Omonomopoeia

Attention all traditional media DeviantArtists! I'd love to interview you for research!! I'm a current undergraduate media student and taking a class on new media and its uses. I'm conducting research on the way traditional art adapts to a digital platform, focusing on DeviantArt as that platform. I'd love to get your perspective and input! I'd really appreciate it if you could answer as many or as few of the questions below as is convenient for you.

Responses will be kept entirely anonymous in my findings and will only be used for academic purposes. Answers can be submitted as a comment on this journal, sent in a note to me directly or to my email at danielle@omonom.com! And also please let me know if you have questions or comments.


1.  How long have you been a DeviantArtist?
2.  What are your reasons for using DA?
3.  Which groups are you a part of?/Which groups do you interact with most often?
4.  Do you have a premium account? Why/why not?
5.  Do you have a personal website/other online portfolio? Does your DA link to it, or does the other site link to DA?
6.  Do you use any social media sites in conjunction with your DA to share your art? Why/why not? In what ways do you integrate these sites?
7.  Do you sell your work online? What site do you use for selling? Do you use your DA to advertise your work?
8.  Do you interact regularly with other DA members? Do you have any friends exclusively on DA (that you have not met in person)?
9.  Do you admin any DA groups? If yes: what groups do you admin, why did you become an admin, what role do you play as an admin?
10.  Do you sell your art in physical stores/shows/conventions/galleries/etc? How does selling online compare to selling physically?
11.  How do you feel about converting traditional art into a digital medium? Do you feel it changes the art? Does it change you as an artist? Please explain.
12.  Do you feel you have a distinct DA identity, either as an artist or as a person? Please explain.
13.  Is being a DeviantArtist different from being an artist in real life? How so? What are the benefits or disadvantages of either? Please draw upon personal experience.
14.  Feel free to give me any other thoughts or insights on the interaction between traditional art and the internet, in your experience.

Yeah, that's all.


()

So we went to Katsucon! Despite their history of overbearing rules (anyone remember the "designated photo corners"??) and strict fan art guidelines, we enjoyed last year's con, and definitely wanted to return. But then a month before this year's convention, tons of drama erupted! First they tell us "psych! no fan art!", changing the original terms that we agreed to upon submitting our applications. We protested, and then we were given elaborate explanations as to why this new policy change would "make Katsucon amaaaaazing!! " When some artists protested the illegality of changing a contract, they retracted all former statements and announced they would be adopting YouTube's IP policy.

...cool?

So, back where we started, we decided to go. The con ran pretty smoothly the first day, and we were even personally handed invitations to a "meeting between Katsucon's 2012 Con Chairs and the Artists" by Christine, one of the future Con Chairs herself. On Saturday, it became clear that about half of the artists did not intend to show up (and since Katsucon accepted payment on-site, they never paid). It became a table free-for-all, with some artists moving closer to the flow of con-goers since their designated spot had been in the middle of a bunch of empty tables.  

At the meeting, Christine and the other con heads demonstrated that they knew what they were doing. They listened to our concerns and proposed solutions. It was actually pretty cool; after a year and a half of conventions, we've never actively given our input and felt as though we were heard.

Conclusions? This year wasn't so hot. Between an originally bad layout and the artists' scramble to move to higher ground the second day, the flow of con-goers ended up so poorly guided that many didn't make it to our corner. Business was pretty slow, and most of the artists were so tired of the drama and administrative hiccups that there was an overall atmosphere of dejected resignation. Many probably don't plan to return. We haven't decided yet; as rough as this year was, we were encouraged by Christine's professionalism and dedication to making next year better.

We just finished revamping the site for Cyber Monday!! We are super excited about how pretty it is now. The old one was basically what we managed to scramble together, so we've been dying to update for quite a while. And not only did we prettify it, but we added some new products!!

- Necklaces
These have been on Etsy for a bit, but had yet to make it to the website. Now you can buy them from whichever site you'd prefer

- Custom Pillow Ordering!
Love our pillows but want a different color scheme than the ones I offer on Etsy? You can now request one however you like it! Also keep in mind that you can always email me with custom ideas; if I can make it, I will make it.

- The Koopa Shell!!!!!!
Long anticipated, it has been officially released online!! Available in red or green. Check it out in action on Youtube!


Check out these new products, and our beautifully remade site, at www.omonom.com!!!

We just got back from NY Anime Festival/Comic Con and it was amazing! We had never been to a Comic Con before, so this was a bit overwhelming. Not only was it huge, but there were so many legit famous artists there! We were a bit awestruck.

We were again super busy and didn't have much time to do anything besides sell, but our favorite part of conventions is meeting new people anyway We sold tons of things and brought classic video game joy to the masses. Cheers to another successful con!