Is AI Coming for your job? Illustrators are fighting back! (Part 2) with Chris Haughton

The Good Ship Illustration

This week, we’re back with part 2 of our conversation with the brilliant Chris Haughton – illustrator, author, and passionate copyright advocate.

Here's a link to part 1 in case you need to catch up!

In this half of our Chris Haughton special, Chris shares how his first picture book came about, and we also chat about confidence, creative doubt, and why showing up again and again matters.

And then… we go deep on AI.

Copyright, ethics, government policy, and what we illustrators can actually do to protect our work. Chris is off to Parliament soon (!!!) and shares everything he’s learned so far.

In this episode:

• How Chris got his first book deal without an agent
• Staying confident through rejection and doubt
• The terrifying reality of generative AI and what we can do about it
• How copyright works (and what’s at risk)
• The organisations fighting for our creative rights

Timestamps:
00:00 – How Chris broke into picture books (by accident)
04:00 – Animation, art school, and graphic style
08:00 – Building confidence through volume
10:00 – Words, images, and writing your own stories
14:00 – Why AI is a massive threat to illustrators
17:00 – Who’s fighting back (and how to get involved)
21:00 – Why we need all creatives on board

🛟 Links + Resources mentioned in this episode:

• The Association of Illustrators (AOI)
• Simona's Substack: Against the Box
• Chris Haughton's website
• Chris' Instagram

✨ If this episode has ye all fired up (us too!) please do share it with your creative pals – and don’t forget to subscribe so you don’t miss what’s next!

Bye bye,
x The Good Ship Illustration (Helen, Katie & Tania)

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