Jun-Yan Zhu creates algorithms for the artistically challenged

CS graduate student Jun-Yan Zhu (adviser: Alexei Efros) is the subject of an article in California Magazine titled “Paint by Numbers: Algorithms for the Artistically Challenged.”  Zhu and his team apply the tools of machine learning to computer graphics.  For example, in the team’s most recent project, they developed software that lets users easily create realistic images from the crudest brushstrokes.  Their research projects have yielded potential applications from improving online searching and e-commerce to art and fashion.