Motif: A Humanistic Magazine’s Inhuman Cover

Claremont McKenna College's Gould Center for Humanistic Studies.

In late November, the Gould Center for Humanistic Studies at Claremont McKenna released their fall semester edition of Motif, a student-run creative arts magazine. The issue included a variety of art mediums, from poetry and creative essays to pencil sketches and nail art. In the editorial board’s introductory letter, they said they were “thrilled to support CMC artists and creatives.”

When a person picks up a copy of Motif, they might be surprised to find that their first glimpse of the magazine won’t be of creative student art designs. In fact, the cover art won’t even be human-made. Since Motif’s inaugural issue in Fall 2023, the editorial board has decided to design the cover using generative artificial intelligence. It’s easy for anyone to see the irony in this decision – a creative arts magazine for a humanistic center using AI for the frontmost aspect of their semester-long project.

In their note about the cover, the editorial team explains that their AI usage will “ensure that future editions of Motif will connect with each other through shared visual elements,” and that they “are delighted to harness the creative strength of Generative AI and create a cover that encompasses our vision for Motif.”

Consider magazines like The New Yorker or The Atlantic. Though all their covers follow a similar theme and style, each is human-made and incredibly unique. Every cover has the iconic name and font (a “shared visual element”), but retains its own individuality and creativity. While the pages of Motif feature student creativity and passion (albeit the clip art can be quite distracting), the cover falls short of reflecting that fact. Motif’s cover is devoid of artistic meaning and human touch.

Additionally, it’s hard to believe that their cover manifests any “creative strength” beyond what a human being could produce. While finding a student to design the cover may have included slightly more work for the editorial team, it would not have been an insurmountable hurdle. In 2023, Hiram Chodosh designed the College’s holiday card. Organizations like The Center for Writing and Public Discourse frequently run competitions where students submit designs for the chance of a feature. And with a team of such creative students contributing to the magazine’s inner matter, it certainly wouldn’t have been difficult to find an individual capable of producing a cover more reflective of the Gould Center’s humanistic focus.

It’s ironic that Motif claims the use of AI “encompasses [their] vision.” The Gould Center’s mission statement says that “To enhance CMC's mission to educate leading minds, the Gould Center for Humanistic Studies provides opportunities for research, study, and experience in art, literature, history, philosophy and other fields as a means to understand and develop the power and use of the imagination.” Motif using AI for their cover robs students of creative opportunities and discourages the use of their imagination. 

By using AI for their cover art, Motif tells readers that art is a dying discipline and that student creativity isn’t worth protecting from the encroachment of AI. Think about it this way: if a student submitted a piece to Motif that was created solely using AI, would we praise this student for their work? Not at all. We’d probably wonder why they submitted the piece in the first place. The Motif editorial board should be held to the same standard.