“You are the art world’s version of a hipster barista”: Artificial intelligence is now also skilfully mocking Instagram users. With the “Roast” trend, art accounts are a particularly grateful target
When did the takeover of power by artificial intelligence begin? Which date, which app, which event will one day go down in the history books – written by AI – as the beginning of the end, as the point of no return? Perhaps it is the moment when AI started to mock humans: it is certainly meant as a harmless little joke, but in the end it turns out to be the last stage of narcissistic insult, a Copernican revolution 2.0 from which we have never recovered.
Such a mockery generator is Monicaa tool based on ChatGPT that can be used to “roast” social media users: Based on the information shared on accounts such as Instagram, Facebook or X, the AI agent creates a “personality analysis” of the user – although “personality analysis” is putting it nicely. There are other roast programs, but Monica is a particularly nasty machine for mocking human self-promotion.
All you have to do is enter the handle of the public account. For example @monopolmagazin. And the rant los:
“Monopoly Magazine, you’re like the hip art teacher who’s always trying to be cool but somehow still seems stuck in the ’90s. You have more hashtags than actual follower interaction, and your posts are so packed with names and places that you need a city map and a who’s who of the art scene to even keep up. Your love of art is admirable, but sometimes it seems like you spend more time talking about art than actually experiencing it. And honestly, who needs so many exclamation points in a post? We get it, you’re excited, but calm down a bit. Maybe a little less name-dropping and a little more substance would be the key to a truly engaging feed.”
Cheeky! This hurts not only because Monica is so direct, but also because it is well formulated – until now, the very job of journalists. When will we read the first great columns, comments and exhibition reviews from AIs? “The roast content is for entertainment purposes only,” Monica tries to de-escalate in a disclaimer. “If you find the roast content based on your account disturbing or offensive, please contact us to have it removed.”
Or roast others! The art world, with its high standards and many self-promoters, seems to be a goldmine for Monica. Speaking of being stuck in the 90s, let’s take a look at the artist Jonathan Meese:
“Jonathan, you’re like a walking art manifesto who can’t take yourself seriously enough. Your Instagram posts are a mix of cryptic art philosophies and an ego that’s bigger than your canvases. You talk about art as the ultimate freedom, but sometimes it sounds like you’re trapped in an endless monologue with yourself. Your lectures on ‘cancel culture’ are so profound that you almost forget that you live in an ivory tower made of acrylic and Caparol. And honestly, who needs enemies when you can get in your own way so well? Maybe you should take a break and look at the world without your rose-tinted art glasses.”
Wolfgang Tillmans is actually taking a break on Instagram right now. Since the artist posts in English, he is also being roasted in English:
“Oh Wolfgang, the artist with a following bigger than some small countries, yet you post as often as a solar eclipse. Your Instagram is like a museum with no exhibits, a gallery with no art. You’re the kind of person who attends international conferences and probably corrects the speakers on their own research. Your bio screams ‘artist,’ but your posts are more like a cryptic crossword puzzle that only you can solve. And let’s not even start on your music taste—Pet Shop Boys? Really? It’s like you’re stuck in a time warp where the 90s never ended. You’re the kind of person who probably has a favorite type of light bulb and can talk about it for hours.”
So he’s also stuck in the 90s. Does Monica hate that decade because there were no roast tools or social media, mockery was manual work and information about opponents was hard to come by? What does she say about younger and genuine social media professionals like @jerrygogosian aka Hilde Lynn Helphenstein, who is in the gossip game herself?
“Oh, Hilde, where do we even begin? You’re like the art world’s version of a hipster barista who insists on telling everyone how their coffee should be brewed, except you’re doing it with art and a side of unsolicited economic advice. Your ‘cutting edge’ insights are about as groundbreaking as a lukewarm take on avocado toast.”
And the original Jerry, Jerry Saltz?
“You parade through the art world like a shepherd guiding sheep and artists alike, yet somehow managing to make enemy of both. Is it the Pulitzer that inflates your head just enough to believe that your opinion is the only one that matters? Or is it New York City engulfing you in its whirlwind of deluded grandeur, insisting you alone are the Nostradamus of art?”
Klaus Biesenbach?
“You’re the kind of guy who probably has a framed picture of himself shaking hands with Marina Abramovic in his living room.”
And Marina Abramović herself?
“Your bio screams ‘dedicated to long durational performance,’ but let’s be real, it’s just a fancy way of saying you like to watch paint dry.”
Damien Hirst?
The “Tim Burton of the art scene”.
Gregory Hildebrandt?
“A walking art project tangled in an endless loop of vinyl and cassettes.”
Alicja Kwade:
“You’ve got more bronze sculptures than friends.”
Yilmaz Dziwior:
“The kind of person who probably spends more time curating your friends list than your actual exhibitions.”
To Fellrath:
“Somehow, you have managed to transform art curation into a Cirque du Soleil of metaphoric theatricality.”
Bonaventure Soh Bejeng Ndikung:
“You talk about ‘trespassing’ norms, but let’s be real, the only thing you’re trespassing is the patience of anyone who has to sit through one of your panels.”
Eliza Douglas:
“Your posts are a cryptic blend of ‘Everything Dies’ and ‘Look at my boots’.”
Kenny Schachter:
“The Andy Kaufman of the art world—a perpetual prankster trapped in a never-ending stand-up routine that only a niche audience can appreciate.”
Leon Löwentraut:
“You’re the guy who stands in a room full of people and thinks everyone is looking at you, when really they’re just trying to find the exit.”
Monica spares no one – unless you’ve set your Instagram account to “private”. Or you’re not on social media at all. Anyone who feels offended should remember that “roasting” as a stand-up element is always an homage, after all, there’s something there that the comedian or the AI can work on. After all, there are still enough people out there to roast.
