Tools that help the creative process have been used for hundreds of years. If Caravaggio painted with AI, would he be “cheating”?

It’s useful to sometimes look at design from a broader perspective than a part of a product. Instead, look at it as a creative process or a journey. Like painting.

Can you create a beautiful picture with AI? For sure. But what about a true masterpiece that can withstand the test of time?

This invites you to explore how creative masterpieces of old were brought to life before our time. For example, the Caravaggio’s Medusa.

How do you think “Medusa” was created?

Back in the day, people used to say this was the first painting that could scream. I imagine the creative process had to be something like this:

• the poor model had to stay with her mouth open all day,
• probably pinched from time to time for a real grimace of pain,
• Caravaggio stayed up late, making dozens of pencil sketches to capture her expression,
• finally, after copying the best sketches on canvas, he’d start painting with oil.

When I think of masterpieces painted hundreds of years ago, I usually think of all the arduous work needed to make every brushstroke perfect.

But what if I told you that Caravaggio used “cheat” tools to skip all the preparation sketches?

There is no evidence that the master did any pencil drawings. He would start straight with oil on canvas.

Moreover, Caravaggio has created two identical Medusas, the second being 12 cm larger. This would be considered impossible without any sketches, like copying the head of the first Medusa on paper before starting with oil.

The secret of Caravaggio is that he used special tools aimed to make the creative process process easier: