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Rambling cuz I feel chatty.
3 years ago
So, I'm feeling chatty and feel the urge to ramble about how posting art online feels like a Skinner box but I really don't know how to broach the subject because it's a big old ball of thoughts and feels - so let's talk about endless emotion blah blah we put ourselves through! Whee!
So first: a Skinner box is a science device for testing and training behaviors in animals. You have the box, you have a behavior, you have a reward mechanism: you got a Skinner box!
So, posting art online as Skinner box: You have social media and online galleries, you post your art, you get feedback (likes, comments, whatever): you got a Skinner box!
So what is this particular Skinner box trying to train our brains to do? What sort of effect does that have on artists? What's going on? Well, generally it's post art > get the good brain chemicals. Unfortunately, our brains acclimatize so after a while you get used to things and you either have to post more and more or your have to post bigger stuff to get MOAR BRAIN CHEMICALS!
Generally, a lot of this is ultimately unfulfilling and leaves even popular and successful artists feeling worthless and unloved because they can't seem to get any sort of satisfying engagement or they just get burnt out. Some lose sight of why they enjoyed art in the first place and it all becomes painful, meaningless blaaaaaaaah.
But Ex! This sounds like a problem. How do you fix it?
I don't know. I'm just a bat on the internet. Best I can tell you is what kinda sauce to serve with this grumpy meatball.
But yeah, my general solution (which I don't actually do as often as I'd like, but nobody's perfect and we only have so much energy) is try to provide positive feedback. But Ex, doesn't that feed into the problem? Eh. Maybe. But it's what I'd like in that situation.
But yeah. Artists have a lot of head stuff to deal with. The work almost never matches the vision. There are so many other artists that are just so amazing at what they do, it's hard not to nose dive into a downward spiral of unfair comparison and personal inadequacy. And it can be really hard not to tie your personal self worth in with your art and the response thereto (wooo! that's a really tough one to deal with.) Don't see why folks can't have a little dopamine as a treat.
(Additional words here. Very angsty and emotionally frot words. So words. Much feels.)
As always: Thanks for reading my brain vomit! Please come again!
So first: a Skinner box is a science device for testing and training behaviors in animals. You have the box, you have a behavior, you have a reward mechanism: you got a Skinner box!
So, posting art online as Skinner box: You have social media and online galleries, you post your art, you get feedback (likes, comments, whatever): you got a Skinner box!
So what is this particular Skinner box trying to train our brains to do? What sort of effect does that have on artists? What's going on? Well, generally it's post art > get the good brain chemicals. Unfortunately, our brains acclimatize so after a while you get used to things and you either have to post more and more or your have to post bigger stuff to get MOAR BRAIN CHEMICALS!
Generally, a lot of this is ultimately unfulfilling and leaves even popular and successful artists feeling worthless and unloved because they can't seem to get any sort of satisfying engagement or they just get burnt out. Some lose sight of why they enjoyed art in the first place and it all becomes painful, meaningless blaaaaaaaah.
But Ex! This sounds like a problem. How do you fix it?
I don't know. I'm just a bat on the internet. Best I can tell you is what kinda sauce to serve with this grumpy meatball.
But yeah, my general solution (which I don't actually do as often as I'd like, but nobody's perfect and we only have so much energy) is try to provide positive feedback. But Ex, doesn't that feed into the problem? Eh. Maybe. But it's what I'd like in that situation.
But yeah. Artists have a lot of head stuff to deal with. The work almost never matches the vision. There are so many other artists that are just so amazing at what they do, it's hard not to nose dive into a downward spiral of unfair comparison and personal inadequacy. And it can be really hard not to tie your personal self worth in with your art and the response thereto (wooo! that's a really tough one to deal with.) Don't see why folks can't have a little dopamine as a treat.
(Additional words here. Very angsty and emotionally frot words. So words. Much feels.)
As always: Thanks for reading my brain vomit! Please come again!
I'm stealing that one.
Also replacing grumpy meatball with grumpy marshmallow for me!
But yeah, that's kind of a common psychological thing actually. Its not just the fandom, its in general. People do things for that sweet sweet dopa hit and get frustrated when they fail or it doesn't happen. You see this VERY commonly with influencers. There is a reason they constantly post shit, they NEED that validation to feel good. Its a drug really. Without using an actual drug. In fact that's what drugs do too, they explode you in dopamine and make you need more.
And it takes a lot to work through it. :|
Also just kindof part of the human condition.
(And marshmallows are the best! ^_^)
Not a fan of Skinner Boxes though... as much as I understand that is what my primate brain wants.
Buzz buzz.
I post art personally just so I have an extra record of whatever it is I posted. I never did it for engagement and so that box doesn't exist for me.
Glad you haven't fallen into that mess. And yeah, galleries are great as a backup/alternate storage/filing system!
Sorry you've been on the rough end of it. That's really not a great way to go.
Definitely one of those "understanding something doesn't make it better" things.
(Personally, I've spent years swallowing my own toxic feels over this stuff - it just hard for everyone involved.)
But a phone in the shower? That's just not normal or healthy.
Sorry, man.