I'm trying to find a relatively quick, easy and consistent method to "artify" renders by using GIMP / GMIC filters.

One method that produced results that I very much like is centered around the "MorphologyPainting" filter in GMIC.
But there's a problem...

As you can see in the example image, MorphologyPainting (and the filter it is based on: "Painting") tend to produce a "halo" effect in areas of high colour contrast... here most noticable around her head. (And that's a weak example here)

I like the high-contrast "paintings" that this filter produces, and that the alternative GMIC "Brushify" or GIMP's "Waterpixels" do not give. But this high-contrast output also means that I cannot simply replace the offending halo-parts with inserts of any other variant.
Even rendering and filtering fore- and backgroud seperately - possible with renders, but not when this method is to be used on normal photos - doesn't provide an option, because the "normalizing" the filter uses - and which is necessary to keep colour consistency - changes the colour tone based on the average colour / brightness of the input images.

So, long story short: does anyone have an idea of how to use this filter and solve the problem? Or can offer an alternative filter that produces comparable results?

(Addendum: the method used for all three image consists of the artistic filter for the base, a high pass layer to bring back some of the details and a GMIC "sketch" filter layer for the texture. More detailed infos on request)

Hm... somehow that didn't get the reaction I was expecting. Well... it didn't get ANY reaction.


Here's two new attempts, this time using the G'MIC "Cartoon" filter... and some better input images.
(First one is DAZ3D's "Nikolina", second a photo by Oleg Gekman found on Pinterest)

Somehow I feel this method works better on renders than on photos... no idea why. And while both of these images were done by exactly the same method, with the same settings, it is of course always possible to tweek the different values to better suit the image.

So, please let me know what you think, how it looks, how it could be improved, what I do wrong, what I could do completely different. Please help a fellow out!
The first post had almost 1,500 views... and no one thought it even worth to post a comment of how much I suck or that they didn't get what the problem was.

Certainly there is something you could say. Please!

I like both of your last outcomes.
Improvements? Personally I'm not a friend of "mono-tonal" paintings, so I would try to apply more colour richness.

About nobody answering to your request, I can tell you that I very very rarely got evaluations, even if strongly and repeatedly requested (and when I got them it was by "friends"). So it seems a common behaviour of GC audience.

Sorry, forgot to say something about your first post:
as opposed to the second post, personally I do not like any of the 3 outcomes, but it's my taste.

I like Nikolina the best, but I would like it more if the posterization was not so visible because you are using sketch or pen strokes effect.
But that's just my preference.
It's probably better to post your art and plays in the Gimp Art section, even if you would use only G'mic filters.