AI Maria/

The rise of Artificial Intelligence will undoubtedly leave its mark on the art world. For this work I asked AI to depict me in various world religions: as a Buddhist, a Muslim, a Hindu and a Catholic. That last image strongly resembled a classical depiction of Mary Magdalene with child. The amusing coincidence is that my first baptismal name is also Maria, while I have deliberately chosen not to have children. Using AI, I turned the image into the style of a 17th-century oil painting that could just as easily hang in a Marian chapel. In addition, I printed the image onto devotional candles, which I know from my childhood, when my mother faithfully lit candles for Mary.