Issue 164

Hello!

It's been over a month since one of these newsletters hit your inbox. In that time, I (with the help of the whole Parker fam) fulfilled a kickstarter, I caught the flu, scrambled to finish out freelance contracts before the holidays, and have been taking much needed time off to hang with my family and friends. The Newsletter just got put on the back burner. But I'm BACk and ready to write.

The 2022 newsletter experiment:

This year I decided to really lean in hard on the newsletter and not worry so much about social media. Instead of posting on instagram or youtube this year, I would write up a weekly letter of inspiration, sprinkled with some promotion of my projects.

I wrote 45 newsletters, each taking about 2 hours to craft which adds up to about two and a half weeks of work.

I love doing the newsletter, but when I realized I put that much time into it I started to wonder if I should've instead spent 2+ weeks making new prints, or working on a new comic, or designing a new t-shirt or pin.

More than writing and curating cool stuff in the newsletter, I love making things; things that people wear, use, look at, and hopefully cherish; things that last, like books. I'm wondering, does doing the newsletter make that possible, or does it detract from that? I did get a lot of you who backed my kickstarter, or have bought something in the shop...so the newsletter does pull its weight to some degree.

On top of that, the newsletter has failed to grow. It hovers around10,000+ subscribers give or take a few hundred over the course of the of the year. Which means I didn't do enough to spread the word about the newsletter. When I post online I've got to choose between a shop, a patreon, and a newsletter to drive people to...where should I spend the attention I get?

I guess the big question I have is the same for every indie creator: how do I balance creating with promotion?

Here's what I know: I want to spend more time creating things, and cut that newsletter time in half or more.

So, this next year I'm trying to figure out what I should do. Here's my options, and let me know what you think.

• Announcements only: Only use the newsletter to announce new projects/products (Like news stuff in the shop, cons I'll be attending, and kickstarters)
• Slower Schedule: Keep the newsletter as is, but release it once or twice a month
• Smaller Scale: Keep the newsletter weekly, but each week rotate between the different segments. So one week would be the Inspirational Thought Unit, the next would be highlighting an illustrator, the next would be a cool vehicle, or architect I found.
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Lastly, I appreciate EVERYONE who opens and reads this. (or even just scans through). I appreciate the emails in return, even though I can't respond to everyone. And I appreciate all of you who support my work, and make something like this possible. It's a real privilege to be able to make art for a living, and I am thankful I get to do this.

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LATEST

I do all kinds of things that never end up in the newsletter, so this spot in the header here is just a quick run down of what I've done recently that I didn't want to devote an entire segment to:

• Latest Podcast Episode: The Year In Review​
• Previous Episode: MFA's Are A Bad Idea, And Here's Why​
• 3PP Bonus content: Pickleball Fights, Avatar 2, Andor​

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Alright, here's 5 things I thought you'd find interesting this weekend.

Enjoy!

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1) The problem isn't AI, it's IA

From Jake's Desk

The discourse around AI generated art online has reached a fever pitch culminating in online protests and a fundraiser for legal action.

Back in August I raised my questions and concerns about the topic and posted about it here in the newsletter, on my blog, twitter, and instagram. I also posted a video about how to AI proof your career as an artist: LINK​

I've continued to follow the topic and since then have learned more about it while listening to both sides of the argument. This is probably the last I'm going to say about the subject. I just wanted to get my thoughts down and move on with creating things.

In short, I've got problems with AI art generation, but I've also got stuff I'm cool with, and I have a couple solutions for artists who are worried about their future.

Before I get to that, I've come to the conclusion that the problem isn't Artificial Intelligence, the problem is Industrialized Art.

What industry wants is a product that can be easily replicated and done so in the most efficient and consistent way possible. It wants this because inconsistency and uniqueness costs money. In order to make the most profit possible, industry wants to pay people the smallest amount of money possible.

Industrializing art started long before machine learning technology showed up on the scene. Stock illustration/photography sites, fiver, and even social media platforms all thrive because they've leveraged consistent and affordable art creation.

