trying to get out of moral problems

[Jack McSlay]

the topic disappeared wih the crash so I'll just repost it

I'm going to have to admit... I've been having a hard time trying to get back to updating my comic and general art stuff now. It has nothing to do with technical problems, but moral problems. I have the pages of my comic and more art to showcase there to upload and then suddendly, I don't feel like to.


I may have mentioned around and such, I do college on information systems. And serious, I'm the top of the class. Even if I hardly study at all I make some of the best grades in the class. I've got to the point I don't actually WATCH classes related to proggramming and such, I stand up and help my classmates instead.
My classmates admire me, my teachers admire me. My learning time for new proggramming languages (or similar kinds of languages) has became about the same of an experienced proggrammer, which is about 1-2 weeks.

Art, on the other hand, I've been showcasing my art on the internet for about 3 years, and I only get ignored. I've never received a single giftart (only a pic dedicated to me), out of three trades I've done I only received the other end in one (I would have asked for more, but most of them just turned it down), all three of them being trades I have asked. I never got asked for any trade or request, and only recently someone shown interest in a commission. Other artists of about my level in the same period of time would have made a lot of fans an friends, while only a few people know me and like my work. These few people act as a light in the end of the tunnel, but it feels like the end of the tunnel keeps getting farther instead of getting closer.
I don't really care about popularity, actually, one of the reasons I left drviantARGH is the big amount of popularity sluts and ass-kissers in that place. However what keeps me going is having people who like my work telling me to keep improving. I kept trying to convince myself the day will come when that will happen, but it's taking too long.
I've made an account here on SheezyArt and will soon do on FurAffinity, but I have a feeling I will just keep being cast aside.

[llearch n'n'daCorna]

Should we all post our implorations of your keeping up with what you're doing?

Or were you just hoping for the lists of suggestions of ways to go about it in a more effective manner? :-)

(I think Xze-xze offered a trade, though.)

[Dakata]

Should we all post our implorations of your keeping up with what you're doing?

Or were you just hoping for the lists of suggestions of ways to go about it in a more effective manner? :-)

(I think Xze-xze offered a trade, though.)

I offered a trade. I dunno if Xze posted.

...If you guys keep thinking I'm Xze/Xze's me, I'm gonna kick all of your butts. Or tickle you all to death. Or I'll do something...MEANER.

[llearch n'n'daCorna]

Sorry, Dakata. I *did* wonder if I'd got you two confused again. :-/

My bad.

... How can you ever forgive me?

[RJ]

The well-thought out post I did last night is gone, gone, gone....

[Jack McSlay]

I don't want anyone begging for anything. I want people to be honest. This is my sheezyart page -
http://jackmcslay.sheezyart.com/

so, if it's the case my art sucks and I should just give up I want to know now. posting art on the net and not having a clue on how you're doing is very sucky.

as for trades, I'm not really into it now. at the moment I want to focus on my own projects and wouldn't be all up to draw things for others. but later, maybe

[Dakata]

Aw, your art's not sucky, Jack. *Cough*Iwantthatlizarddammit*Cough*

This one makes me laff.

...I'll never forgive you, box! *Puts Llearch in a bigger box, puts the bigger box in a really big box, and sends the really big box to an evil box-eating forumite*

[llearch n'n'daCorna]

There exist such forumites?

Man. I never get introduced to the fun folks.


(btw, Jack - that's a damn funny gag there, and is well drawn to boot. Don't give up jsut yet, I'll go have a look at your art later...)

[Lysander]

Well the stuff looks good to me. Nice shading and details, some with the humor. Don't know what's up with the people who haven't put up their side of the art trades. Even if you don't actually like what the other person has to offer, if you've agreed to the trade and even recieved the other guy's, you really should finish the process.

[Damaris]

Okay, I glanced over your page (I'm trying to rush to get ready for work.  Damn internet sucking me in...) and quite frankly, you are quite good.  You have a good eye for composition of pages, your grasp of anatomy is admirable, and you attention to detail is astounding in some of those pictures.

However, if you do art for the recognition it gives you, then there really is little point to continuing.  Art is something you do for yourself.  If you don't enjoy it, then don't do it.  If you're only putting things up to get accolades, then there is little point.

Everyone gets in these blue funks now and again.  What you need to decide is:
1) Does art mean enough to ME to keep creating it
2) Do I enjoy my friends enough to keep sharing it

One does not get into art for the money.  One gets into it for the satisfaction of creation.

[lucas marcone]

like D said youre really good. though your pictures kinda lack social interaction between characters.

but like D said draw for your self not the fan gorl down the street.

[Jack McSlay]

the problem does not lie in the concept in drawing for myself. the problem is when you have another thing that is about equally important to you, but you get too much recognition for that compared to the other.

another day my school had a problem with the site's grade publishing system. I went there and fixed it in a relatively short time, and spent an extra work to make it work better. after I was done I left the room and i could hear the two people there talking about me being amazingly good at that. Of course, whenever I show my art to them they say "wow it's awesome keep it up" but that doesn't mean as much. If someone like, say, Todd McFarlane, came up and said "wow your programming skills are very good" it woudn't mean much either.

Therefore I felt a need to vent off somewhere people are more used to browse around for art stuff, because I had to see if there was still people who could care and help me balancing stuff again

[Rowne]

Well, I've never been a supporter of anything where people constantly tell you how good you are because that's the quickest route to stagnation damnation.

Basically, when you get to the point that you believe you're the best of the best, then you cease to improve.  If you have a group of people around you who can both praise and criticize and with any particular talent you could take both the praise and the criticism, then that talent is most likely the one worthy of pursuing because it has potential, the room for improvement and eventually, evolution.

When I get chummy with artists, I don't usually pick big-headed artists who believe their work is the be all and end all of art (and there are some that think that way), I tend to find those that are low on confidence, I help buff up their esteem and I offer constructive criticisms wherever I can, to keep it balanced.

When you have one talent where you've achieved that balance, work to that end with the other.  So decide upon one talent and either shy from the praise or wait and accept it when it comes, same with the criticism.  I think the problem is as you've astutely observed, that you have two talents where you have a lot of criticism/lack of being noticed on the one end and the exact opposite on the other.

I'm not talking about recognition here exactly, not recognition, fame or any of that shullbit but rather, if there are none to acknowledge the works, there can be none to comment on them.  So perhaps a good idea might be to show your art around to a lot of people and actively ask them what they think, whilst pointing out that you're not praise-begging.

That aside, if I were a talented enough artist, I would happily do an art-swap with you.  The fact of the matter is, Mr. McSlay, you have two bloody great talents there and you shouldn't really dismiss one or the other.  Just find that balance that allows both of them to evolve, it counts, it matters.  At least, in my personal opinion, I think it does.

[lucas marcone]

  rowne you are one hellova smart person and for that you deserve praise. ..... and a few cute cat girls