AI Art & the Handmade World

A post by Lindsay M.

As someone who has spent many years planning artisan events, jurying applications, and working closely with hundreds of makers across the Flathead Valley, I’ve watched the conversation around AI art grow louder and more complicated.

I’ve seen the excitement. I’ve seen the frustration.
And honestly? I’ve felt a mix of both myself.

• AI tools are everywhere now—and they aren’t going away—but handmade communities like ours have a unique relationship with creativity. We value the human process, the time, the skill, and the heart behind every item. That’s why the rise of AI can feel both intriguing and unsettling.

So here are my thoughts - as someone who deeply loves handmade craft and has supported it from every angle.

AI Can Be Helpful… When It Supports Creativity

I’ll be the first to admit it: AI can be incredibly useful.

I’ve used it myself for:

• drafting social media posts
• adjusting design files
• writing profile paragraphs
• testing the “feel” of an idea before committing hours to it

For many artists, AI is simply becoming another tool—no different than digital tablets, photo editing software, laser cutters, or Cricut machines were in their own time. Those tools didn’t replace handmade work; they expanded what makers could do.

Used well, AI can enhance creativity, not replace it.

Where I begin to feel uneasy is when AI becomes the creator instead of the assistant.

Where the Line Gets Blurry

I’ve walked countless markets and talked with so many customers who come specifically because they want something human-made. They want the story, the skill, the imperfections, the craftsmanship.

So when an image is generated entirely by AI, printed, and sold as “art,” I wrestle with questions like:

• Is this truly handmade?
• What was the maker’s role?
• Does this belong in a handmade-focused market?

These aren’t easy questions—and they’re not meant to shame anyone. Technology evolves, and creativity evolves with it. But the handmade community depends on honesty and clarity. When AI replaces the artistic process rather than supporting it, it becomes harder to fit it into the world of handcrafted goods.

My Personal Belief: Enhancement, Not Replacement

Here’s where I personally land:

AI should make a handmade product better—not take the place of the artist’s creativity or craftsmanship.

If AI helps refine an idea, inspire a concept, or speed up the “digital busywork”?
Great. That’s a win.

But if it removes the human creativity, the craftsmanship, the skill, or the maker’s actual involvement… then we lose what makes handmade work meaningful in the first place.

There is so much value in the hand-drawn lines,  the carved edges, the brush strokes, the learned techniques, the hours of trial and error and the connection between maker and material.

AI doesn’t have those things. We do. And that matters.

Transparency Goes a Long Way

Another personal belief: people appreciate honesty.

If a maker uses AI in their process, saying so openly can build trust rather than break it. Customers don’t expect perfection—they expect authenticity.

Transparency respects the buyer, the fellow makers and the art form itself.  It helps keep the handmade community grounded and fair.

We Don’t Have to Fear AI — But We Should Use It Intentionally

At the end of the day, my goal isn’t to tell anyone what they should or shouldn’t make. I’ve seen too much creativity in this valley to ever want to limit it.

But I do believe this - AI is at its best when it amplifies the human creator, not when it replaces them.

Handmade work is special because it carries a maker’s imagination, skill, and heart. AI can support that process beautifully, but human creativity is still the soul of handmade—and always will be.