle
Journalist: Irmela Schwab
Featuring: Kate Vass
Artworks: Mario Klingemann and Sasha Stiles
Pages: 40–43
Publication date: September 2026
Language: German