Is the Viral Image of "Isabelle Boye-Singer" the Original Model for the Statue of Liberty?

People are strongly interested in historical pictures and figures, and social media is rich with related content. However, with the advancement of AI technology, a significant amount of AI-generated content and photos are being disseminated as historical. This development makes distinguishing between authentic and fabricated artifacts increasingly challenging, potentially misleading audiences and distorting our understanding of history.

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A widely circulated image on social media claims to show "Isabelle Boye-Singer" (correctly spelled Isabelle Boyer-Singer) and asserts that she was the original model for the Statue of Liberty.

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This claim was also viral on Facebook and other social media platforms, and we decided to do a fact-check on this.

Fact Check

The Image is AI-generated.

Firstly, the image in question is not a photograph of Isabelle Boyer-Singer. It is an AI-generated portrait created by artist Bas Uterwijk in 2021. In an interview with Bored Panda, Uterwijk explained his technique, which involves using "Deep Learning" networks trained with thousands of photographs to create near-photorealistic images of historical figures. These networks can generate faces from scratch or adapt uploaded faces into a "Latent Space" learned by the model. Uterwijk's work aims to provide a more lifelike representation of historical figures, suggesting they likely resembled modern humans more than ancient art forms suggest. More details can be read here.

Historical Context of the Statue of Liberty's Model

Historical evidence does not conclusively support the claim that Isabelle Boyer-Singer was the model for the Statue of Liberty. The Statue of Liberty, sculpted by Frédéric Auguste Bartholdi and unveiled in 1886, is traditionally believed to have been modeled after Bartholdi's mother, Charlotte Bartholdi.

While some sources suggest that Boyer-Singer, the widow of Isaac Merritt Singer (inventor of the Singer Sewing Machine), might have inspired the statue’s torso, there is no definitive evidence to confirm this either.

Claims of Boyer-Singer and Bartholdi's Marriage

Therefore, the rumor that Boyer-Singer married Bartholdi and subsequently became the inspiration for his sculpture lacks substantial verification. Although these stories have circulated for decades, they remain speculative without any concrete historical documentation.

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Conclusion

The viral image purported to be of Isabelle Boyer-Singer is, in fact, a digitally created portrait by Bas Uterwijk, not a historical photograph. While it is possible that Isabelle Boyer-Singer influenced the design of the Statue of Liberty, particularly its torso, there is no definitive evidence to confirm this. The more widely accepted facts state that Bartholdi used his mother's features for the statue's face. Thus, the claim that Boyer-Singer was the definitive model for the Statue of Liberty is unsubstantiated.