If copying is the highest form of flattery, the Tesla Cybertruck must be feeling pretty peachy at this moment in time. Regardless of all the hullabaloo about its design, the thing certainly has captured the world's attention. Not only did it garner a fair amount of preorders (the exact numbers are iffy due to the faulty ordering system), it's inspired others to create toys, matching bunkers, and crappy "replicas." The latter of the bunch recently popped up overseas, and somebody caught it on video.

After the Cybertruck debuted, there was much discussion about whether or not the hard surfaces, boxy angles, and sharp edges could actually make it to production. Thus far, according to professionals, it doesn't seem likely. Stefan Teller, an expert with the SGS-TÜV Saarland in Germany, believes the design is literally too harsh to safely deal with inevitable collisions with pedestrians. As a key part of overseas automotive regulations, this could prevent the truck from selling in Europe. That's for legit Cybertrucks made by Tesla. Knock-offs? That's a different story.

There's a very good chance that the driver in this video, which was taken in Moscow, isn't particularly concerned about pedestrian safety. Or intellectual property. There's not much information on the clip, but it appears to have originated from @sukhotin.m and was reposted by several other popular accounts. Read More

Jan. 7, 2020 at 5:00 a.m. PST

Artificial intelligence start-ups are selling images of computer-generated faces that look like the real thing, offering companies a chance to create imaginary models and “increase diversity” in their ads without needing human beings.

One firm is offering to sell diverse photos for marketing brochures and has already signed up clients, including a dating app that intends to use the images in a chatbot. Another company says it’s moving past AI-generated headshots and into the generation of full, fake human bodies as early as this month.

The AI software used to create such faces is freely available and improving rapidly, allowing small start-ups to easily create fakes that are so convincing they can fool the human eye. The systems train on massive databases of actual faces, then attempt to replicate their features in new designs. Read More

“The unnamed artist who narrates this exceptional thriller from Bourland (I’ll Eat When I’m Dead) is finally enjoying success and financial freedom in her career. Then disaster strikes when a fire in her New York City loft/studio destroys Rich Ugly Old Maids, her newest series of seven paintings, which she considered her “crowning glory.” Out of desperation, she assures her gallerist that only one was destroyed. Now she has three months to recreate her large, intricate oil paintings for a Paris show. She secures space at a sprawling former upstate summer resort, the home of art collective Pine City and her idol, sculptor Carey Logan, whose suicide by drowning three years earlier served as a turning point in the artist’s work… read more.

The unravelling of a string of shocking old master forgeries began in the winter of 2015, when French police appeared at a gallery in Aix-en-Provence and seized a painting from display. Venus, by the German Renaissance master Lucas Cranach the Elder, to describe the work more fully: oil on oak, 38cm by 25cm, and dated to 1531. Purchased in 2013 by the Prince of Liechtenstein for about £6m, Venus was the inescapable star of the exhibition of works from his collection; she glowed on the cover of the catalogue. But an anonymous tip to the police suggested she was, in fact, a modern fake – so they scooped her up and took her away. Read More

Researchers have created a wearable device that can read people’s minds when they use an internal voice, allowing them to control devices and ask queries without speaking.

The device, called AlterEgo, can transcribe words that wearers verbalise internally but do not say out loud, using electrodes attached to the skin... Read More

..."a glance at his portfolio by anyone with even a cursory knowledge of the history of photography would reveal that a high number of his images look an awful lot like those of other photographers." Vice

Tyler Shields is a very successful man. Often referred to as "Hollywood's favorite photographer," a 2012 GQ profile of Shields claimed that "while big-shot Hollywood producers once demanded a trophy Banksy canvas to be hanging above their faux-Spanish fireplaces, now all they want is one of Shields' gloriously twisted photographs." According to a rep for Guy Hepner, a gallery that sells Shields's work, his photographs sell for between $5,000 and $15,000. Shields himself has claimed that his work sells for as much as $175,000. He's shot a host of celebrities, including Lindsay Lohan, Aaron Paul, and Demi Lovato, and his work has been exhibited in galleries around the world.

This level of success is surprising, given that a glance at his portfolio by anyone with even a cursory knowledge of the history of photography would reveal that a high number of his images look an awful lot like those of other photographers. And not obscure photographers, either. Many of his shots bear striking resemblances to the work of some of the most famous photographers of all time. His portfolio is like Julie and Julia but with The Photography Book.

And it's not just individual images. Tyler's series of models falling from the sky came several years after Ryan McGinley made this one of his visual trademarks; his series of retro Americana shot against bright blue skies came at least five years after that became the signature style of Alex Prager; his photos of lips are incredibly similar to shots by Rankin and Marilyn Minter.

Sure, this could be passed off as "creative inspiration," a la Richard Prince or Quentin Tarantino, but, as far as I can tell, Shields has never acknowledged that his photography is influenced by the work of others. In fact, in an interview a few years back, when he was asked what inspires him, Shields replied: "I just love to show people the way I see the world. It's important for me to explore the things that I see and create inspiration from the world around me. I don't look to other artists, just the world." In a different interview, Shields was asked if Terry Richardson is an inspiration, and answered: "To be honest I don't look at other peoples work I only know who Terry is because people have asked me if I like his work." [sic]. Read More

Artist Hank Schmidt in der Beek and photographer Fabian Schubert offer a hilarious take on classic outdoor painting. In their collaboration, Und im Sommer tu ich malen (“And in the Summer, I do paint”), Schubert photographs in der Beek at various locations famously captured by artists like Cézanne and Monet. However, rather than focusing on the scenic landscape around him, in der Beek is seen painting the pattern of his shirt.

As in der Beek explains his thought process: “Confronted with the immenseness of the mountains and the littleness of my canvasses, I decided to paint what’s nearest to me instead of what’s afield and giant.” see all

from Hajdeja's email to the group:

"such a wonderful video / interview with Robert Longo discussing his thievery ( you'll see) of american master painters of the mid century."

https://vimeo.com/114013965

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