Simulating Artist and Critic Dynamics - An Agent-based Application of an Evolutionary Art System

We describe an agent based artist-critic simulation. Artist agents use a swarm based evolutionary art system to evolve images that try to match their preferences. Preferred images are submitted to critic agents who then decide, accordingly to their own criteria, which images should be displayed in a public gallery. The purpose of our model is to enable the implementation of a variety of behavioral policies which result in different dynamics. A reward system determines the impact of each critic and the success of each artist, which in turn leads to behavioral and preference changes. The experimental results indicate the emergence of novel styles and trends, artist-critic cooperation, and niche exploitation.