Ben Cullen Williams Creates AI Self-Portrait with Google DeepMind, Reimagining Portraiture for Generative Era
Ben Cullen Williams, an artist based in London, has unveiled a new initiative called Self Portrait, in partnership with Google Arts and Culture and Jason Baldridge from DeepMind. This project employs generative AI to blend the AI's self-image with Williams's artistic perspective. Born in 1988, Williams works in diverse mediums and was longlisted for the 2021 Aesthetica Art Prize for his work, Living Archive: An AI Performance Experiment. He holds a degree in architecture and an MA in Sculpture from the Royal College of Art. This winter, he is collaborating with Sir Wayne McGregor to redevelop a kinetic sculpture for an exhibition at Somerset House and is also advancing a project initiated during his residency at Mount Etna. The interview was released on December 20, 2025.
Key facts
- Ben Cullen Williams created Self Portrait using generative AI trained on his own images
- The project was developed with Google Arts and Culture and Google DeepMind research scientist Jason Baldridge
- Williams was longlisted for the 2021 Aesthetica Art Prize for Living Archive: An AI Performance Experiment
- The artist studied architecture before completing an MA in Sculpture at the Royal College of Art
- Williams first connected with Jason Baldridge in 2021 through engineer Bryce Cronkite-Ratcliff
- The AI fine-tuning process created images with human-like flaws and imperfections
- Williams is redeveloping a kinetic sculpture with Wayne McGregor for exhibition at Somerset House in winter 2025
- The artist will undertake a residency in the Dolomites in early 2026
Entities
Artists
- Ben Cullen Williams
- Wayne McGregor
- Jason Baldridge
- Bryce Cronkite-Ratcliff
- Emma Jacob
Institutions
- Google Arts and Culture
- Google DeepMind
- Aesthetica Art Prize
- Royal College of Art
- Somerset House
Locations
- London
- United Kingdom
- Mount Etna
- Italy
- Dolomites