Leo's Blog Discussion Mega-Thread

[Nick_98]

Ok here's what is funny.. I asked after that Chatgpt to create for me a funny caricature with the prompt "create a caricature that's really funny ", I didn't intentionally mean that they use the last prompts to generate a caricature related to you, However, it did so. It took you Leo and built a funny caricature about you. Here it is. 

Here's what is interesting 

At the beginning I didn't understand what's funny. I didn't notice that you where pointing a finger and didn't understand the meaning of the dollar bills/signs.

So i asked Chatgpt to clarify by giving the prompt " why did you add dollar bills on leo's caricature?"

Their Answer

"Fair question 🙂
I added the dollar bills as satirical symbolism, not as a factual claim.

In caricature art, artists exaggerate themes people associate with a public persona. For Leo Gura, common internet memes and critiques often mix:

Spiritual enlightenment

Self-actualization / consciousness

Teaching / monetized content (courses, donations, business)

The money imagery was meant as tongue-in-cheek contrast — the classic joke of “transcending the ego… while the ego still lives in the material world.” It’s a long-standing satire trope used for gurus, philosophers, and self-help figures in general.

That said:

It wasn’t meant as an accusation

It wasn’t meant to mock maliciously

Just exaggerated visual comedy layered on top of psychedelic + guru imagery" 
 

I still didn't understand and didn't notice the finger pointing in the picture so I added another prompt "I don't understand this explain for me like im 5 years old"

Their Answer

"

Got it 🙂 let’s make this super simple.

Think of a cartoon like a silly drawing, not a serious photo.

When people draw funny cartoons of famous teachers or “gurus”, they like to:

Mix big ideas (like “the universe” 🌀)

With normal human stuff (like food 🍕 or money 💵)

Why?
Because it’s funny when very serious things and everyday things are smashed together.

So the dollar bills were like a joke saying:

“Even someone who talks about big spiritual ideas still lives in the normal world.”

Not:

❌ “He is bad”

❌ “He only cares about money”

Just:

😄 “Haha, look at this silly contrast!”"

At that point I immediately realized the pointed finger and "GOT" the joke.  

 

[Eskilon]

Bro, that shit is cursed as fuck 

[Natasha Tori Maru]

@Nick_98 wtf this is deranged 💀🤣

[UnbornTao]

What is Johnny Sins doing here? 

[Davino]

On 5/2/2026 at 1:17 PM, Leo Gura said:

Connor McGregor mastered this self-promotion self-hype cycle in the UFC. That's why he became the most famous and highest paid UFC fighter. Is Connor McGregor the best fighter? No! He's totally over-hyped. But he created a social contagion around himself. He created that fantasy and enough people believe it that it starts to look real.

Hahah superb MMA reference, I enjoyed it very much

[Joseph Maynor]

On 2/5/2026 at 8:07 PM, Natasha Tori Maru said:

Original aesthetics are very close to what I think of as individuals with an artists vision or a directorial eye. 

I agree. This is deep.  But what you say writ large as conscious creators.  Some people might recoil at this and think it's ego.  There's a common feeling that any kind of doing is ego.  It's Creation.  

[Hardkill]

On 2/5/2026 at 4:17 AM, Leo Gura said:

Yes, but why does that happen? It's a marketing effect. In order to become famous and build a hype movement requires that you do something outrageous and controversial. That's why fine art has this toxic obsession with being avant-garde. This is actually a sneaky form of survival. You have to be avant-garde to make it big in the fine art world. Otherwise there's no hype behind your work.

Fine art is a social contagion. It's the old school social media. You gotta go viral to be a somebody.

In order to create a really popular video game or movie, you also have to pioneer some new style. Something that makes people stop and look. It doesn't have to be good per se, it just has to make people stop and look.

Connor McGregor mastered this self-promotion self-hype cycle in the UFC. That's why he became the most famous and highest paid UFC fighter. Is Connor McGregor the best fighter? No! He's totally over-hyped. But he created a social contagion around himself. He created that fantasy and enough people believe it that it starts to look real.

I really disagree with this.

I have a bachelor’s degree in Visual Fine Art. My father has a master’s degree in Visual Fine Art, was an assistant professor of art at a top art university, is an architect, has read countless books on art and art history, and has visited many museums and attended many art exhibitions in different parts of the world throughout most of his life. He has always been a very tough critic.

We both agree that nearly all commercial art ever made, as well as virtually every video game and computer-generated artwork, has been highly overrated. In fact, we believe that the vast majority of art ever produced—across photography, painting, ceramics, sculpture, drawing, and mixed media—especially in this day and age, has not been good.

