The New Fanart Wank

[lierdumoa]

So there's this a kerfuffle in tumblr's art community right now. And by art community I mean digital fanart community. Art posts get way more likes than reblogs. A lot of tumblr artists are really pissed off about this, because "if you really liked my art you'd promote it." To me, these numbers just reflect the stark reality of how feedback works on the internet -- you always get more views than likes. You always get more likes than comments. You always get more comments than promotions (except on tumblr, where it's actually easier to promote a post than it is to comment on it).

To the tumblr art community, however, these numbers represent a "toxic culture" of selfish consumerism. I saw a post literally telling people who like art posts without reblogging them that "you're the reason this website is dying."

Arrogant and delusional. I've written about my thoughts on the subject at length [here, here].

In this post, I just want to talk here about my general takeaways re: this kerfuffle.

Tumblr visual artists view fandom as a market. They view tumblr fandom as a place for content creators to find potential customers and clients. I assume money is the end goal, or they wouldn't be so upset at the lack of promotion. There's a general attitude of "if you don't pay us fairly we'll strike."

This is so diametrically opposed to my understanding of how fandom works, and why I choose to participate in it. I do art professionally. Fandom is my escape from the art market. Fandom is my vacation away from customers and clients. Over the years my main contributions to fandom have been 1) vidding and 2) meta writing and to a lesser extent 3) fanfiction and in my mind, the purpose of the first two especially is to instigate conversations. In my mind, the purpose of good art in general is to instigate conversations -- to spark new ideas and ways of thinking.

I think, whether you write meta, or you talk about your headcanons, or write fic, put together recommendation posts, or make fanart, or whatever -- we're all participating in the same conversation. We're all contributors to that conversation. Lurkers are just people who haven't found a voice yet. No one is a customer or a client. No one is a selfish consumer. Fandom is not a market.

Fandom is a town meeting.

I think this particular kerfuffle is the first thing that's really made me feel like I don't belong on tumblr, moreso even than the porn ban or any of the other tumblr wanks I've been involved in. It makes me want to unfollow every fanartist I follow on tumblr and blacklist the fanart tag. I look at these people who supposedly share my interests, who are in the same fandom communities I am in, and their reasons for being here are anathema to me.

They're not here to have conversations. They're here to become influencers. They think I'm morally obligated to help them become influencers. They want to talk at me, instead of to me. I find this attitude grotesque.

I think this larger conflict also ties in to the whole "Why won't you let us link our patreons on AO3" mini-kerfuffle which I've also talked about (here)

Comments

[bonibaru]

Wow, that is really ... something.

Fandom is a town meeting

It IS.

[goss]

(here via network)

As a non-professional (sometimes) artist who values the time/energy I allocate enjoying fannish activities, I wholeheartedly agree with everything you have said here. I am not in fandom to be viewed as a potential client. I am not here to be marketed to and used.

As you say, the root of this entire kerfuffle is the same old "monetizing fandom" issue.

BTW, I equate the "like" button with the "kudos" button on AO3. I don't think I've re-blogged anything on Tumblr in years. Guess I've been doing it "wrong" all this time. Good thing I mostly stick to Dreamwidth for fannish interaction. :b

[lierdumoa]

One post literally referred to everyone who doesn't post fanart as "people who don't create." They're not upset about any other kind of fandom content getting more likes than reblogs -- only visual art. It's really telling of how little respect they have for the rest of the tumblr community, and the rest of the fandom community.

[mecurtin]

I wasn't aware of this particular wank, but I think there's something else going on.

I think many of those artists are selling stuff on Tumblr because they really, REALLY need the money. We can all see that some people are able to make regular, significant sums from fanart--not enough for a living, but part of one, enough to make a serious difference for many people.

So a lot of people are trying this--and most are failing, because that's the nature of business. But since most of them are operating without much of an economic safety net, there's a feeling of desperation. Anything that seems to diminish the income they desperately hope for is depressing/enraging--even when that hope was unrealistic.

