GIMP Version: 2.9.7
Operating System: Mac OS
OS Version: 10.11.6 El Capitan
GIMP Experience: Basic Level

List any relevant plug-ins or scripts:
McGimp 2.9.7

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This may be an unusual question and I hope I can describe it well. I have horses and some great images of them. My desire is to create a certain abstract art from those images. I am most fascinated by paintings where they use very primitive lines with no detail, yet you can still tell what the painting is about. I have included a number of examples of this. I would like to take one of my photos and remove as much detail from it as I can, replacing it with non-realistic colors, and still be able to tell it is a horse, much like these examples. I realize that I could probably use Gimp to actually "paint" from scratch, but I would rather edit the photo.

Does anyone know how I would approach this? Is there a script or plug-in that exists to help do something like this?

Thanks for any help!

The examples are each other very different, hence there is a lot of freedom...
My first attempt to do something in that area.

original


some manipulation


If you want to try there were 4 steps:
1) posterize 4 colours
2) saturate
3) heavy vertical shift (25, I think)
4) gradient map with a strong colours mix

likely other chatters will suggest other manipulations

I would play with some of the G'Mic filters. I've come up with similar things while just playing with it. Often I run one G'Mic filter on the results of another G'Mic filter. It is the single most versatile filter and can definitely do what you are looking for.

Yes, I agree, hence please provide an example to pawnee, she will appreciate.

Just repeated my previous trial with different # of colours and gradient

...and adding huge contours

Thank you, dinasset! I had no idea how to even start...very cool!

I tried to download G'MIC earlier without much success, but now that I've moved to McGimp 2.9.7 and am seeing the plug-ins now, perhaps I need to revisit that. Thank you, PhotoMaster.

I guess what fascinates me is that we can alter the colors to something unreal, take out almost all of the details, and yet with a couple lines we can see what the image is. Why is that?! (just a rhetorical question).

Even simpler and quicker (different outlook).
- posterize 5
- dup layer and apply a huge (neon) edge
- set mode to grain merge

original


outcome

...afterwards you may change the colours

as for instance

If you are willing to cheat (Impressionist and FotoSketcher in the mix), then a lot of things are possible. Used Diego's horse capture for this abstract.

Used 3 Gmic filters on these, with tweaked settings.

Cubism, Wind, Vector painting.



Lylejk's painting, paint daub, graphic boost.

Thank you for all the awesome ideas! By combining some of these looks, it is getting close to what I want. Is there some technique to give it that thick acrylic textured paint effect like this attached picture?

Good idea, Nidhogg.

As for creating impasto (thick paint) renders, that's a tough one. Have had some success using DAP (digital auto painter), but still no panacea. Below's a render I did a year ago that used DAP and some G'MIC thingys for the result (as I recall).

https://www.flickr.com/photos/34520999@ ... ateposted/

Very helpful to know that it's called "impasto," lylejk. The bouquet is really good...I had to chuckle when I read your comment about tapping out a detailed oil painting in an evening. I think the impasto effect has a lot to do with the shading and the light to give it that 3-dimensional effect. Then, there is the ridges between colors.

You may try gimpressionist to create something in that direction.
It's quite tricky working with the parameters, but it's a powerful plug-in.