# XAIxArts Manifesto: Explainable AI for the Arts

arXiv: https://arxiv.org/abs/2502.21220 · HTML: https://mlsanity.com/paper/2502.21220/

## Key facts

- Cited by 7 papers in the map (data through 14 Oct 2026).
- Builds on 14 of its 41 references that are in the map.
- First posted on arXiv 28 Feb 2025.

## Builds on (most cited first, 14 of 14)

- [A Survey Of Methods For Explaining Black Box Models](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1802.01933/) (2018)
- [Questioning the AI: Informing Design Practices for Explainable AI User Experiences](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2001.02478/) (2020)
- [Towards Relatable Explainable AI with the Perceptual Process](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2112.14005/) (2021)
- [To Explain or Not to Explain: A Study on the Necessity of Explanations for Autonomous Vehicles](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2006.11684/) (2020)
- [ExplAIn: Explanatory Artificial Intelligence for Diabetic Retinopathy Diagnosis](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2008.05731/) (2020)
- [AIxArtist: A First-Person Tale of Interacting with Artificial Intelligence to Escape Creative Block](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2308.11424/) (2023)
- [Explainability Paths for Sustained Artistic Practice with AI](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2407.15216/) (2024)
- [A Mapping Strategy for Interacting with Latent Audio Synthesis Using Artistic Materials](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2407.04379/) (2024)
- [Reducing Barriers to the Use of Marginalised Music Genres in AI](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2407.13439/) (2024)
- [Exploring Use and Perceptions of Generative AI Art Tools by Blind Artists](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2409.08226/) (2024)
- [Artistic control over the glitch in AI-generated motion capture](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2308.08576/) (2023)
- [Explaining the Arts: Toward a Framework for Matching Creative Tasks with Appropriate Explanation Mediums](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2308.09586/) (2023)
- [Antagonising explanation and revealing bias directly through sequencing and multimodal inference](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2309.12345/) (2023)
- [Looking Back, Moving Forward: A First-Person Perspective Of How Past Artificial Intelligence Encounters Shape Today's Creative Practice](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2408.04978/) (2024)

## Built on by (most cited first, 7 of 7)

- [Explainability-in-Action: Enabling Expressive Manipulation and Tacit Understanding by Bending Diffusion Models in ComfyUI](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2508.07183/) (2025)
- [AttentionBender: Manipulating Cross-Attention in Video Diffusion Transformers as a Creative Probe](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2604.20936/) (2026)
- [Attention of a Kiss: Exploring Attention Maps in Video Diffusion for XAIxArts](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2509.05323/) (2025)
- [Why Open Small AI Models Matter for Interactive Art](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2511.09788/) (2025)
- [Emergent, not Immanent: A Baradian Reading of Explainable AI](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2601.15029/) (2026)
- [Unboxing Diffusion Models for the Arts: Interactive Model Bending and Practice-Based Explainability](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2607.22428/) (2026)
- [Conducting Stylistic Analysis of Paintings through an Art-History Agent](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2608.29644/) (2026)

## Abstract (arXiv)

Explainable AI (XAI) is concerned with how to make AI models more understandable to people. To date these explanations have predominantly been technocentric - mechanistic or productivity oriented. This paper introduces the Explainable AI for the Arts (XAIxArts) manifesto to provoke new ways of thinking about explainability and AI beyond technocentric discourses. Manifestos offer a means to communicate ideas, amplify unheard voices, and foster reflection on practice. To supports the co-creation and revision of the XAIxArts manifesto we combine a World Caf'e style discussion format with a living manifesto to question four core themes: 1) Empowerment, Inclusion, and Fairness; 2) Valuing Artistic Practice; 3) Hacking and Glitches; and 4) Openness. Through our interactive living manifesto experience we invite participants to actively engage in shaping this XIAxArts vision within the CHI community and beyond.