M Bates Art

Work in progress of a Celtic story. Sadhbd, Fionn mac Cumhaill, and Oisín.
The mother gets turned into a deer, and the child is raised in the wild by his mother deer. In the show that’s still up at Its About Time Cultural Art center, my work is alongside Erin Libby. Her paintings are all full of characters that ask your mind to imagine the story while you’re standing looking at the painting. I am grateful to Erin for awakening me to this ironically simple addition of complexity to my paintings. It definitely takes longer to combine characters, this is my first attempt~ I still have to add the child in the left-hand corner, lots of flowers and plants still to be done and I’m kind of wondering about not having the typical rolling hill background- that might go away. And of course it’s gotta be animated so there’s still a lot of blinking and head bobbing to work out as well.

Currently showing on shorts.
If I post this on Facebook reels, I will be training their AI with my original art so check the video out on YouTube shorts instead - link in the comments

I’m feeling incredibly grateful that 9 of 18 works sold at the opening. Wow- that’s never happened to me before! The better news is that they are prints. Giclèe to be more specific- therefore more are available. My Giclée prints are deep wrapped canvas- so no framing necessary.
The pieces in the show range in price from $170 - $300. If you can’t stop by the Gallery to see them yourself- Comment below and I will DM you my Gallery link- I’d rather not train the ‘you-know-what-intelligence’ by posting all of my art publicly.
Thanks “It’s About Time Cultural Arts Center” for hosting such a great opening!

AI training prevention! Who out there can tell me your experience with Glaze or similar AI training prevention for your publicly shared art jpeg or png files?

Work in progress: simple animation sketch

Please join me for this delightful event- I’m so thrilled to be part of this show!

I just uploaded my most tho throw all in one lesson for using the ZoomArt application on my channel, the tube that is you. See the comments to get there.


I just sent this off to two representatives in my state. Artists please consider copying this and send it to your own representatives.

Dear (lawmaker),
I am a working artist and would be glad to assist the legislature in understanding how artificial intelligence systems are currently using artists’ work without clear consent.

Many creators are discovering that their artwork, writing, and images are being used to train commercial AI systems simply because the work exists online. The only “protections” offered are buried in complicated terms of service or obscure opt-out mechanisms that most people cannot reasonably locate or manage.

Posting creative work online should not automatically grant corporations permission to use it to train AI models.

This issue affects not only individual artists but the broader creative economy that contributes to our collective cultural and economic vitality.

I encourage you to explore legislation that requires transparency about training datasets, meaningful consent from creators, and fair compensation when copyrighted work is used for AI training. I would be happy to contribute the perspective of working artists if this issue is considered.

Sincerely,