The ART in Artificial Intelligenge: Kipkemoi Opens Up About His Intentional Use [and Omission] of AR in His Work

I first introduced you to Kipkemoi Art in the latest Artist of the Month issue of Love Notes; my weekly newsletter where I get equal parts introspective and chismosa with you on any given Sunday. The first Sunday of the month, however, is reserved for breaking the devastating cycle of BREAKING NEWS and highlighting the beauty that still exists in this world, specifically the people creating it.

In this editorial-esqu artist feature for My (p)art the blog by SMP, discover what surprised me most in my time spent talking with Kipkemoi. He exclusively reveals something he seldom talks about in public yet makes a conscious choice to include in his work. 

Read about how Kipkemoi blends painting with reality to challenge the exclusive nature of the art world and dig deeper into the unanswered questions found in his art.

✨ Blending Paint with Pixels: The Augmented Reality Experience

Augmented Reality (AR) in art involves overlaying digital content, like 3D objects, animations, or interactive elements, onto real-world art pieces using technology like smartphones and apps.

When you hold your phone up to one of Kipkemoi’s works, in person, the figures begin to move, shift, and breathe, like magic.  The shapes and colors float across your screen as if you’re dreaming while awake. Your eyes shift from screen to painting trying to make sense of reality as the piece comes to life right before you!

You would think with something as impressive and unique as this that it would be a headliner in all promotional output, but for Kipkemoi, technology like this plays a different, more purposeful role.

✊🏽 To advance or to expand? An intentional approach to AR in art

“My paintings have always been my focus,” says Kipkemoi. “Technology will never be at the center of my work more than an extension in support of it.”

Where others may lean on AR in art as the impressive latest trend or experimental push of technological advances, Kipkemoi prefers it as a quiet surprise. A magical “wait… there’s more” moment that he primarily reserves for exhibitions.

Exhibitions, in Kipkemoi’s eyes, are generally spaces where an exclusive group of viewers passively observe artwork with “hands crossed behind their backs.” Much like his first taste of the art scene in Oakland that sparked his artistic journey — murals, pop-up galleries, and community spaces— Kipkemoi see’s AR technology in art as an opportunity.

A way to disarm the “stuffy museum” stigma of art, challenging how and by whom it is experienced.

“I wanted people to feel more engaged and comfortable in art exhibits and AR is a means of doing so. It not only gets your hands out of your pockets and actively interacting with the work, but it suddenly becomes more familiar.”

AR in art for Kipkemoi, allows people who “don’t feel ‘fancy’ enough for the world of fine arts” to feel more comfortable in this space as everyone has a phone and most understand the technology.

“It’s a way of bridging the gap to the often elitist art world.”

⚖️ Art, Tech, and That Murky Middle Ground

With AI-generated art sweeping the internet, the lines between inspiration, imitation, and outright theft are blurring faster than we can keep up. I.e. The recent Studio Ghibli-style AI controversy.

“I strongly feel that this is an insult to life itself.” Studio Ghibli’s Hayao Miyazaki

And he’s not wrong.

But in a world where ChatGPT has become as common a household item as the microwave, generating images faster than our leftovers can heat up, the question isn’t just what we create but how we choose to use the tools at our disposal.

For Kipkemoi, AR isn’t a gimmick or a shortcut. It’s a bridge.

A way to invite people in instead of keeping them out. A way to nudge someone out of their comfort zone and into a deeper experience of his work and— ultimately— of the art world itself just as he was nudged by the inviting art community of Oakland.

“Seeing art through the rich, culturally rooted lens of this city; not in stuffy museums, but on murals, in pop-up galleries, and community spaces inspired me to the core.”

So where do we draw the line between enhancement and exploitation? Between homage and appropriation? Between creating art with technology and letting technology claim the art?

For Kipkemoi, the answer is in the intention.

And he is also not wrong.

Because at the end of the day, the world will keep shifting and what matters most is how we decide to meet it without leaving anyone behind.

🖼️ Want more of Kipkemoi?

Check out his latest works and upcoming exhibitions at Kipkemoi Art and follow along his journey on Instagram where he often shares progress videos of his upcoming pieces.

Bonus: With by SMP request, Kipkemoi has also shared the augmented reality experience of his latest piece “We Are All Made of Stardust”— View it here!

✨ Feeling this? Pass it on! Share My (p)art by SMP with someone who’s also about this artist introspective life.

Questions for Reflection

• How can technology be used to invite people in rather than keep them out?
• In a world where AI and digital art are booming, how are you being intentional about what you create or consume?
• How do you balance embracing new technology with staying rooted in your creativity and imagination?