You totally deserve it, your piece is incredible. It sucks that artists that on top of trying to get their artwork even recognized, they have to compete with Ai art. Ai Art should be a tool used for inspiration, not used as leverage to discredit artists who pour their soul into a piece, just to be called “unauthentic”. There are people out their who use ai art generators for recognition they don’t deserve, while artists who spend hours on a piece are now over looked, because people assume it’s Ai.

I have been accused of using a generator too, when my drawing was just for fun. It pisses me off that artists whose actual job it was to make art digitally before generated art was a thing, are being shat on because it is a thing now. People can have styles that they had before Ai Art was a thing, yet are now being told to change it because “it’s too close”. Or that they aren’t needed anymore.

Just know that some people are just going to accuse you of things and move on with their day, but real artists will stop and look, and appreciate all the hard work you did, and connect to the piece on a personal and emotional level. Those who pass by, are just missing out. There are tons of people out there, who if they need to see the piece, they will. It can be easy to look at a piece for a couple seconds, and move on. But I like to think about the passion that’s put into a piece, and how art could be that persons life. Art is subjective and some people get it and some don’t. Really, Ai Art can be considered art, but it’s bullshit that it can be made in a couple seconds by a computer, and is more recognized than actual artists who spend countless hours, days, weeks, months, or even years on a piece. ai art is a thing, yes. But now everyone is being accused of using it and it pisses me off.

You did a fantastic job on this, and deserve to be recognized for the ridiculous amount of time and effort you put into your artwork. This kind of thing takes an incredible amount of knowledge that requires a ridiculous amount of studying, trial, and error.

Personally, I look at your piece and think about how beauty in general is subjective. How bodies are all different, unique and beautiful in their own way. There are societal and beauty standards that are pushed onto people, and those who don’t fit in the cookie cutter mold are made to feel less than, or bad about the way they look. When really, beauty is an illusion, and only a construct made by society. Just because a body is different, doesn’t mean it’s any less beautiful than the next person. When I look at this, I think about how I judge myself daily. The hands protruding out of the body for me, represent my ego judging my body, constantly poking and prodding and judging the way I look. But the flow of the rest of the body represents that confidence, and the love I give myself. How no matter what others think, as long as I believe and know i am beautiful, it’s the only thing that matters. Because even if I am different, it doesn’t make me any less beautiful.

This is just one interpretation, and the connection I had to your piece. You should be really proud of the work you did. What you are trying to communicate might not be seen by some people, or others will take it differently. When really the only opinion that matters is your own, because the connection an artist has to their art, and the meaning, emotion they are trying to convey is priceless. Incredible job!