Will Fear of Change Stop the New Renaissance?
“We are the angry mob, We read the papers every day, We like who we like, we hate who we hate But we're also easily swayed,” sang the Kaiser Chiefs (an English indie rock band from Leeds) on their 2007 hit single, ‘The Angry Mob.’
Take a look at the graph below. What do you notice?
You spotted it, didn’t you? The yellow line shows the exponential growth of online dating—from zero in 1984 to becoming the most popular way that couples met this year.
I remember chatting with a friend back in the mid-2000s as online dating started to become something ‘non-weirdos’ did (back then it wasn't so mainstream and seen as something a bit 'weird' for want of a better word). He told me about his experiences on a site called ‘Plenty of Fish,’ and I looked at him with the kind of skeptical but curious expression many of us probably had when first hearing about similarly strange new ideas—like using a PIN number with your credit card to pay in a shop instead of signing, or staying in a stranger’s home on holiday instead of a hotel.
Fast forward to last week on a walk where I listened to a friend bemoan her complete lack of success or enjoyment with online dating. It's sadly a very familiar tale for singletons today and yet, she saw no alternative. What was once considered an outlier, something people turned to when they had “no other choice,” has now become the default.
It’s remarkable how quickly our perceptions shift. What begins as something foreign, even uncomfortable, can very rapidly reshape our lives until it feels like our current secure steadfast idea of 'reality' becomes a memory we are unsure of.
As I reflect on 2024 and look toward 2025, I see a similar transformation happening in the world of AI and art. Ideas that seemed niche, experimental, or even threatening just a few months ago are now reshaping entire industries. If you don’t believe me, google AI in Films or Advertising. AI isn’t just a tool; it’s a creative partner, an enabler, and a force for innovation.
But as with any rapid change, there’s resistance—an “angry mob” clinging to what feels safe and familiar. It’s a natural and in many ways understandable response, but one I believe we must challenge if we’re to embrace the opportunities ahead.
Every technological leap in art faced initial skepticism. Photography was once considered a soulless technical process that would kill painting. Instead, it freed painting to explore new forms of expression. The synthesizer was going to make orchestras obsolete. Instead, it created entire new genres of music while classical orchestras continued to thrive.
As we stand at the threshold of 2025, we face a familiar choice: to rage against the tide or to learn to surf it. The angry mob will always have its say – that's part of how society processes change. But history suggests that today's outrage will become tomorrow's normal, and then fade into quaint historical footnotes, like the moral panic over the waltz or the printing press.
The truth is, AI won't replace human creativity any more than cameras replaced painters or calculators replaced mathematicians. Instead, it's likely to become what all transformative tools become: invisible. Future generations won't talk about "AI art" any more than we talk about "computer music" or "digital photography" today. It will simply be another color in the artist's palette, another instrument in the orchestra.
The new Renaissance isn't coming – it's already here. And like the original Renaissance, it's not about replacing human creativity but amplifying it. The question isn't whether to embrace this change, but how to shape it. After all, the most interesting moment in any transformation isn't the angry resistance at the beginning or the quiet acceptance at the end – it's the creative explosion in the middle, where we figure out what's really possible.
That's where we are now at Pixel Gallery. And if history is any guide, the things we're most anxious about today will seem obvious tomorrow. The mob will calm down, the tide will rise, and we'll all adapt – just like we always have. The only real question is who will help shape this inevitable future, and who will simply wait for it to arrive.
Happy New Year and looking forward to surfing the AI wave of 2025 with you!
Tope
