If I sneezed into a microphone, ran that recording through Windows Media Player, then posted a screenshot of the swirly colors here exclaiming “Hey Lemmy - Do you like this art I made?” …would that even be an honest question? It’d probably just get downvoted cuz folks would take one look at it and conclude “You didn’t make that, and it’s not art.”

I'd argue there is potentially up to three artists here. The creator of the algorithm, the creator of the sound/music, and the person mashing the two together to create the final product. Just because a machine is used in the process doesn't remove the acts of expression.

Same with most AI tools. You have the creators of the training material (or culmination of inspiration), the engineers creating the AI, and the person leveraging both to create a derivative work. All artists in their own right, IMO.

Even if you created an LLM that just took a randomized seed and spit out trash poems and displays them only in an enclosed dark box all without any human interaction, I'd still consider that art. Put that in an art gallery installation and people would stand around and speculate over what was happening in the black box.

Anything can be art, it just needs someone to curate it and present it as art. The more important question is if it's good art.

So… is an algorithm even capable of producing art?

What is it exactly do you think humans do? An algorithm is a sequence(s) used to achieve goal(s). Isn't problem solving one of the most important aspects of our existence?