[lierdumoa]

I don't begrudge artists wanting to make a buck -- but the level of entitlement. As if it's the fandom community's moral duty to be an economic failsafe for fanartists. Like, I do believe part of being in a community is asking for and offering help to fellow members, but not if it means I have to be a shill in a community of shills.

I quit clothing retail to nude model for art classes because I'd rather show my ass for a living than endorse other people's products, so you can imagine how I react to being told I must spend my leisure time doing ~for free~ something I refuse to do for pay.

It's funny.

I talked a little on tumblr about the importance of having boundaries between my media job and my fandom hobby. Even when I go to media networking events with other people who do media for money, there's a clear unspoken understanding that nobody owes anybody promotion.

I go to a women's music producer meetup and in a way it reminds me of vividcon. It's all about critiquing each other's work and recommending techniques and even though we are, most of us, trying to make money off our music, we understand and agree that the point of this specific community is to help each other develop our crafts, and NOT to endorse or advertise for each other.

And part of that is that we all view each other equally as creators.

What is so slimy about this whole wank is how obviously these artists look down at non-visual art producing members of fandom. They don't view other fans as fellow creators. They've consigned us to the role of good/bad customer.

[cathexys]

They're not here to have conversations. They're here to become influencers. So much yes!!!

We have the same problem on AO3 where people constantly want to monetize and do not understand a culture that refuses that approach. And I get mecurtin's argument about desperation and many of us are at a point of our life where we're not that desperate except...it's not just age. There's a serious ultural shift both in the gig economy monetizing every last moment and minute but also fandom being larger, less insular, but also, maybe as a result?, much more commercially adjacent...

[lierdumoa]

Re: AO3 I said something on tumblr to the effect of - we need both libraries and bookstores. Stop trying to turn the library into a bookstore.

[cathexys]

LOL I saw that post right after I commented here. And yes, that’s a wonderful way to put it and the two issues are totally responding to this same seachange. I feel old :(

[maristu]

I was talking the other day to a friend of mine who thought his niece was an amazing artist and was wondering how her stuff could be viewed by major studios and stuff. I didn't have the heart to tell him that although his niece was really good, so are about a million people on tumblr and on instagram and on behance and... But it made me think of how this new generation uses the internet for self-promotion, whereas we used it as a way to interact and discover people ALL OVER THE WORLD WOW THAT'S AMAZING. It's a huge change in paradigm, and I think that's what we're seeing. People see fandom as a platform for their work, while we were just having fun and making friends. It doesn't help that scouts are actually looking online for new talent. Which is why I stick to my little corner of fandom here.

[lierdumoa]

I see a lot of posts on tumblr about how we can't be on call all the time, and it's not fair for jobs to expect people to read and respond to texts and email when we're off the clock, because everyone needs personal time to unplug.

And then it feels like these same people rwho insist we all need to unplug sometimes see no problem with berating fans who want to unplug from the "always be selling" instagram mentality of social media.

You might be here to help further your art career but I'm just here to talk to my friends. Stop trying to turn every interaction into a business deal!

[ratcreature]

I find this so weird. I don't reblog anything on my Tumblr ever, because I only use Tumblr to post my own occasional art (and only started that because others were uploading some of my art without my permission on Tumblr) and seeing art by other people reblogged mixed into my art makes me uncomfortable. If I wanted to reblog fanart I'd create some rec Tumblr, separate from my personal art account. Clearly preferences vary wildly.

[error_cascade]

One year late, but I do really like the way you've laid this all out. One of the biggest appeals of fandom for me is that it functions as a sort of semi-gift economy and I like that. I don't want that to change.

That being said, I guess in a perfect world where AO3 could be all things to all people and copyright laws ceased to exist, I wouldn't hate it if people could put their kofi in their profiles. I'm sure kofi will turn shitty at some point considering most donation/crowdfunding sites have a very specific model of market to sex workers -> then push sex workers away after they're established.

But as it is now, it offers a nice in-between of trying to make people pay you for your hobbies and turning everyone's lives into capitalist marketing hell and not being able to send monetary appreciation.

But alas, that is a solution for another magic world.