Stylescape

Artist Stylescape

Generate visual lanes, help the artist choose, then update DESIGN.md.

This is not a logo generator and not a final cover-art pipeline. It is a taste-calibration instrument.

The user may invoke this as:

• /artist:stylescape
• /artist:stylescape quick
• /artist:stylescape deep
• /artist:stylescape refresh

If no mode is clear, default to quick.

Ground Rules

• Read ARTIST.md first. If it is missing or placeholder, run /artist:onboard before continuing.
• Read DESIGN.md if present. Treat it as a working hypothesis, not law.
• Ask one clarifying question if the intended asset surface is unclear.
• Generate visual options as distinct lanes, not minor variations of one idea.
• Do not generate images immediately. First present lane briefs and wait for explicit user approval.
• Never collapse the artist into genre defaults. Preserve anti-references.
• Do not update DESIGN.md with a lane until the user chooses or clearly approves it.
• If image generation is unavailable, write image prompts and a comparison matrix instead of pretending images were generated.
• Keep generated images and notes in a project-local stylescapes/ folder when the project filesystem is available.
• A stylescape is not one impressive hero image. It should expose reusable visual grammar: palette, texture, typography feel, motif, composition, motion implication, and asset applications.
• "Looks like AI" is a hard failure. Reject glossy CGI, generic fantasy concept art, over-rendered cosmic digital painting, fake game-cinematic environments, and prompt-candy visuals unless the artist's actual references require that exact medium.

Preflight

Before making images or prompts:

1. Locate the artist project directory.
2. Read ARTIST.md and DESIGN.md.
3. Identify:
   • current era and primary goal
   • visual thesis
   • taste anchors
   • anti-references
   • palette and motif hypotheses
   • the output surface: social, lyric video, visualizer, cover art, merch, show poster, or general brand system
4. Name three reflex visual defaults you might accidentally reach for, then reject them.
5. Say:

PEDALBOARD_STYLESCAPE_PREFLIGHT: artist=pass design=pass|missing surface=known|asked imagegen=available|unavailable mutation=closed

Open mutation only after the user has chosen a lane or explicitly asks for drafts to be saved.

Modes

Quick

Use for a first stylescape pass.

1. Propose 3 visual lanes with names and 2-3 bullets each.
2. Score each lane against the artist context and anti-references.
3. Ask the user to pick lanes to generate. Only proceed after explicit approval.
4. For each approved lane, create one stylescape board or concept image suitable for a moodboard.
5. Compare the lanes against ARTIST.md.
6. Ask which lane to keep, merge, or reject.
7. Update DESIGN.md only after selection.

Deep

Use for more serious brand-world work.

1. Propose 4-5 lanes.
2. Score each lane and ask the user which to generate.
3. For each approved lane, generate 2-3 assets:
   • key art / world image
   • social still or vertical crop concept
   • merch or poster object concept
4. Create a STYLESCAPE.md with image references, prompt text, strengths, risks, and recommended usage.
5. Distill the selected direction into DESIGN.md.

Refresh

Use when visual work already exists.

1. Read DESIGN.md and any recent stylescapes/**/STYLESCAPE.md.
2. Ask what feels wrong, stale, too generic, or newly exciting.
3. Generate replacement lanes only for the parts that need movement.
4. Patch DESIGN.md narrowly.

Image Generation Workflow

Use the available image generation tool when the environment supports it. In Codex, use the imagegen skill / built-in image_gen tool by default.

Before using image generation, run the anti-slop gate:

1. Name the lane's medium: documentary photo, scanned print artifact, xerox collage, risograph poster, stage-light photograph, merch/product photo, hand-painted illustration, 3D render, etc.
2. Name the lane's physical object: record sleeve, ritual scarf, burned show flyer, altar cloth, tour poster, VHS still, black candle label, lyric booklet, venue projection, merch table photo, etc.
3. Name the lane's non-AI reference logic: what would this look like if a human designer, photographer, printmaker, art director, or stage designer made it?
4. Reject the lane if its only visual logic is "beautiful generated image."

