artist and art related forum or webring?

[thecatscanvas]

It may just be me being a novice at indie web stuff, but I've spent a lot of my free time the last few days looking for a forum or webring that is for general art and creation, but have only found dead ends.

I found a forum called something along the lines of Wet Canvas. However, I was unable to see the last time anyone posted (at least without signing up) and could not easily locate a signup on the site-- to the point I think it must have been deliberately removed.

In 2023, user lyoseadae opened a topic on this board expressing interest in creating an arts and crafts directory. But that topic only had two replies, and when visiting their site I didn't see anything related listed in their outlinks.

I did find a forum for cosplay and prop making, but that's too specific to be something I'd be active on.

My primary reason for using the internet is to share and view art and writing. Does anyone know of any forums or webrings that can connect artists to view each others art and support each other?

[rolypolyphonic]

You have probably already noticed it but this forum also has its own Gallery. MelonLand itself is an 'arts' forum so could you clarify if there is anything in particular here that you find lacking or unfitting (if any)? You could always just share your art/writing here and people generally seem responsive after all; or is it that you are looking for a community that is just for art?

DeviantArt's reputation is kind of bad these days (and their ugly redesign does not help) but they do have a forum that still has daily posts.

crittertime.fun is a 'general purpose' forum but it specifically has a section for arts.

Some other still active forums I found are Crimson Daggers and JWJ (much slower, but has posts from this year).

If you are into virtual pet games, most of them have a forum specifically for artists, although they tend to be focused on graphics/fan art for the game itself instead of 'general' work as a whole.

Brisray's Webring List is a directory for most active webrings these days, several of which are art-focused.

Otherwise, most people seem to congregate on Discord servers these days, but I can understand if you don't like that option.

I hope other people will be able to share more helpful suggestions; unfortunately I find the issue with a lot of small forums or analogous communities is that people (especially those who have gotten accustomed to 'mainstream' social media) tend to just drop a post or 'content' and get bored when nobody engages with it quickly enough, without them themselves bothering to look at or talk to people already there. Not implying you are like this, so much as just observing that this is the case for many forums in general.

I think for that reason a lot of people don't really want to stick around a place full of strangers they are not engaged with, and when it comes to sharing art/writing it's a lot easier to find a small personal 'circle' or a community that is specifically centered around something more specific or niche. 'Art/writing' is a really broad scope and even communities 'dedicated' to it will often be filled with people who don't use the same medium/genre/style/etc. and are thus not all that interested in engaging with each other (or feel unequipped to give any productive feedback/interaction despite theoretical 'interest').

For example, I have a personal forum that is 'about' a webcomic, but discussing the webcomic itself isn't the only thing people do there. The readers of the comic tend to come from the same demographics (people with a particular disorder that the comic is about + fans of a different story the webcomic's inspired by) so even when the people aren't talking about the comic itself, they tend to already have a thing here or there in common, and whenever people share about their original work the others are receptive because they centre on the same themes, ideas, etc. that they were already interested in.

Is there any specific theme/topic/etc. that your own work centres on? Maybe you will find more luck in looking for communities about what your art is about instead of just about art as a whole. Either way, good luck with the search!

[thecatscanvas]

I know there is a gallery here and have visited it a few times, as well as the art boards. Sometimes my brain doesn't click with things and I don't know why. I think I feel a little intimidated by everyone here, and I don't know if my art would really be of interest to many members. I think most people here are far more knowledgeable about the main Melondland topics (web design, coding, internet and computer stuff) and I'm just here because I'm a burnt out artist.

Honestly crittertime looks really interesting. I like to make and browse furry art, but have found modern social media to be horrible for engaging in the fandom. Furry hits the sweet spot for me as fandom enough to have its own things going on, but broad enough that I have lots of creative room to work. Tysm for linking it.

I definitely agree art communities seem to mostly have migrated to discord, and that doesn't really work for my brain. I have tried several and they never feel right. I really only use discord to talk to people I already know from real life or local groups and clubs.

[rolypolyphonic]

Sometimes my brain doesn't click with things and I don't know why.

Honestly that's understandable, I think that sort of thing just tends to happen. I like MelonLand more than other forums that I've tried but it wasn't even that something was 'wrong' with the other forums; you can just pick up when the community has a particular 'vibe' that you don't find all that relatable even if there isn't any one thing in it that you could pinpoint as a 'problem'.

I definitely agree art communities seem to mostly have migrated to discord, and that doesn't really work for my brain. I have tried several and they never feel right.

Fair, I personally don't like Discord either, the 'chat' format just doesn't lead to the sort of interaction I find meaningful, and Discord as a whole just tends to make me paranoid. It's a shame that so much of community-building (arts or otherwise) has migrated to it. It makes me more grateful for being able to have a small community of my own. It's difficult to find meaningful socialisation anywhere these days, even in 'small web' spaces, and I find that the best way to really connect to other people is to talk to them one-on-one by sending an e-mail or engaging with their work (or by making work that other people feel engaged with, though that's obviously a harder endeavour).

I'm glad crittertime.fun seems to fit your interests, hopefully you will have a good time there!

[hikatamika]

I think I feel a little intimidated by everyone here, and I don't know if my art would really be of interest to many members.

Don't let that stop you from participating—here, or anywhere else.

Anywhere you go, there will always be people who intimidate you, and people who are intimidated by you.
People with more experience than you, and people with less.

Artists come in all sorts of style and subject matter, and art enjoyers are all diverse and unique in what they like. There is an interested audience member for every artist out there.
There could be someone out there who would deeply love and enjoy your art. But they'll never find it if you sell yourself short by considering your art not worth posting!