LittlePinkPebble (she/her) hails from sunny Singapore. A self-professed stay-at-home hermit, she works as a children’s book illustrator and freelance digital artist. After discovering the use of AI tools in art in mid-2022, she became a very prolific AI art creator, churning out thousands of AI-assisted art pieces within months!

Today, NiftyZone chats with LittlePinkPebble to find out more about herself, her art and the AI artbook launch.

LittlePinkPebble, how about a short self-introduction for our readers?

I’m a children’s book illustrator and freelance digital artist. I’ve illustrated over a 100 books for others, but this year I manage to publish two of my own books.

The first is called “How to Draw!”. It’s a compilation of a series of free art tutorials that I published online. They get over a million views and thousands shares, so I thought why not make a print version of it too.

The second book, is of course “The Hundred Worlds”. It could be one of the first compilation of AI artwork on print, and I think it gives a survey and sense of AI generated artwork in 2022.

When and how did you start getting into AI Art?

Well I’m an artist so I’ve always had a ton of other random artists and creative people connected on social media. They are a motley bunch, the Fiverr/Upwork freelancers to Magic-The-Gathering illustrators to concept artists working on Marvel movies. This network allowed me to get a good pulse on what’s happening in the art world, and I could see that AI tools like Midjourney and Stability-AI trending and creating a big buzz within the online art circles.

I tried out Midjourney, a text-to-image AI generator. First on the free trial and then later the paid subscription. It was addictive. I can quickly explore ideas and concepts, and get some AI generated output within minutes!

There are some limitations to what it can do, of course. For example, AI tools cannot do limbs and fingers very well yet. But, in genres where AI art shine, I think the generated artwork can probably beat 75% of the human artists, not just in speed (obvious winner) but also in quality and creativity.

After sharing my AI artwork, they went semi-viral and at some point I was getting 5,000 notifications a day!

After sharing some of my AI-assisted artwork, they went semi-viral. At some point, I was getting 5,000 notifications a day. Likes, shares, follows, and requests to chat!

I’ve joined some AI Art online groups. I notice that some netizens are very triggered by AI art and their creators. What are your thoughts about this?

Yes, AI art can be very polarizing. When i share AI art to art sites or manga sites, common replies would be “AI made the art, not you.” or “You are just a talentless
hack and a thief.” Some of these art communities will outright ban AI art content and the posters. Even in groups dedicated to AI art, there would be haters who just join to simply post toxic comments.

Whatever skills one could spend years to hone, now can be created easily by anyone with the help of AI. Egos get bruised and even jobs may be lost.

As an artist myself, I can sort of understand the fear and hatred for AI. Whatever skills one could spend years to hone, now can be created easily by anyone with the help of AI. Egos get bruised and even jobs may be lost.

Let’s talk about your AI Art “The Hundred Worlds”. Can you give a short intro about the book, and share a few pieces of artwork?

(Editor’s Note: Select artwork from the book “The Hundred Worlds” are littered all over this article)

As you know, I experimented and created thousands of art pieces with the help of AI and software tools. I simply selected the best of them to be included in the book!

The Hundred Worlds was originally supposed to be 300 pages, however there was a size limit for Amazon’s self-publishing, so I had to reduce it to just 150 pages.
Every page was a journey of research and trials for me, but it was fantastic. The book also contains 3 chapters of my comic called “Dearest Mother”. The comic is a poignant slice-of-life diary of a girl after planet earth is destroyed.

Last, I also had 2 guest contributors (Kris Kashtanova and Steve Coulson) who kindly shared their artwork to be included in the book.

What gave you the inspiration for publishing this book, and did you have any objectives in mind?

I do not really have a goal for the book. I will be delighted if anyone buys, but mainly I just want to see my art on actual paper and ink.

The AI art book “The Hundred Worlds” (print and digital) can be purchased online on Amazon!

So, what’s next for you?

Currently I am on a hiatus from AI art, and will be on a trip to Tasmania, Australia. I try to travel and do a work-away for about 2 months every year. Being a digital nomad, I can continue to do some work while on the move, and travelling can help to broaden my mind and creativity.

Thank you LittlePinkPebble!

Her AI art book “The Hundred Worlds” (print and digital) can be purchased online on Amazon.

You can also follow her work at the following:
https://www.instagram.com/littlepinkpebble
https://twitter.com/littlepinkpeble
https://www.facebook.com/people/Little-Pink-Pebble/100063458832852/