Christmas Stroll Poster Strikes a Nerve in Bozeman

His poster won the contest for the Christmas Stroll in Bozeman, but it won't be distributed after criticism from local artists.

There was a guest opinion column in the Bozeman Daily Chronicle that caught my eye with this headline: "Why the Christmas Stroll poster strikes a nerve"

Did Bozangeles strike again? Or, is there something else to the story?

Montana State University graduate graphic designer Ghassane Moutaoukil created the winning poster for the poster contest promoting the Christmas Stroll in Bozeman. But, as the Chronicle previously reported, his poster will not be distributed because critics are claiming that the poster was created with AI- artificial intelligence.

Moutaoukil denies the claims that he used AI, but his poster got pulled anyway.

You can see a bunch of comments on the Chronicle Instagram page below where it is clear that the folks who overwhelmingly opposed the selection of this poster is because they feel AI was used in the process.

Now...back to that op-ed I mentioned earlier. Nava Streiter is the curator of the Yellowstone Gateway Museum. In her column, she outlined why artists believe the piece was created with AI. She also added this line:

We start to wonder if the picture is about the sublimation of ordinary life or about the apparition of heaven on earth. The “Christmas Stroll” event is not hiding its religious affiliation, but the line between Christmas and Bozeman’s secular business association blends like the landscape and starry sky.

 

The main question I had after reading the articles was- were there any rules in place regarding the use of AI in the poster contest? That certainly seems to be the case as I look at the Downtown Bozeman website announcing the poster contest, especially when I read this line: "Local artists are invited to submit original designs that capture the holiday spirit and sense of community that makes the Christmas Stroll so special."