Brighton’s streets have become synonymous with colourful murals and striking street art – but can a computer recreate these designs?

That is the question that has been on our lips at The Argus office after a recent piece of street art shared on social media turned out to be generated by Artificial Intelligence.

So, inspired by this, we asked AI to create its own renditions of street art across Brighton and Hove, and the results are fascinating.

The Argus: AI generated art supposed to be in BrightonAI generated art supposed to be in Brighton (Image: OpenArt AI)

The mission to create this new artwork came after Matt Whistler, also known as Artist Dotty, shared a piece of street art which gained thousands of reactions on social media.

While many questioned where on earth the street art could be (and whether it bared a striking resemblance to James Norton), Matt revealed that the artwork was the product of a prompt to AI.

Like Matt, we asked AI art generator OpenArt to create “photorealistic street art in Brighton, UK” as well as a number of areas of the city. This is what it came up with as ideas for our streets.

North Laine

The Argus: AI generated art supposed to be in North LaineAI generated art supposed to be in North Laine (Image: OpenArt AI)

The North Laine area of Brighton has become a hotspot for street art with murals around every corner.

So, when we asked OpenArt to create art in the area, the results were frighteningly realistic.

The Argus: AI generated street art supposed to be in North LaineAI generated street art supposed to be in North Laine (Image: OpenArt AI)

One work, a woman with white hair on a blue background, feels like it could certainly be on the corner of Ship Street or Trafalgar Street.


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Similarly, another piece covering a blue wall with shades of blue could easily be in the neighbourhood.

The Lanes

As well as North Laine, The Lanes’ windy streets are also the perfect place for murals to pop up in Brighton.

In fact, this cobbled street with art on either side looks like it would definitely fit in the area.

The Argus: AI generated art in The Lanes in BrightonAI generated art in The Lanes in Brighton (Image: OpenArt AI)

The artwork, with its cosmic background and woman with brown hair, fits its surroundings and looks hyper-realistic with the brickwork effect re-created.

Further down the street, more artwork encapsulates the vibrant feel and tight streets that can be found in parts of The Lanes.

Brighton and Hove

Street art is less prevalent in other areas of Brighton and Hove, but that is not to say that it cannot be found.

The Argus: AI generated art supposed to be in Church Road, HoveAI generated art supposed to be in Church Road, Hove (Image: OpenArt AI)

When we asked OpenArt to create a piece of art in Hove, it generated this face of a woman with her hands to her face. We thought that the artwork would fit in perfectly in Church Road.

On the seafront, the AI created a landscape scene of beachgoers placed right on the beach enjoying the sea.

The Argus: AI generated art supposed to be on the seafront in BrightonAI generated art supposed to be on the seafront in Brighton (Image: OpenArt AI)

We also loved the piece created to resemble a rooftop in Brighton, with a more graffiti-styled piece showing a different side to the artwork in the city.

Artificial Intelligence has seen a boom throughout 2023, including in art models and with language models such as ChatGPT.

So while these images have not physically been created yet, they show what the technology is capable of in terms of ideas.