Argentine Art Project Uses AI To Create Faces For Children Missing During Military Dictatorship

JAKARTA - An Argentine artist named Santiago Barros uses artificial intelligence (AI) to imagine how the children of the victims who disappeared during the time of the military dictator bleeding in his country (1976-1983) will be seen today.

"By looking at them, it makes you reflect, I think that fear is still out there, that these people still haven't got their real identity, and this happens every day," said Barros, who posted photos of his @IAbuelas project on Instagram.

After the military coup in Argentina in 1976, around 30,000 people including about 500 children and infants died or disappeared, almost all civilians. The mothers and grandmothers of the victims, known as the Abuelas of Plaza de Mayo, rose to press for answers about their loved ones.

The group, which has found 132 grandchildren, appreciated the initiative, but noted that DNA testing remains an "unshakable" identification method.

"We appreciate every act of solidarity to accompany the search, but... it is important to show that this initiative is not a scientific method but art and play," the organization said in a statement.

Using the MidJourney app, Barros combines missing photos of mothers and fathers from the public archives of the Abuelas website, and creates the faces of their children as they may be seen as adults today. For each combination, the app displays a choice of faces for women and men.

"For me, it is necessary to imagine these grandchildren as adults, who already have wrinkles and gray hair," said Barros.

Esteban Herrera, a member of Abuelas who is looking for a half-brother born in detention, said many people mistakenly asked the group, not the artist, to create images of AI.

"This is someone who wants to collaborate from an artistic point of view with Abuelas," said Herrera, who joined after realizing that her mother was pregnant when she was forced to "disappear" by the state.

Barros said he always aims to support Abuelas' mission, using AI as a way for the younger generation to examine past atrocities.

However, he stressed that "this does not replace DNA samples or other Abuelas methods" such as investigating possible illegal adoption and collecting DNA samples.