Image-to-Art Portraits

Transform photographs into striking generative artwork. Each technique uses Scene.from_image() and a different approach to visualize the image data.

Classic Dot Art

Map brightness to dot radius — the fundamental image-to-art technique:

scene = Scene.from_image("MonaLisa.jpg", grid_size=45, cell_size=9)

for cell in scene.grid:
    r = cell.brightness * 0.48
    if r > 0.033:
        cell.add_dot(radius=r, color="#ffffff")

White dots on dark background — bright areas shine through larger dots.

Color Dot Art

Preserve the original image colors for a vibrant result:

for cell in scene.grid:
    r = cell.brightness * 0.45
    if r > 0.025:
        cell.add_dot(radius=r, color=cell.color, opacity=0.7 + cell.brightness * 0.3)

Full-color dots retain the character's vibrant palette.

Halftone Effect

Invert the mapping — dark areas get large dots, simulating print halftone:

scene.background = "#0a0a0a"
for cell in scene.grid:
    r = (1 - cell.brightness) * 0.5  # Inverted!
    if r > 0.0375:
        cell.add_dot(radius=r, color="#e0e0e0")

Inverted brightness creates a newspaper halftone look.

Line Art

Replace dots with diagonal lines. Width maps to brightness:

for cell in scene.grid:
    width = cell.brightness * 3
    if width > 0.2:
        cell.add_diagonal(width=width, color=cell.color, opacity=0.5 + cell.brightness * 0.5)

Diagonal lines of varying thickness trace the portrait's contours.

Color Mosaic

The most direct approach — fill each cell with its sampled color:

Color fills with thin borders create a stained-glass mosaic.

Shape Art

Choose different polygon shapes based on brightness bands:

for cell in scene.grid:
    b = cell.brightness
    size = 0.4 + b * 0.4
    if b < 0.3:
        verts = Polygon.square(size=size)
    elif b < 0.6:
        verts = Polygon.hexagon(size=size)
    else:
        verts = Polygon.star(points=6, size=size, inner_ratio=0.5)
    cell.add_polygon(verts, fill=cell.color, opacity=0.6 + b * 0.4)

Squares for shadows, hexagons for midtones, stars for highlights.