Midjourney Explorations: #7 — Art Media, Paper and Mixed Media!
Art is not just a product; it’s a process, a journey, or in our case a Midjourney! In the realm of generative AI art, the possibilities for creativity are endless, but are we using the full spectrum of artistic mediums to enrich our creations? This article will introduce a dynamic twist to your generative AI projects by focusing on underappreciated but incredibly expressive forms of art — paper and textile art.
From Collage and Quilling to Appliqué and Boro, these art media offer unique textures, colors, and forms that can add unparalleled depth to your AI-generated art. You are provided with actionable prompts designed to be integrated into your generative AI prompts, amplifying their creative potential. Whether you’re a Midjourney veteran or a newcomer curious about the possibilities of blending traditional art mediums with modern technology, this guide is your gateway to a wider landscape of artistic exploration. So let’s jump right in!
Paper Art Styles
Paper styles can add wonderful depth to an image in ways that other sorts of prompts simply cannot accomplish.
Textile Art — Bring Those Objects to Life!
When I was first deciding what art media to cover I nearly skipped textiles. At first blush, one does not necessarily consider how much textile art forms can empower their images.
Above is a great example of how you can take something like Appliqué and send your image into a whole new space. I did not actually get unicorn Appliqués but both both unicorns and Appliqués. It is crazy bold with just that one word, I am not sure I could have described my way into that picture, it’s just “so very” but it made me smile.
One thing I must point out here is that you do not have to use my structured naming for these things, there is no one right way to prompt for Midjourney. For these, I am using the format I am so that there is consistency across the various styles in how I am prompting. Your mileage may vary. I prompted the dress on the right more simply and it worked fine. Try it in whatever way makes sense to you and feels most natural, if you find you are not getting what you want, try a bit more structure and see if it helps.
The portrait did not come out quite the way I expected for the prompt but the effect was still interesting.
I should have added full body to the Mardi Gras prompt, this is still a good illustration of how the addition of something like bead woven can influence a picture. I had a real giggle when I prompted “joan of arc in beaded-chainmaile” It was just so wrong!
Above right is one of those places where I am just compelled to put things that do not go together right there combined to see what happens. It is not quit what you would expect but it sure is fun looking! It looks a bit more like embroidery.
There are simply too many types of lace to go very deep into them. A quick query to the AI got me this list of 50 styles of lace: Alençon, Argentan, Battenberg, Bedfordshire, Binche, Blonde, Bobbin, Branscombe, Brussels, Bucks Point, Burano, Calais, Cantu, Carrickmacross, Chantilly, Clones, Cluny, Devon, Duchesse, Filet, Flanders, Guipure, Hinojosa, Honiton, Idrija, Irish Crochet, Kenmare, Lille, Limerick, Maline, Mechlin, Milanese, Modern Point, Needle, Orenburg, Pag, Plauen, Point de Gaze, Princess, Raschel, Reticella, Ribbons and Bows, Russian, Schiffli, Spanish, Teneriffe, Torchon, Valenciennes, Venetian, Yak.
Until researching for this article I did not realize there was a name for this kind of curtain decoration. These various unusual textile art forms are not for everyone, but words are power with any generative AI, so here is to “looking up all of the words!”
These ribbon embroidery pillows and the Trapunto ones further down the page really pop, adding one to a sofa or bed in a room scene would really liven things up.
A very similar image is created replacing shibori with tie-dye. The japanese word may generate other looks depending on how it is used.
One of the beauties of the system is that you can use styles in completely new ways, such as applying this type of embroidery to something so very different and find styles of your very own.
- I am not completely sure that Midjourney understood the nature of the dense embroidery here but the effect is quite interesting anyway.
- Tufting is definitely a word that does not need the whole “style of” thing. A prompt with tufted chair, tufted headboard, or other such furniture item is usually going to work just fine. It does seem that Midjourney pulls toward furniture with this word so if you are looking to use it in a non-furniture context it may require some extra words to get you there.
With the word tapestry, I found that Midjourney pulls hard toward this sort of style with all the various other things I tried to throw at it, different embroideries and cloth techniques. To get those other styles to show through I suggest losing the word tapestry and try for wall hanging or some other base fabric type.
The right prompt shows how you might take two objects and create something new and interesting, in this case by combining Teneriffe lace and a snowflake. Interesting how in the first three it tries to make it a flower on a plant. Cool and random.
- For those creating monarchs, deities and such Goldwork may be just the word you are looking for!
ALL OF THE PROMPTS ABOVE IN ORDER
A collage of summer-themed objects. Paper-art in the style of Collage.
A photo montage combining a city skyline and a forest. Paper-art in the style of Photo-Montage.
An intricate paper cutting design for a wedding invitation. Paper-art in the style of Paper-Cutting.
A quilled floral pattern. Paper-art in the style of Quilling.
An origami crane with patterned paper. Paper-art in the style of Origami.
A symmetrical kirigami design featuring stars. Paper-art in the style of Kirigami
A paper marbling pattern with swirls of blue and green. Paper-art in the style of Paper Marbling.
A pop-up book page showing a fairy tale castle. Paper-art in the style of Pop-Up Art.
A Suminagashi marbling effect with concentric circles. Paper-art in the style of Ebru or Suminagashi.
A silhouette of a dancing couple against a sunset backdrop. Paper-art in the style of Silhouette Art.
A parchment craft greeting card with a floral border. Paper-art in the style of Parchment Craft.
A monoprint featuring the outline of a leaf. Paper-art in the style of Monoprint on Paper.
A mosaic of a butterfly using tiny colored paper squares. Paper-art in the style of Paper Mosaic.
