We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Wendy Barnett. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Wendy below.

Hi Wendy , thanks for joining us today. How did you learn to do what you do? Knowing what you know now, what could you have done to speed up your learning process? What skills do you think were most essential? What obstacles stood in the way of learning more?

I’ve learned how to use AI technology to assist me in creative projects by trial and error and researching as much information as I can find. Having a full-time job and being a single mom puts a limitation on my free time to learn this new hobby, but finding those extra free minutes in the day to find the latest information is helpful. In the field of AI art, I believe that a person doesn’t need a certain skill set, just a love of learning and exploring new technology and how it can blend with creative ideas. With many artificial intelligence programs, the learning curve comes with trial and error and discovering what inputs work and which ones don’t. It’s in that discovery process that I find satisfaction. I believe that having more free time would allow me to learn more, but I also know that with my limited free time, I maximize what I can learn as efficiently as possible.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I work at an NPR-affiliate public radio station in Richmond, Kentucky, 88.9 WEKU-FM as Operations Director and Morning Host. In this role, I primarily maintain two of our sister stations, WEKU News and WEKU Classical, by creating and programming the playlists and ensuring both are performing optimally. My love of computers and art blend together for my new favorite hobby: creating AI artworks. Since September, I have utilized the AI text-to-image generator Midjourney to create coloring books, a children’s book, and artworks for the first AI art exhibit in Kentucky. The art exhibit is themed “Kentucky Landscapes” and features AI generated images of scenes from around Kentucky in various mediums. On the night of the reception, I gave a presentation to about 40 community members on how to use text-to-image generators for their own artistic hobbies. I’ve received much positive feedback, but I’m mostly proud of hearing people tell me that I’ve inspired them to pick up creative pursuits of their own, whether it’s AI-related or a traditional craft.

Is there mission driving your creative journey?

My mission that drives me is to inspire others into tapping into their creativity and finding a hobby that will bring them joy. There is such a great feeling that comes with the personal accomplishment of seeing a project through from beginning to end, standing back, looking at the work, and saying, “I made that.” I believe that when people explore their own creative journeys, they can feel a deep sense of pride and joy for their work. That’s the positive energy that the world needs right now.

What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?

The most rewarding aspect of being a creative individual is to hear feedback that I’ve inspired others. Recently, after a few video posts I made on social media with images I created in Midjourney and what the process looked like, a friend reached out to me. He’s a high school art teacher and told me that after watching my videos, he incorporated AI technology in his class. He instructed the students to create their own image generations of a sketch of a pear as a reference piece for their drawing assignment. The class was a success as the students were actively engaged and excited to use this new form of creating reference works. I was thrilled to hear that he used this new method to connect with his students.     

Contact Info:

• Instagram: thewendybarnett
• Facebook: thewendybarnett
• Twitter: thewendybarnett

Image Credits
Barbi Reynolds Photography