However, artists such as Van Gogh, Dalí, Picasso, Marcel Duchamp, and so on were true artistic geniuses. They did what was genuinely unthinkable and radical for their time. Each of them revolutionized art in their own way. They were the epitome of creativity. Most people were not even capable of understanding their work while they were alive because their works were way too ahead of their time. Their works only gained true widespread recognition and value after their respective deaths.

Edited 5 hours ago by Hardkill

[Leo Gura]

36 minutes ago, Hardkill said:

all commercial art ever made, as well as virtually every video game and computer-generated artwork, has been highly overrated. In fact, we believe that the vast majority of art ever produced—across photography, painting, ceramics, sculpture, drawing, and mixed media—especially in this day and age, has not been good.

However, artists such as Van Gogh, Dalí, Picasso, Marcel Duchamp, and so on were true artistic geniuses.

You are comparing incomparable things. Painting paintings is so easy compared to making a game or a film. These things are not even in the same universe of difficulty.

You are a genius if you can even ship a game.

[Natasha Tori Maru]

28 minutes ago, Leo Gura said:

You are comparing incomparable things. Painting paintings is so easy compared to making a game or a film. These things are not even in the same universe of difficulty.

You are a genius if you can even ship a game.

Out of curiosity - how many mediums have you experienced in the domain of painting? Or drawing?

It took me many, many years to even get to the level I am currently at with oils, and I do not consider myself an expert or master at all. Below is oil on canvas, and a biro/paper exercise. This took years of training hands on with a master. Although, I did have a lot of inherent talent to begin with. I fundamentally disagree is it easy to do. 

@Hardkill I agree regarding the masters you listed. They were not recognised fully at the time due to how much their works skullfucked people's brains in terms of what was defined as 'high art'. This whole topic is very, very subjective & nuanced.

1 hour ago, Joseph Maynor said:

I agree. This is deep.  But what you say writ large as conscious creators.  Some people might recoil at this and think it's ego.  There's a common feeling that any kind of doing is ego.  It's Creation.  

Really? I never thought of it as ego. It assuredly could be viewed us such. It feels ego-less in the state of creation. Like i am lost and possessed by the paint and the canvas. Like "I" so to speak, no longer exist. It all comes through me in the name of beauty.

Edited 4 hours ago by Natasha Tori Maru

[museumoftrees]

11 hours ago, Nick_98 said:

Ok here's what is funny.. I asked after that Chatgpt to create for me a funny caricature with the prompt "create a caricature that's really funny ", I didn't intentionally mean that they use the last prompts to generate a caricature related to you, However, it did so. It took you Leo and built a funny caricature about you. Here it is. 

Here's what is interesting 

At the beginning I didn't understand what's funny. I didn't notice that you where pointing a finger and didn't understand the meaning of the dollar bills/signs.

So i asked Chatgpt to clarify by giving the prompt " why did you add dollar bills on leo's caricature?"

Their Answer

"Fair question 🙂
I added the dollar bills as satirical symbolism, not as a factual claim.

In caricature art, artists exaggerate themes people associate with a public persona. For Leo Gura, common internet memes and critiques often mix:

Spiritual enlightenment

Self-actualization / consciousness

Teaching / monetized content (courses, donations, business)

The money imagery was meant as tongue-in-cheek contrast — the classic joke of “transcending the ego… while the ego still lives in the material world.” It’s a long-standing satire trope used for gurus, philosophers, and self-help figures in general.

That said:

It wasn’t meant as an accusation

It wasn’t meant to mock maliciously

Just exaggerated visual comedy layered on top of psychedelic + guru imagery" 
 

I still didn't understand and didn't notice the finger pointing in the picture so I added another prompt "I don't understand this explain for me like im 5 years old"

Their Answer

"

Got it 🙂 let’s make this super simple.

Think of a cartoon like a silly drawing, not a serious photo.

When people draw funny cartoons of famous teachers or “gurus”, they like to:

Mix big ideas (like “the universe” 🌀)

With normal human stuff (like food 🍕 or money 💵)

Why?
Because it’s funny when very serious things and everyday things are smashed together.

So the dollar bills were like a joke saying:

“Even someone who talks about big spiritual ideas still lives in the normal world.”

Not:

❌ “He is bad”

❌ “He only cares about money”

Just:

😄 “Haha, look at this silly contrast!”"

At that point I immediately realized the pointed finger and "GOT" the joke.  

 

Just like everyone that uses AI on their responses in this forum, you are being tricked into thinking you are intelligent. None of this is deep. Let it go

[Davino]

2 hours ago, Leo Gura said:

You are comparing incomparable things. Painting paintings is so easy compared to making a game or a film. These things are not even in the same universe of difficulty.

I'd say this sounds like a gross bias from your part, but as I have no experience in painting or game/film development, I'll just say I don't really know

[Alexop]

Actualized fans now be like: