Artists Rage at AI
A viral thread lamenting AI’s impact on artists — centered on Zoe’s 2024 'Faerie Court Soraka' splash art — racked up 8,787 likes, spotlighting real-world discouragement among creatives. The conversation underlines how fan art, commission work and creator livelihoods are being reshaped by AI fears. (x.com)
The splash credited to “Zoe” on her ArtStation page lists the work as a Riot collaboration with West Studio and names Riot AD Rudy Siswanto, West Studio AD Mingchen Shen and the League Splash Team for final polish. (crownsart.artstation.com) Public records of the skin list it as a 1350 RP official League of Legends release, confirming the image at the center of the thread is an authored, commercial Riot asset tied to a paid cosmetic. (lolskin.info) The artist who publicly shared concepts for that splash is listed online as Zoe (Zoe Zhu), who sells prints and lists Riot commissions in her portfolio, establishing the post’s connection to a named professional illustrator. (crownsart.artstation.com) Independent illustrators have reported steep drops in commission work as viral AI-image trends surged, with interviews and reporting citing creators saying requests and paid jobs slowed markedly in 2024–2025. (nbcnews.com) Legal and evidentiary fights have reinforced artist concerns: a court exhibit and media reporting in January 2024 included lists naming thousands of artists whose works were used to train major image generators, a focal point in ongoing lawsuits. (nbcnews.com) Platform moves have sharpened the backlash — X/Twitter updated terms in November 2024 to allow user content to be used for model training unless users opt out, and the late-2025 rollout of on-platform AI image-editing tools triggered public boycotts and creators leaving the service. (themarysue.com)
