PlusThirtyOne
What DOES my username mean...?
Forgive me for being so forward but-
My cartoons, characters and stories (both furry and NON furry) have never been a "self insert" or anything like a life i would prefer to reality. The only ever "cartoon self" i ever had (years ago) was just as flawed and boring as real me is. i didn't give myself super powers or pretend i got laid. None of my characters are self-inserts or personal fantasies; just escapist drivel drawn for fun. i hate to think what people wonder or think of me after looking through my galleries (furry and otherwise) because so little of it has anything to do with my personal aspirations. (aside from my characters being happy and having a life?) Unfortunately, being associated with the fandom on the internet means being lumped in with the cringe and people start connecting the dots in some unflattering ways. i find it difficult to separate mySELF from my art because drawing cartoons animal people makes you a "furry". -and furries only draw one thing, right? yEp! tHeY dRaWs ThEmSeLvEs!
On the same topic, i noticed a few of my favorite artists are adding disclaimers to their posts, "The themes in my art DO NOT REFLECT my personal interests, tastes and opinions." When i noticed this, it got me wondering why someone would need to make such a statement. What sort of DM bs went down to require a disclaimer on all of their art? Can't art just BE ART? Can't an artist draw what they want (or are paid to) without viewers ascribing a fetish to the artist?
*AHEM* -but at the same time...
To be entirely honest, i'm just as guilty for surfing FurAffinity for "cringe". i'm just as guilty for "judging" users by the posts in their galleries. i make uneducated assumptions about the content in some users' favorites. Yes, i too even check out users fursonas and make the same kind of "judgements" and place them in "boxes" and under "labels". i make the same "assumptions" and use unnecessary "quotations" when i "talk" about them with "friends" on "Discord". Part of my feels guilty, but i never trash anybody. i keep my opinions to myself. i'm just intrigued by the tastes of my peers and on some level, i can relate.
What about you guys? How much of your online presentation reflect yourself? Your personal interests? Your *AHEM* ...potential fetishes? Do you worried about what the content in your gallery says about you? How much of your characters reflect who you really are -or who you want to be? How much of your "furry self" makes up YOU? Are you your art or is your art just something you draw on sticky notes out of boredom? Have you ever been lumped in with cringe furs? Are YOU a cringelord? Should i stop sleep-posting? Does anyone else like Whang videos?
This video is an excellent example of why i'm too terrified to share my artwork with anyone, even online with fellow furries.
People tend to make a lot of reaching conclusions about creators and their works. i find it frustrating when people stick me with the "FuRrY' label and assume that my drawings, characters, stories and fictitious works are all self inserts. Because that's what furries do, right? Personally i don't even identify under the label except when pressed or in jest. it's too hard to explain to people outside the fandom that, "Look, man. i'm not one of them. i just like cartoons and cute, cheesy shit.". i've had the discussion a bunch of times with friends and coworkers and i never know what they really think. i used to have something of a "fursona" when i was a kid but the word didn't mean to me then what it means to most furries now.My cartoons, characters and stories (both furry and NON furry) have never been a "self insert" or anything like a life i would prefer to reality. The only ever "cartoon self" i ever had (years ago) was just as flawed and boring as real me is. i didn't give myself super powers or pretend i got laid. None of my characters are self-inserts or personal fantasies; just escapist drivel drawn for fun. i hate to think what people wonder or think of me after looking through my galleries (furry and otherwise) because so little of it has anything to do with my personal aspirations. (aside from my characters being happy and having a life?) Unfortunately, being associated with the fandom on the internet means being lumped in with the cringe and people start connecting the dots in some unflattering ways. i find it difficult to separate mySELF from my art because drawing cartoons animal people makes you a "furry". -and furries only draw one thing, right? yEp! tHeY dRaWs ThEmSeLvEs!
On the same topic, i noticed a few of my favorite artists are adding disclaimers to their posts, "The themes in my art DO NOT REFLECT my personal interests, tastes and opinions." When i noticed this, it got me wondering why someone would need to make such a statement. What sort of DM bs went down to require a disclaimer on all of their art? Can't art just BE ART? Can't an artist draw what they want (or are paid to) without viewers ascribing a fetish to the artist?
*AHEM* -but at the same time...
To be entirely honest, i'm just as guilty for surfing FurAffinity for "cringe". i'm just as guilty for "judging" users by the posts in their galleries. i make uneducated assumptions about the content in some users' favorites. Yes, i too even check out users fursonas and make the same kind of "judgements" and place them in "boxes" and under "labels". i make the same "assumptions" and use unnecessary "quotations" when i "talk" about them with "friends" on "Discord". Part of my feels guilty, but i never trash anybody. i keep my opinions to myself. i'm just intrigued by the tastes of my peers and on some level, i can relate.
What about you guys? How much of your online presentation reflect yourself? Your personal interests? Your *AHEM* ...potential fetishes? Do you worried about what the content in your gallery says about you? How much of your characters reflect who you really are -or who you want to be? How much of your "furry self" makes up YOU? Are you your art or is your art just something you draw on sticky notes out of boredom? Have you ever been lumped in with cringe furs? Are YOU a cringelord? Should i stop sleep-posting? Does anyone else like Whang videos?