Announcing new art and AI exhibitions programme exploring how artists are actively shaping the future of culture and creativity in the age of AI.
We are thrilled to announce two groundbreaking exhibitions of new work this August, hosted by Inspace and Informatics Forum, and forming this year’s Edinburgh College of Art exhibition highlight for the 2025 Edinburgh Art Festival and Edinburgh Festival Fringe. These exhibitions delve into the role artists play in navigating the evolving landscapes of Artificial Intelligence (AI), tackling themes of inspired innovation and agency, community empowerment and resistance, environmentalism, and matters of authenticity for artworks in the age of AI.
These exhibitions are the result of two art commission projects, one by the Bridging Responsible AI Divides (BRAID) programme and the other by BRAID research fellow Caterina Moruzzi’s project, Cultivating Responsible Engagement with AI Technology to Empower Creatives (CREA-TEC), all proudly funded by the Arts & Humanities Research Council.
Featuring an array of media including sculpture, video, installation, gadgets, zines and animation, audiences are invited to discover new perspectives on art and AI, all the while thinking about desired futures and the communities and work that will be needed to build them.
Featured Exhibitions
Tipping Point: Artist Responses to AI
Dates: 7 to 31 August 2025
Time: Mon-Sun, 10:00 – 17:00 | Free/Drop-In
Location: Inspace, 1 Crichton St, Newington, Edinburgh EH8 9AB [Fringe Venue 574]
Artists: Louise Ashcroft – Julie Freeman – Wesley Goatley – Identity 2.0 – Rachel Maclean – Kiki Shervington-White – Studio Above & Below
The exhibition explores what artists can do to help us more wisely respond to the present realities and near-future horizons of Artificial Intelligence (AI). It features seven newly commissioned artworks from across the UK, funded by the UK’s Bridging Responsible AI Divides (BRAID) research programme.
The artworks present new ways of thinking about today’s AI, the futures we want and the communities needed to build it. Artists include Louise Ashcroft, Julie Freeman, Wesley Goatley, Identity 2.0, Rachel Maclean, Kiki Shervington-White, Studio Above & Below.
This art commissioning programme is funded by the Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC) and delivered by BRAID in partnership with Inspace at the Institute for Design Informatics, with support from Edinburgh Art Festival and Better Images of AI.
Authenticity Unmasked: Unveiling AI-Driven Realities Through Art
Dates: 7 – 17 August 2025
Time: Mon-Sun, 10:00 – 17:00 | Free/Drop-In
Location: G.07 at University of Edinburgh Informatics Forum [Fringe Venue 422 ]
Artists: Georgia Gardner, Kinnari Saraiya, dmstfctn
AI-generated content is reshaping how we perceive truth and authenticity. From viral deep fakes to AI-altered political videos designed to manipulate public opinion, digital authenticity is increasingly uncertain. AI tools can even rewrite personal history, generating images of moments that never existed or altering past memories.
The artworks presented in this exhibition will challenge our understanding of authenticity, engaging audiences in questions such as: When does authenticity in digital content matter to us? What influences our perception of what is real or fabricated? What shapes our trust in human-made creations?
This Commission programme is led by CREA-TEC (“Cultivating Responsible Engagement with AI Technology to Empower Creatives”), a research project at the University of Edinburgh conducted in collaboration with Adobe and the Content Authenticity Initiative (CAI), co-founded by Adobe in 2019 to enhance transparency and access to the provenance history of digital media.
Event Programme
ARTIST PANEL
Date: Fri 8 August 2025
Time: 15:00-16:00 | Free/Ticketed
Location: Bayes Centre, 47 Potterrow, Edinburgh EH8 9BT
Title: Re-envisioning creative and critical engagement with AI through art
Speakers: Wesley Goatley, Rachel Maclean, Kiki Shervington-White
Join us at the Bayes Centre for a dynamic panel discussion featuring artists Wesley Goatley, Rachel Maclean, and Kiki Shervington-White. Collectively, their works delve into the intersections of historical technological advances and contemporary AI developments, employing critical and speculative design, installation, interactive art, community engagement, and filmmaking.
