Jakša's Lab

One Shot

Painted blind: each model wrote its portrait in a single pass and never saw the result.

Contemplation Claude Haiku 4.5 One-shot · 72 strokes
Lamplight Claude Sonnet 5.5 One-shot · 216 strokes
Nocturne with a Pearl Claude Opus 5.5 One-shot · 256 strokes
Quiet in Silver GPT-6 Luna One-shot · 112 strokes
Before the room wakes GPT-6.1 Sol One-shot · 222 strokes
Before the room wakes GPT-6 Astra One-shot · 142 strokes

10 Iterations

Each model could render its portrait up to ten times, look at it, and revise.

Introspection Claude Haiku 4.5 Iterative, 6 renders · 143 strokes
Pearls in Window Light Claude Sonnet 5.5 Iterative, 10 renders · 191 strokes
Lowered Eyes Claude Opus 5.5 Iterative, 10 renders · 188 strokes
The Quiet Hour GPT-6 Luna Iterative, 3 renders · 164 strokes
The Quiet Between Words GPT-6.1 Sol Iterative, 10 renders · 300 strokes
The listening hour GPT-6 Astra Iterative, 10 renders · 294 strokes

One Shot, 10 to 100 Strokes

Sonnet alone, painting blind again, with a budget of 10, 30, 50 or 100 strokes instead of 300.

Quiet Hour Claude Sonnet 5.5 One-shot · 10 of 10 strokes
Pearl, Half in Shadow Claude Sonnet 5.5 One-shot · 30 of 30 strokes
Woman in Side Light Claude Sonnet 5.5 One-shot · 48 of 50 strokes
Lamplight, Left of Frame Claude Sonnet 5.5 One-shot · 92 of 100 strokes

10 Iterations, 10 to 100 Strokes

The same budgets, but Sonnet could render its portrait up to ten times, look at it, and revise.

Lamplit Claude Sonnet 5.5 Iterative, 7 renders · 10 of 10 strokes
Side Light Claude Sonnet 5.5 Iterative, 10 renders · 30 of 30 strokes
Lamplight, Left Claude Sonnet 5.5 Iterative, 9 renders · 49 of 50 strokes
Half-Light Claude Sonnet 5.5 Iterative, 9 renders · 95 of 100 strokes

Incremental

One portrait painted in 10 stages with a growing budget, from 5 to 300 strokes. After each stage the model rendered it, looked at it, and could revise any stroke.

Stage 1 5 strokes
Stage 2 10 strokes
Stage 3 20 strokes
Stage 4 30 strokes
Stage 5 50 strokes
Stage 6 75 strokes
Stage 7 100 strokes
Stage 8 150 strokes
Stage 9 200 strokes
The Quiet Hour Claude Sonnet 5.5 Stage 10 · 300 strokes

Guided

The same stages and budget, but the model was guided through four phases: head shape, structure, features and hair, then finish.

Stage 1 Head shape · 5 strokes
Stage 2 Head shape · 10 strokes
Stage 3 Structure · 20 strokes
Stage 4 Structure · 30 strokes
Stage 5 Structure · 50 strokes
Stage 6 Features and hair · 75 strokes
Stage 7 Features and hair · 100 strokes
Stage 8 Features and hair · 150 strokes
Stage 9 Finish · 200 strokes
Side Light Claude Sonnet 5.5 Stage 10 · Finish · 300 strokes

Canonical

Guided again, but first the model chose a canon of proportions, such as Leonardo’s or Loomis’s, and placed every stroke of the head from its guide lines.

Stage 1 Head shape · 5 strokes
Stage 2 Head shape · 10 strokes
Stage 3 Structure · 20 strokes
Stage 4 Structure · 30 strokes
Stage 5 Structure · 50 strokes
Stage 6 Features and hair · 75 strokes
Stage 7 Features and hair · 100 strokes
Stage 8 Features and hair · 150 strokes
Stage 9 Finish · 200 strokes
Window Light, Three-Quarter Claude Sonnet 5.5 Stage 10 · Finish · 300 strokes

Canonical, Across Models

The final painting of each model’s canonical run: the same stages and phases, and a canon of its choice.

Window Light, Three-Quarter Claude Sonnet 5.5 Canonical, 10 stages · 300 strokes
The Quiet Before Speaking GPT-6.1 Sol Canonical, 10 stages · 300 strokes