Over the past few year, my feelings on fanart have changed a lot, and I kind of just want to ramble about that here. Obviously, this is just my opinion on the matter, but I wanted to summarize it here. By fanart, I am specifically talking about art inspired by other pieces of media, or things that other people have created.
Like anything, I think it's good in moderation. It can really be flattering to the creator of the thing you are a fan of (assuming they see it), and can help you find a community of other fans. It is a pretty easy way to get attention online as an artist since people are likely looking for fanart of things they enjoy more than they look for random studies of coffee cups or the like, and there's nothing wrong with that. Fanart can challenge you too. If you're making a comic about Indiana Jones, and using reference photos and doing studies along the way, your action poses are probably seriously going to improve. It also lets you draw ideas that aren't from your own head, so it can push your limits a bit. This is also great for people with art block or just low motivation at the moment, because they don't have the be the most creative person on the planet and can still get results that makes them happy. However, I have two problems with fan art. The first is that it can lead to a lot of copying and tracing. I said earlier using reference images is great, and I do stand by that, but you shouldn't always try to exactly copy whatever you're making fan art for. If that's what you're doing, then people will ignore your art and just go experience the source content. Obviously, if you're just doing studies, then it's fine to copy as directly as possible, and there's a lot to be learned there. However, if that isn't your goal, then you have to add something of your own, be it putting old characters in new situations and environments, or just stylizing it in your own way. For instance, using real life pose references and then some references for a character will help you get better at poses and putting any character in different poses much more than just copying straight from one reference image. Also, the whole point of fanart really is to make something based on the original content, but that takes it further, and just copying does not do that. The other problem I have with fanart is questionable copyright usage. I don't really know how to feel about this one, other than that people need to respect what creators say on the issue. With events like comic cons, tons of artists make money off of fanart related products, and I think that, as if mentioned above, their art goes beyond just the original media it's based off of, then I think they definitely deserve to profit from their work. I just think it's also important to respect the right of the original creators to decide whether or not they are okay with people selling art based on their ideas. A lot of times fanart can create a bigger audience for creators, so I think generally that alone makes them okay with it, but it's just important to listen to the creators. Overall, I would say fanart should be fun, but just to remember to push yourself artistically if you can, and learn from it. Creative new ideas should always be valued and expressed in art, but that doesn't mean that you should never draw fanart either. Basically, just be careful that you aren't just copying things or making art based on them for popularity, but actually are enjoying the art you make and are challenging yourself as an artist.
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AuthorHi, I'm Abi, a DSA student who likes games, drawing, writing, and acting. Archives
February 2020
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