Gen Z Picks Up Paintbrushes as AI Takes Over Screens

While artificial intelligence can generate finished artwork at the click of a button, Gen Z is doing something unexpected: setting up wooden easels in parks and learning to paint the old-fashioned way.

In London's Hyde Park, young painters kick off their sneakers and settle onto picnic rugs with canvases and brushes. Patrice-Rose McLean, founder of Ambient Art London, has watched her mobile art events explode in popularity among people under 30.

"I think people are increasingly craving experiences that feel simpler, more meaningful and more connected to nature," she says. Her groups gather outdoors to practice plein air painting, the French term for creating art in the open air rather than in a studio.

The numbers tell the story. Last year, New York's Pratt Institute had waitlists for painting and drawing classes. Parsons School of Design saw applications jump 64% since 2016. Instead of scrolling through feeds on their couches, young people are choosing Italian art schools and park painting sessions.

On TikTok, plein air painting videos rack up millions of views. Remington Robinson, a 40-year-old artist from Ohio, has captured 13 million likes on some of his outdoor painting tutorials. He uses recycled Altoid tins as mini palettes and films himself painting everything from Paris street scenes to pickup trucks in Mexico.

For Robinson, plein air painting feels like meditation. "Every single plein air painting I make is a direct byproduct of a one to two hour waking-state meditation process," he says. The practice demands patience as he navigates changing light, bugs, and people accidentally blocking his view.

Art historian Clare Willsdon from the University of Glasgow sees a pattern. During the Industrial Revolution, people turned to the Arts and Crafts movement as a protest against soulless factory goods. Today's turn toward traditional art feels similar.

"The world that you can make on your screen via AI is so tightly organized, and at the same time you can't quite see where it's going to go in the future," Willsdon explains. Setting up an easel outdoors helps people embrace the rhythms of nature instead.

Kim Tay, co-founder of the Artling gallery in Singapore, agrees the parallels are striking. "We are experiencing anxiety over the introduction of a new technology that the general public has no control over," she says. People naturally gravitate toward activities that emphasize human experience and the unique qualities of creating something with your own hands.

The trend extends beyond landscape painting. Figure drawing, popularized in the 15th century, is making a comeback too. Nucleus gallery in California hosts weekly Drawing Club sessions where up to 50 artists squeeze in to sketch live models, from drag performers to cosplayers.

Why This Inspires

This movement shows that technology doesn't have to replace human creativity. Young people aren't rejecting innovation but are choosing to balance it with tactile, mindful practices that connect them to nature and each other. They're proving that the simple act of putting paint to canvas can be revolutionary in a world that feels increasingly automated.

Thirty-year-old content creator Gabi Sprout captured the sentiment perfectly when she tried plein air painting in Miami: with an uncertain future ahead, people want to hold onto experiences that feel genuinely human.