How would Mario have drawn you? Gallery set to use AI to give cartoonist’s touch to fans’ photos

Panaji: Last week, the Mario Gallery in Torda introduced AI-generated sketches in the renowned cartoonist Mario Miranda’s signature style. A total of 73 visitors flocked to the gallery in just three hours, eager to receive their very own Mario-style portrait.Among the first to experience this innovation was Mario’s octogenarian sister, Fatima, who sees it as a meaningful way to preserve his legacy in an age dominated by digital advancements. “AI can be evil or it can be constructive. It depends on how you make use of it,” she told TOI. “If it wasn’t for Gerard da Cunha, Mario would’ve been forgotten. This is a way to keep his memory and his art alive,” she said.Techies at the gallery are developing software that turns real-life photo portraits into Mario Miranda-style caricatures.

After one's picture is uploaded in the system, the AI first analyses the face, then applies the caricature style, and then lets users customise the result. Da Cunha, who is the curator of the Mario Gallery, has a collection of 13,000 original works by the artist, which were constructively utilised to train the AI model.“We want people to enjoy Mario’s work even though he is not alive. This comes at a time when we are approaching Mario’s 100th birth anniversary (May 2026).

The next step is to see how to take this movement forward and keep Mario alive in this form,” he said.The gallery plans to continue enhancing the AI model to develop Mario-style cartoons and caricatures for art enthusiasts to connect with the work of one of Goa’s most cherished artists. “The most amazing aspect is that Mario, who died 14 years ago, is still doing portraits thanks to AI,” he said.Gurpreet Singh, who developed the AI model for the Mario Gallery for the sketches, will be developing the tool further to generate the caricatures.

“AI is evolving rapidly. Until six months ago, we couldn’t even develop the sketches, and now in another six months, we may be able to develop caricatures in Mario’s iconic style,” he said.“There is a personality to Mario’s caricatures. Right from capturing the sorrow in one’s eyes to love in their smile, he was able to communicate these emotions through very simple pencil sketches. There is a nostalgic appeal to getting one’s portrait done in his unique style,” he added.The Mario Gallery is also planning to host an art contest for school students called ‘Who Will Be the Next Mario Miranda?’ as a prelude to the artist’s 100th birth anniversary.