Artists & Social Media

[SHIRUBA]

I've just watched some videos about some artists not using Instagram as often or stop posting entirely. Here are the links to the videos:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3j6LyKwtZ7I
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1LqIoFB62Rw
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5XZVcLLg8kM

I've shared these sentiments for a while now, and after watching these videos, I probably won't be using Instagram in the near future.

What are your thoughts on this? Not just Instagram, but other socials in general as well. How much are they worth it for artist in 2022? Should you take the good with the bad?

[Pubic Enemy]

I listened to a bit of the first video, and just read the descriptions of the others, so let me know if I'm totally off-base here:

Yes, you are right to stop using Instagram if you are having these sentiments. Not only is there a total oversaturation of users and media on these sites, but you are also at the mercy of algorithms whose functions are not made known to the public. Gone are the days of a simple chronological feed; even artists who already have 100k+ followers will sometimes stop appearing in their followers' feeds entirely. If Caravaggio lived today and posted a new painting on Instagram or Twitter, somebody might look at it for 2 seconds and promptly forget about it before it disappears into the endless sea that is the "art" tag. It is not an environment that cultivates a deep appreciation for anything.

I've asked an artist who has way more followers than me about this, and read the opinions of others, and the common thread is that you have to put a lot of time into social media to get anything out of it. Sure, you can get lucky, or your art may be particularly compelling to the audiences on those sites, but unless you're already mega-popular, you must be highly active in the artist "community" and in the hashtags of people who are likely to be in your target audience. And even if you self-promote aggressively, building a following is likely to take a long time. This Reddit thread has some good posts on the topic: https://old.reddit.com/r/artbusiness/com...roblem_is/


So you really have to ask yourself if it's worth it, and what your goals are regarding art in general. If trying to self-promote on social media is killing your love of drawing, take a step back and ask yourself why you're doing this. If you can find a balance that you're happy with, then great; but otherwise, quitting some or all social media sites is probably for the best.

There's also a "more people on stage than in the audience" feeling on social media that I find a bit unsettling, but maybe that's just inevitable in an environment where everyone can self-promote.

[JosephCow]

Yeah, I only post on Instagram occasionally to let people in my circle know what I'm doing. It's just way too much work to keep it up, and it's kind of unhealthy to be constantly posting in a way that will really net a wide following. I don't want to make work that pleases the Instagram algorithm. But there's money to be made with it if you are willing to go that route, it's just not for me.

[Tribulator]

I've seen those videos, and it's making me rethink my social media game too. Instagram, like other platforms, can be a double-edged sword for artists.

[eddyinblu]

I don't actually draw but I do love checking out what artists create and I gotta say Instagram has been helpful. It does suck though hearing about how stressful it can be to constantly churn out content just to keep an algorithm happy

The way I see it maybe the priority is making art that you're passionate about? Rather than racking racking up numbers and likes. But hey - what do I know. Really. I guess do whatever feels right for you. Always. Usually in my experience that is the best way to go?

[Farvus]

When I created instagram I treated posting very seriously. I was somewhat regular and I tried to make quality posts. Unfortunately it was unsustainable for the pace I'm working on. Also at the beginning it was only possible to post through app and I didn't like it. A lot of my art was done on computer and then I had to send stuff to my phone or use some browser extension (that turned out to be some scam).

Later I had longer break and when I came back I totally lost the drive to get any engagement. I just post once in a while and close app. I like it that way. Worry free life :).

[Tribulator]

I totally get where you're coming from. I’ve also stepped away from all social media platforms like Instagram, Facebook, and TikTok and now I seem to be able to focus more on reading and journaling instead. While social media can be a powerful tool for artists, imho it’s not worth compromising mental health... I wanted to include a small clip from one of the videos u linked but I seem to be needing a "how to clip on your PC" tutorial :)