As the London Standard rebrands and launches the first issue of its now-weekly magazine, it’s resurrecting art critic Brian Sewell — via AI. He died in 2015 at 84 years old. The faux Sewell is back to review “Van Gogh: Poets and Lovers,” currently showing at England’s National Gallery, as part of an artificial intelligence-centered issue. The review, in Sewell’s own biting style, criticizes the exhibition as “yet another insipid exercise in sentimental hagiography.”
The use of a ghost reviewer was endorsed by Sewell’s estate; the London Standard made a donation to a charity of the estate’s choice as part of the collaboration. Sewell’s estate “are delighted” with the review, the outlet’s Paul Kanareck told the U.K. Press Gazette.
“Our late art critic was renowned for his excoriating reviews,” the Standard notes ahead of the review, part of an AI-themed special issue. The outlet notes that this is “a one-off experiment” in which they “asked AI what he would say about the National Gallery’s latest exhibition.”
It’s unclear exactly how much information the Standard’s staff provided the AI model about either Sewell or the exhibition itself, though the article closes with an excerpt from a 2010 Sewell review of a Van Gogh exhibition, “The Real Van Gogh: the Artist and his Letters” at the Royal Academy.
The attention-grabbing use of AI, which has been widely noted to have a particular talent for crafting text in someone else’s style, was first reported earlier in the week. The stunt is part of the London Standard looking to grab attention after ending its run as daily newspaper “The Evening Standard” after nearly 200 years. It’s made a switch to a weekly magazine format, with the reduced publishing schedule coming with around 150 people being laid off, including 70 editorial staffers.
Using an AI version of Sewell for this review is “intended to provoke discussion about AI and journalism,” Kanareck said.
Other barbs dropped by the AI Sewell include stating that the exhibition is “a shallow indulgence in romanticism,” its title “reeks of mawkishness,” it reduces his works to “footnotes in a trite narrative of affection,” and it includes “the most vapid of psychological readings.”
“There is nothing wrong with popular exhibitions, but to present this as an exploration of Van Gogh’s personal relationships, while failing to offer any critical insight into the art itself, is an act of cultural laziness,” the AI Sewell opines. The article later describes the exhibition by lamenting, “What a disservice to the artist, and what a betrayal of his legacy.”
The AI-themed debut issue of the new weekly version of the London Standard is fronted by an AI image of Prime Minister Keir Starmer, with the magazine interviewing the British leader about his own plans for AI as part of the nation’s tech future.
“Van Gogh: Poets and Lovers” runs at London’s National Gallery until Jan. 19. The new issue of the London Standard is out now.
The news of Sewell’s AI resurrection was first reported by Deadline.
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