On the Internet, the photo of the opera theater in Sydney is popular, on which, in addition to the ground part, its underground infrastructure is visible. We decided to check if it corresponds to reality.

The architecture of the Sydney opera, one of the symbols of Australia, and so looks very futuristic. The image shows the theater “In the section”: eight underground levels of glass and concrete resemble fantastic films about the distant future. It is not surprising that users of social networks (Facebook*, "VKontakte" X, Instagram*, Telegram) Actively share a picture of an incredible building, and such posts are gaining thousands of likes and reposts.

The opera Theater in Sydney, built in 1973 by the Danish architect Yorn Utzon, is a recognized masterpiece of architecture, included in the UNESCO World Heritage List, a symbol of modern Australia and a place of attraction for tourists from around the world. The theater website is described in detail story The development of the project (Utzon spent almost 20 years on it) and the construction of the theater. However, no information about eight underground floors, as well as similar drawings, photographs or the very viral image, could not be found on the official portal.

Moreover, the ground part of the theater in a disassembled picture looks strange. Landscape around her on real photo and in satellite pictures Google Street View Absolutely Other: The opera is surrounded not by lawns and bushes, but by granite tiles, landscaping is limited only by a few tubs with plants. However, judging by the viral picture, it seems that a full -fledged park is broken around the building. It could be assumed that the landscape changed over time, but there is simply no place for such green spaces next to the theater, since it is located on Cape and is surrounded by water from all sides.

Source: photo at the top - Bernard Gagnon, CC by-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons, below - Facebook Synthography Art

AFP factor, checking the reliability of the image, Turned For the commentary to the press secretary, the operas received the answer that the illustration was created by artificial intelligence (AI) and is not true, including in the ground part of the building.

Google Images's reverse search showed that the image was first Published October 6, 2024 on Facebook by Synthography Art. On the official one site The creative association indicates that it specializes in creating images using AI. Synthography ART posted hundreds of photos, some Of these, it is obvious Created neural network, others Look More realistic. In the post with the image of the Sydney opera there are no drops that it was created by AI. However, a month later, page administrators Published The image of the inside of the Rashmore Mountain (on which the faces of the four US presidents are carved) and noted that it was created by a neural network and that after the story with the opera they have to make such notes. However, another such picture depicting underground levels under Central park In New York and very similar to the encircled Sydney opera, it is not equipped with any disclaimer.

Thus, the image of the Sydney Opera Theater with eight underground floors, which was dispersed in social networks, was actually created with the help of neural networks and has nothing to do with reality. It was first published on the page of artists specializing in AI, and representatives of the theater have already denied that the building has a similar underground infrastructure.

*The Russian authorities consider Meta Platforms Inc., which owns social networks Facebook and Instagram, an extremist organization, its activities in Russia are prohibited.

Photo on the cover: Facebook Synthography Art