Jake Wood has been forced to shut down his art exhibition after ‘horrid and abusive behaviour’ following AI claims caused the gallery to close his show.
The EastEnders star, 53, has been delving into the art world with the actor presenting his Icons exhibition at the Indelible Fine Art gallery, with profits raising money for Dementia UK.
However earlier this week Jake was hit with by online accusations he used AI to create a birthday portrait of Sir David Attenborough, after selling the piece for £2,000.
The actor was forced to deny he relied on AI to complete the artwork, which had prints sold for £450 to raise money for Dementia UK.
However despite the denial, it appears the backlash was too strong and on Saturday night the gallery made the decision to close the exhibition.
In a statement to Instagram they penned: ‘It is with sadness that we announce the decision to end the Icons exhibition by Jake Wood at Indelible Fine Art.
EastEnders star Jake Wood has been forced to shut down his art exhibition after ‘horrid and abusive behaviour’ as art gallery say they have ‘no choice but to close the show’
In a statement to Instagram they penned: ‘ It is with sadness that we announce the decision to end the Icons exhibition by Jake Wood at Indelible Fine Art’
‘What was always intended to be a fun exhibition to raise awareness and funds for Dementia UK has over the last seven days, unfortunately escalated into what can only be described as horrid and abusive behaviour directed at ourselves as a gallery and the wider charitable cause involved.’
They continued: ‘Along the way, the main message behind this exhibition has been entirely lost. In order to bring an end to the continual abusive messages, we have been left with no choice but to close the show.
‘We kindly ask for your continued support as a small independent gallery. We will learn from this experience, continue to grow, and we will continue to support Jake on his artistic journey.
‘We only we we could have raised more funds for Dementia UK through this exhibition, but we hope to do so again in the future. Thank you for your understanding and support. Indelible Fine Art.’
This week a user shared a photo of the image of Jake’s painting on Reddit, before claiming details in the artwork implied it has been AI-generated.
In the comments, one noted the ‘garbled’ text on David’s medallion, saying: ‘Look how he’s “covered up” the garbled AI text.’
Other comments pointed out David’s unusually-shaped fingers, and included: ‘He advertises it as “hand finished” so he’s probably printed out the AI slop and finished it off with the spray paint.’
‘Look at the attempt at a horse (at least I think it’s a horse); skills don’t match up. 100% AI.’
‘The union Jack is all totally wrong as well in colours/arrangement. The chair arm on the left is a total misplacement. It’s 100% AI.’
‘The whole chair is uneven and wonky; Can’t tell me someone who can render Sir David and a monkey that well can’t do basic symmetry.
‘AI hacks using Attenborough to make a profit is the most annoyed I’ve felt at them lol.’
‘i’m surprised no-one’s pointed this out yet, but the biggest tell for me was the fact that the back of the chair is wider than the chair itself. You can see that, on the left, the back of the chair is left of the ape baby, but the left armrest is to the right of the ape baby. Don’t know if that makes sense but definitely look ai to me.
‘EDIT: now that i inspect the ape even more, what the f**k is it sitting on? It looks like Attenborough’s leg, but that would be impossible, since we already see both of his legs, and this third leg would be too far left from where he’s sitting (and the mysterious armrest would be in the way). just pure slop.’
‘I was 50/50 just it being a bad artist, but this absolutely seals the deal. I can understand bad butterfly wings, I could understand a blob here or there, I could understand non-exact sides of the chair, but no artist would do this on purpose.’
‘Also, the chimp’s eyes are wonky. Added to what others have pointed out, total AI slop.’
Jake has since furiously hit back at claims of AI use, while sharing a snap of his latest work on social media.
Posting a snap of the portrait in an art gallery, he captioned the post: ‘Here’s a picture I did of David Attenborough for his 100th birthday!!!
Earlier this week Jake was hit with by online accusations he used AI to create a birthday portrait of Sir David Attenborough , after selling the piece for £2,000, which Jake denied
‘Just to clarify I do not use AI to generate any of my artworks. I do not use AI personally.
‘The images and photos I’ve used were already in existence and I have then collaged them (digitally or manually) and then painted over them digitally myself before printing and sticking them over a mixture of collage, spray paint and acrylic.
‘(Hand finished signed prints available from @indeliblefineart all in aid of @dementia_uk). Get on it, print run of only 23!!!’
The Daily Mail has contacted representatives for Jake Wood for comment.
Jake had previously used his art skills to honour his late friend Barbara Windsor, after hosting his first exhibition to raise money for Dementia UK in April.
The soap star’s long-time friend and mentor Dame Barbara passed away in 2020, aged 83, after a battle with dementia.
The soap star announced the exhibition on social media while giving his followers an insight into his latest artworks.
On proud display was a print of Dame Barbara, laughing away, with the image laid over the top of street art and graffiti.
The announcement read: ‘Exhibition Announcement — Jake Wood: ICONS Indelible Fine Art presents an invite-only exhibition from actor and artist Jake Wood.
‘ICONS introduces a new body of work celebrating defining figures in British culture – people who have shaped identity, history, and public memory.’
