- Cristina Szeifert, a clinical psychologist and ex-model with over 30,000 Instagram followers, says one of her greatest passions is painting.
- Some followers, however, have accused her of passing off other people’s artwork as her own.
- Szeifert appears to pose with the same unchanged palette over and over. Others have criticized the brushes and tools she poses with.
- After an influx of skeptical comments, Szeifert posted multiple videos of herself painting: “I just wanted to clarify that due to the negativity going around in the last days,” she wrote in the caption. “All my paintings are made by my self as this one.”
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Romanian influencer Cristina Szeifert is defending herself after Instagram followers accused her of passing off other people’s artwork as her own.
“I just wanted to clarify that due to the negativity going around in the last days. All my paintings are made by my self as this one,” she wrote in her most recent Instagram post, which features six short clips of herself painting.
“I love painting and it will always be my passion,” she continued. “I want everyone to cherish creativity and do something constructive and positive for the world instead of spreading hate and negativity.”
While many of the comments on her most recent post are positive, Szeifert's "passion" has recently been the subject of increased skepticism.
Szeifert is a clinical psychologist and ex-model, according to her website, with over 30,000 Instagram followers. But she often touts painting as her main talent, posting photos of completed pieces and encouraging followers to do what makes "your heart and soul feel perky."
http://instagr.am/p/BvyC0PwF4_7
On Tuesday, however, a Reddit user noticed that Szeifert appears to pose with the same unchanged palette over and over. The color stains are nearly identical in multiple different photos, which implies that it's just a prop.
Other Reddit users noticed that Szeifert's nice clothes are always clean - even though she poses as if she's in the middle of painting - and she frequently seems to "paint on top of a fancy rug without putting a cloth down."
"Also no paint on her brush," one person added. "And her hands aren't covered in paint."
The Reddit thread appeared to inspire Szeifert's followers to scrutinize her feed and share their complaints.
"People here really thinking she painted that... her palette is the exact same," one comment reads.
Others have raised concerns about the brushes and tools that Szeifert poses with.
"You can't even make that painting with a pallet knife, like the one you're holding," one person wrote underneath a photo from April.
http://instagr.am/p/BvyC0PwF4_7
Szeifert told BuzzFeed News that she's responsible for "almost every painting" seen on her Instagram feed.
"I have on my phone videos from almost every painting I did," Szeifert said. "I am a model, artist, psychologist, and a public person so my image is very important - of course I don't picture myself with dirty clothes."
"I can see that some people are jealous finding little things on my pictures that [they] are criticizing," she continued. "This situation is ridiculous."