These artworks are not only designed to inspire us creatively but also to challenge us politically. How can art best serve as a powerful tool for empowering our creativity while critically exploring and advocating for more responsible, sustainable, and ethical futures in technology?
OPENING RECEPTION
Date: Fri 8 August 2025
Time: 18:00-20:30 | Free/Ticketed
Locations:
Inspace, 1 Crichton St, Newington, Edinburgh EH8 9AB
G.07 Informatics Forum, at University of Edinburgh
Join us at Inspace and Informatics Forum, for the opening reception of Tipping Point: Artist Responses to AI, and Authenticity Unmasked: Unveiling AI-Driven Realities Through Art, celebrating and presenting two captivating exhibitions featuring ten new art commissions from the Bridging Responsible AI Divides (BRAID) art commission programme and BRAID funded project Cultivating Responsible Engagement with AI Technology to Empower Creatives (CREA-TEC), for the 2025 Edinburgh Art Festival and Edinburgh Festival Fringe.
This evening reception features artworks by artists Louise Ashcroft, Julie Freeman, Wesley Goatley, Identity 2.0, Rachel Maclean, Kiki Shervington-White, Studio Above & Below at Inspace and artworks by Georgia Gardner, Kinnari Saraiya, dmstfctn at Informatics Forum.
Artist Workshops
Crafting Resistance: A Zine-Making Workshop on AI and Activism
Facilitators: Identity 2.0
Date: Fri 8 August 2025
Time: 12:00-13:00 | Free/Ticketed
Location: Bayes Centre
Join us for ‘Crafting Resistance,’ a hands-on zine-making workshop designed to empower you to critically engage with and resist the unwanted and pervasive incursion of artificial intelligence (AI) into various aspects of our lives. This interactive session will guide you through the process of creating your own zine, using art and dialogue to capture and challenge the AI-saturated world of today. The workshop draws inspiration from Identity 2.0’s collaboration with a diverse range of activists for their project, Issue: 404.
Comedic Tools for Grappling with AI
Facilitator: Louise Ashcroft
Date: Fri 8 August 2025
Time: 13:00-14:00 | Free/Ticketed
Registration is preferred, but drop-ins are also welcome
Join us for ‘Comedic Tools for Grappling with AI,’ an interactive workshop led by comedy-adjacent artist Louise Ashcroft, which explores the potential for humour and speculative design to shine light on present-day societal issues. Using the current proliferation of AI hype as a backdrop, the workshop will encourage acts of community resilience and empowerment through collaborative brainstorming and hands-on activities. Come along to create and prototype your own whimsical AI gadgets using paint, drawing, and simple model-making techniques.
About BRAID
BRAID (Bridging Responsible AI Divides) is a 6-year national research programme funded by the UKRI Arts and Humanities Research Council, led by The University of Edinburgh in partnership with the Ada Lovelace Institute and the BBC. It is co-directed by Shannon Vallor and Ewa Luger, working alongside a team of co-investigators representing the breadth of the Arts and Humanities.
About CREA-TEC
CREA-TEC (“Cultivating Responsible Engagement with AI Technology to Empower Creatives”), a research project at the University of Edinburgh conducted in collaboration with Adobe and the Content Authenticity Initiative (CAI), co-founded by Adobe in 2019 to enhance transparency and access to the provenance history of digital media. CREA-TEC is supported by the Bridging Responsible AI Divides (BRAID) programme with funds received from the Arts and Humanities Research Council.
About the Institute for Design Informatics
In the Institute for Design Informatics, we fuse design and creative methodologies with data, data science and data-driven technologies. We create prototypes and experiences that make real to people the ideas that underpin the data society, and aim to ensure that new technologies sustain and enhance human values.