So, there was an anthro DD a couple of days ago which got a couple of complaints.

To start off with, it was a truly gorgeous piece that clearly a lot of time and effort had gone into, so it didn't deserve any complaints. And more than that, it shouldn't have received any: FAQ #873: What do I do when I disapprove of a Daily Deviation feature?

A number of people commented on the similarities between one of the characters depicted and a creation by Ashley wood. I looked at the character in the DD'd image and compared it to the picture of Wood's work and there are similarities. But it isn't identical, by any means. There are a number of key design features which differ between the two characters which I will be happy to point out and explain should anyone need me to do so, but I'd be surprised if it's necessary.

I would say that the artist was inspired by Ashley Wood and there's nothing wrong with that - hell, one of the reasons I use dA is so that I can be inspired by all the fantastic art out there. So much of the art on deviantART is inspired by other fantastic artists and it isn't fair, and it isn't right, to attack somebody or their art because they were inspired by another artist. Picasso, the world's greatest kleptomaniac, was inspired by so many people but did he feel obliged to back each canvas with where he found his inspiration? No, because that's just silly and people demanding it are petty.

Continuing with the Picasso example, here's an infamous example:


On the left is a photograph of the exhausted horse from the far right corner of the East Pediment from the Parthenon, showing the birth of Athena. On the right is a drawing of a horse's head by Palo Picasso. There's similarities, right? But it's not identical, right? So would you start hounding Picasso to give the poor Ancient Greeks a little credit? Of course not, he's Pablo Picasso for god's sake! So why would you do it to less well know artist on deviantART? And more than that, why would you do it to someone who's part of your community?

What surprised me were really the comments on the piece - some of the personal attacks and some by artists I really respected. It amazes and saddens me to see the community acting in such a way and I can't imagine how it make this poor deviant feel; I bet it made them feel terrible though.



I hate to post such a negative journal but I felt that the comments on that piece deserved such a response.

In other news, congratulations to $Moonbeam13 and good luck!

I also hope to be attending the #hq London devMeet tomorrow - is anyone going?