From Blank Box to Creative Partner: Designing Ecological On-Ramps for First-Time AI Artists

While generative AI promises to democratize creativity, we lack empirical understanding of how creative professionals begin using these systems. Through a 10-week longitudinal study following one artist’s self-directed exploration, we ask three case-bounded questions: what interaction patterns emerged? What dynamics characterized sustainable co-creation for this artist? How might we evaluate successful integration in this case? Our findings from this case study reveal: (1) physical environments and material practices drove digital interaction; (2) specific temporal patterns emerged (short prompt bursts, consolidation periods, multi-day resurfacing cycles) and (3) productive discomfort and sustained tension marked successful sessions. These patterns suggest alternative design spaces worth exploring. We contribute: (1) four empirically-grounded design patterns (park-and-resurface, warm-up modes, affect-to-action bridges, comfort controls) that could be prototyped and tested; and (2) speculative provocations that challenge efficiency-first paradigms. This case study demonstrates that some users may benefit from approaches orthogonal to current design paradigms.