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Very interesting article on how AI generated historical images help further the American cultural hegemony on the internet and in global culture.
@histodons @histodon #history #AI #AIart https://medium.com/@socialcreature/ai-and-the-american-smile-76d23a0fbfaf
@eharlitzkern @histodons @histodon Fascinating article, but no one smiled in old photos because of the time it took to set up & take the photos. It reminds me of when I was in Krakow & had a street artist draw my portrait. He told me not to smile because it would take awhile. I ended up with a 'Mona Lisa' smile in the portrait. Da Vinci probably told her to just sit quietly & think pleasant thoughts as did my artist. Smiles in photos only became common when taking photos became quick.
@KathleenFuller @histodons @histodon I’ve heard that about old photos as well, but I wonder how true that is. Ask any beauty pageant contestant about holding a smile, and they will probably tell you that it’s possible to hold a smile for a very long time. 
@eharlitzkern @KathleenFuller @histodons @histodon The camera lenses of the 19th century were very slow, so subjects had to stay absolutely still for a minute or so. Any motion would cause blurring, so there were posing stands to help the subjects remain still: https://www.vintag.es/2020/06/posing-stands.html?m=1
Related, the reason why urban streets look empty in 19th century photos is because all the motion of passers-by was faster than the camera lens so wasn’t caught on the plates.
@wennefer @eharlitzkern @KathleenFuller @histodons @histodon quibble - the lenses weren't the problem so much as the film or plate. The Brownie etc. were made possible by chemical developments.
@vance_maverick @eharlitzkern @KathleenFuller @histodons @histodon Yes, my mistake. In addition to the slow emulsions on the plates, studio photographers didn’t have the lighting we have today. So important to be still.
@wennefer @eharlitzkern @KathleenFuller @histodons @histodon concur -- the long exposure times, whatever caused them, made 19C photography look the way it does (not just empty streets but blurry water, etc.)