Artistic Practice Opportunities in CST Evaluations: A Longitudinal Group Deployment of ArtKrit
2026-04-29 • Human-Computer Interaction
Human-Computer Interaction
AI summaryⓘ
The authors studied a drawing tool called ArtKrit by having groups of digital artists use it for three weeks. They found that artists' interactions with the tool changed over time, from trying it out to using it in different ways. The artists' creative processes were influenced by the support and feedback from their artist communities. The authors suggest that evaluating creativity tools should focus on meaningful artistic experiences, not just collecting data. They propose their group-based, long-term study as a helpful example for future evaluations.
Creativity support toolsLongitudinal studyGroup evaluationDigital artArtistic processCommunity of practiceComputational drawingCreative engagementUser experience
Authors
Catherine Liu, Tao Long, Asya Vaisberg, Chau Vu, Jiaju Ma, Jingyi Li
Abstract
Creativity support tools (CSTs) aim to elevate the quality of artists' creative processes and artifacts. Yet most current CST evaluations overlook temporal and social aspects of tool use. To address this gap, we present a longitudinal, group-based CST evaluation through a three-week deployment of ArtKrit, a computational drawing tool that supports disciplined drawing. Nine digital artists, organized into three communities of practice, completed weekly "master studies" alongside a researcher-artist. Our results show users' evolving relationships with ArtKrit over time - from early experimentation to selective incorporation or misuse - alongside changes in their ways of artistic seeing. These changes unfolded within artist support networks that fostered confidence and creative safety, and validated individual expression. Overall, our findings suggest that CST evaluations can - and should - be designed as opportunities for meaningful artistic engagement rather than purely extractive measurement exercises. We contribute this longitudinal, group-based approach as one CST evaluation method.