Painting like mankind's greatest artists is almost too easy now

This week in Amsterdam, a team of computer scientists and Rembrandt experts unveiled a new portrait that looks alarmingly similar to the work of the famed Dutch artist. The portrait of a man wearing a broad hat is the latest example of how advanced computer methods are making it increasingly easy to mimic the style of history's most acclaimed artists. Art that hangs in museums, sells for millions and that has endured for generations is being emulated by computer wizards without the pedigree of Rembrandt and kin. When lined up against Rembrandt's work, it can be difficult to tell which portrait a machine created and which the Dutch painter created roughly 400 years ago. The creators of the "new Rembrandt" used computers to 3D scan and analyze 346 Rembrandt paintings.