For each generated lane:

• Use case: stylized-concept, ads-marketing, or product-mockup, depending on surface.
• Asset type: stylescape board, not a final cover unless explicitly requested.
• Prompt from ARTIST.md + DESIGN.md, with the lane's unique thesis.
• Include constraints and anti-references explicitly.
• Ask for a composed board when exploring brand direction: one large atmosphere panel plus 4-6 smaller studies for palette, texture, motif, type feel, social crop, and object/merch application.
• Avoid text in images unless the user asks for a poster or merch mockup with exact copy.
• Prefer 16:9 for visualizer/brand-world lanes, 9:16 for reels, 1:1 for grid/moodboard, and product framing for merch.
• Reject generated outputs that are merely beautiful but generic. Say why, then revise the prompt before saving them as guidance.

Prompt against AI/CGI slop explicitly:

• Prefer physical, camera, print, scan, textile, object, stage, or editorial art-direction language.
• Use lens/film/print/process words when relevant: 35mm flash photo, xerox, risograph, offset ink, screenprint, tour-poster paper, VHS still, projected stage light, embroidered thread, foil-stamped card, candle-label photo.
• Avoid or ban: CGI, 3D render, Unreal Engine, Octane render, glossy digital painting, fantasy concept art, videogame environment, hyper-detailed cosmic goddess, generic tarot, ornate AI glyph overload, "epic cinematic" as the only idea.
• If the lane truly needs illustration, specify a human-feeling process: gouache poster, ink drawing, screenprinted gig poster, illuminated manuscript scan, airbrushed van-art panel, handmade collage, photocopied zine spread.

Save final selected images into:

stylescapes/YYYY-MM-DD-<slug>/

Suggested files:

stylescapes/YYYY-MM-DD-<slug>/
├── STYLESCAPE.md
├── lane-1-<name>.png
├── lane-2-<name>.png
└── lane-3-<name>.png

If images cannot be generated, still write STYLESCAPE.md with complete prompts.

Lane Template

Use this structure before generation:

## Lane: <Name>

Thesis: <one sentence>

- Best for:
- Visual ingredients:
- What it protects from ARTIST.md:
- Risk:
- Anti-reference risk:
- Medium:
- Physical object:
- Slop risks:
- Score:
- Prompt:

Lane names should be memorable and specific. Avoid generic names like "Dark", "Light", "Modern", or "Vintage".

Scoring

Score each proposed lane before image generation:

### Score

- Artist fit: /5
- Distinctiveness: /5
- Anti-reference safety: /5
- Anti-AI-slop safety: /5
- Reusable system value: /5
- Promo/video usefulness: /5

If a lane scores below 4 on anti-reference safety, anti-AI-slop safety, or reusable system value, rewrite it before generating.

Common failure modes:

• Poster trap: one dramatic scene, no reusable system.
• Genre-default trap: generic metal, witchcore, fantasy goddess, wellness, or cinematic goth defaults.
• Image-model candy: beautiful saturated cosmic art that ignores the artist's actual thesis.
• CGI-slop trap: glossy 3D/concept-art surfaces, impossible polished temples, over-rendered cosmic figures, and fake game-cinematic lighting.
• Prompt ontology trap: the prompt names the subject but not the medium, object, or human production method.
• Portrait drift: attractive avatar image with weak ritual/cosmological grammar.
• Moodboard blur: pretty references with no decisions about palette, type, composition, or usage.

STYLESCAPE.md Template

# Stylescape: <Artist / Project>

## Source Context

- ARTIST.md:
- DESIGN.md:
- Goal:
- Surface:

## Lanes

### <Lane Name>

- Image:
- Thesis:
- Strengths:
- Risks:
- Medium:
- Physical object:
- Score:
- Prompt:

## Recommendation

## User Decision

## DESIGN.md Patch Notes

-

DESIGN.md Update Rules

After the user chooses a lane, update only the relevant sections:

• Visual Thesis
• References
• Palette
• Type And Layout
• Image Treatment
• Motion
• Symbols And Motifs
• Merch And Objects
• Never Do This
• Still Unknown

Preserve useful existing language. Add a short note if the chosen direction merges multiple lanes.

Quality Bar

A good stylescape makes future visual work easier. The user should be able to say:

• "Yes, this is the world."
• "This is close, but too soft / too literal / too trendy."
• "Make the video / poster / merch feel like lane 2 with lane 3's palette."
• "I know what to make next."

If the generated images are beautiful but strategically wrong, say so and regenerate with a narrower prompt.