A stencil art piece featuring the moon and stars. Paper-art in the style of Stenciling on Paper.
Screen printing layers to create a multi-color tiger face. Paper-art in the style of Screen Printing on Paper.
A paper quilting pattern featuring a patchwork heart. Paper-art in the style of Paper Quilting.
A papier-mâché sculpture of an elephant. Paper-art in the style of Papier-Mâché.
A tote bag with patchwork butterflies. Textile-art in the style of Appliqué
A bedspread covered in unicorn Appliqués
A patched and mended pair of jeans. Textile-art in the style of Boro
A celestial night sky filled with stars and a crescent moon. Textile-art in the style of Batik
floral batik dress
A blouse embellished with golden threads. Textile-art in the style of Couching
A floral-patterned cushion cover. Textile-art in the style of Crewel
A table runner featuring geometric cut-out designs. Textile-art in the style of Cutwork
A summer dress with blurry; dyed patterns. Textile-art in the style of Ikat
A quilt depicting a city skyline. Textile-art in the style of Free-Motion-Quilting
A canvas showcasing a vibrant underwater scene. Textile — art in the style of Needlepoint
a needlepoint-embroidered-portrait of Abraham Lincoln
A cozy winter hat in various shades of blue. Textile-art in the style of Felting
A handbag covered in intricate bead patterns. Textile-art in the style of Bead-Weaving
Mardi Gras dancer in an intricate-bead-woven-bodysuit in a saturated Mardi- Gras-color-palette
joan of arc in beaded-chainmaile
A shawl created with looped lace designs. Textile-art in the style of Hairpin-Lace
ethereal butterfly with huge-brightly-colored-hairpin-lace-wings
A small handbag featuring padded butterflies. Textile-art in the style of Stumpwork
A sweater with an elaborate cable knit pattern. Textile-art in the style of Knitwear
A winter landscape, mountains in the background. Textile-art in the style of Knitwear
A small rug made from recycled fabrics. Textile-art in the style of Latch-Hook
A summerlandscape, mountains in the background. Textile-art in the style of Latch-Hook
50 styles of lace: Alençon, Argentan, Battenberg, Bedfordshire, Binche, Blonde, Bobbin, Branscombe, Brussels, Bucks Point, Burano, Calais, Cantu, Carrickmacross, Chantilly, Clones, Cluny, Devon, Duchesse, Filet, Flanders, Guipure, Hinojosa, Honiton, Idrija, Irish Crochet, Kenmare, Lille, Limerick, Maline, Mechlin, Milanese, Modern Point, Needle, Orenburg, Pag, Plauen, Point de Gaze, Princess, Raschel, Reticella, Ribbons and Bows, Russian, Schiffli, Spanish, Teneriffe, Torchon, Valenciennes, Venetian, Yak.
A mat made from colorful; looped fabric. Textile-art in the style of Locker-Hooking
A hanging wall plant holder. Textile-art in the style of Macramé
A summer dress featuring openwork patterns. Textile — art in the style of Openwork
An ornate theatre curtain with woven trim. Textile-art in the style of Passementerie
A geometric quilt of vibrant hexagons. Textile-art in the style of Patchwork
A pillow decorated with flowing ribbon roses. Textile-art in the style of Ribbon-Embroidery
A rug depicting a Nordic winter landscape. Textile-art in the style of Rya
A set of indigo dyed cloth napkins. Textile-art in the style of Shibori
A garden of blooming cherry blossoms. Textile-art in the style of Sashiko
A screenshot from the movie The Nightmare Before Christmas embroidered in the style of Sashiko
A toddler’s dress with embroidered gathers. Textile-art in the style of Smocking
A throw pillow featuring a pixelated smiley face. Textile-art in the style of Pixel-Crochet
A floor rug made of woven old T-shirts. Textile-art in the style of Rag-Rug
A two-layered scarf with contrasting colors. Textile-art in the style of Double-Cloth
A wall hanging featuring ocean waves. Textile-art in the style of Canvas-Work
A cushion featuring a raised image of a rose. Textile-art in the style of Trapunto
A retro armchair with tufted upholstery. Textile-art in the style of Tufting
A wall hanging depicting an enchanted forest. Textile-art in the style of Tapestry
A decorative doily with a radial lace pattern. Textile-art in the style of Teneriffe
A large Teneriffe-lace-snowflake
An old-school sampler showcasing a variety of stitches. Textile-art in the style of Cross-Stitch
A bedspread featuring patchwork squares and soft padding. Textile-art in the style of Quilting
An ornate ceremonial robe featuring metallic accents. Textile-art in the style of Goldwork
A ceremonial cushion embroidered with gold and gems. Textile-art in the style of Zardozi.
Collage of paper artIn Conclusion
In the fast-paced, ever-evolving world of generative AI art, I’ve found that revisiting traditional forms of paper and textile art can add layers of depth and sophistication to our automated creations. I hope that by sharing these styles, techniques, and prompts with you, I’ve given you the inspiration to meld these age-old mediums into your own Midjourney generative AI prompts.
For me, the fusion of the old with the new, the analog with the digital, is a journey that is incredibly rewarding. As is often the case in any fulfilling journey, the real beauty lies in the unexpected discoveries that reshape and enrich our perspective on what is creatively possible. So, I encourage you to take that first step — your AI-generated masterpiece is but a prompt away.
Thank you for reading all the way through! If you found this article valuable, feel free to give it some claps and consider following for more content like this. Your support and engagement mean the world to me, and I’m excited to be part of your artistic journey through generative AI.
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