Deconstructing art: as China’s iconic Dafen village reels, AI takes orders

In more ways than one, the painting is on the wall for a famed village in southern China where hundreds of studios and galleries – packed into narrow lanes and sprawling alleyways – peddle their original works and hand-painted reproductions of famous masterworks.

But many of the local artisans who punctuate Dafen village have refused to put down their brushes. A stroll through the village finds many of them at their canvas, carefully minding brush strokes to create vivid landscapes and…