Take Pinterest for example. It scrapes the internet (using YOU to do the uploading work for free) it doesn't ask where the images came from, it doesn't monitor who should get credit for what. That responsibility is left to the "pinner." Pinterest just files the images in categories so that when you want ideas for something it offers up a plate of inspiration algorithmically attuned to your needs and advertisers pay good money for all this attention. Using images it doesn't own and labor it didn't pay for Pinterest is booming at the tune of 2.5 billion in revenue each year.

Stock photography sites and fiver do pay their artists, but it's a race to the bottom seeing who can offer the most work for the least amount of money just to edge out the competition.

Maybe the worst actors in the Industrial Art scene are the Social Media platforms: Instagram, Tik Tok, Twitter, and Facebook. They harvest attention and sell it to advertisers. How do they mine all of this attention? They offer to siphon off some of that attention and give it to artists in exchange for their art. Every time an artist posts their art on one of these platforms they are essentially working for exposure. Yes, artists need exposure, but you can't pay rent with exposure bucks.

Now we have AI art generators that remove the artist middle man all together. It's industrialized art in its purest form.

I'm actually okay with AI generated art on a theoretical level. But I've got problems with the way AI art generators have been created and are being used right now.

Here's what I'm cool with:

-Technology that helps people create more efficiently.

-Technology that is created ethically and honestly.

-US companies investing in AI technology to secure a better future for humanity.

Here's where I have problems:

-AI art generators use datasets that have billions of images acquired without the consent of the creators.

-AI companies who use these datasets are making money from these stolen images and have no system in place to compensate or credit the creators they've stolen from.

-The potential for this technology to be misused is frightening. If AI companies have no regulations on where they source their images imagine your personal photos being used to for scams and false endorsements or even blackmail.

What can artists can do about this?

First, big picture stuff. There's no stopping technological progress and AI is here to stay. However, historically "the people" have had to step in to keep industrialization from destroying everything in its path. Here's three things you can do to help reign in the industrialization of art:

Action 1: Engage in or amplify the protests against companies/platforms who are working unethically

Action 2: Support efforts to regulate the AI industry through legal action or legislation

Action 3: Educate people on the problems with AI companies. The more people are informed the more likely change can happen

Second, personal stuff. Since we now live in an AI art world the artist needs to adapt or die. Here's what you can do to thrive in this techno-dystopia:

Action 1: Keep. Making. Art.

Action 2: Master your craft. Do not ignore technology. Leverage AI for its strengths or you'll be replaced by people who do. Learn and use traditional tools because of its weaknesses, so that the human hand can still be seen in the work.

Action 3: Embrace human engagement and experience by building community around your work.

In an industrial art landscape, the art that is made by humans, for humans will stand out even more.

Lastly, look at it this way: There's no shortage of food in the developed world. You want calories, the food industry has made sure food is accessible to everyone. If you need a burger quick and cheap, there's a McDonalds over there on the corner.

Just because McDonalds industrialized hamburgers doesn't mean I stopped going to my favorite Indian restaurant. I met some friends there recently and it was packed with people. Why didn't we meet at McDonalds where the food was cheaper, faster, and more consistent? Because the Indian restaurant offers a richer experience.

Seth Godin said it succinctly in an episode of his podcast:

"Industry is about de-personalizing things in pursuit of efficiency.

Hospitality is about personalizing things in pursuit of a richer experience.

People aren’t looking for calories, they’re looking for humanity."

Artists: If your goal is to serve a billion hamburgers…you’ve got to industrialize. If your goal is to serve humanity, you’ve got everything it takes.

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2) Life Sized Patlabor Model

From the Office of Robots

So cool to see that they made a full-sized Type 98 AV Ingram. More photos here: LINK​

I've been a fan of Patlabor since the early 90's when I'd see the Hobby Japan magazines at the local hobby shop. I even squirreled away $15 of my lunch money to buy this Patlabor special issue so I could learn how to draw robots better:

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3) The 70's Architectural Futurism of Torres Blancas

From the Architecture Desk

The Torre Blancas in Madrid Spain looks like something out of Star Wars's Andor series. It's an architectural icon of the Spanish Organicism movement. Designed by Francisco Javier Sáenz de Oiza and completed in 1969 it is one of the most complicated and innovative reinforced concrete structures of the era.

More info here: LINK​

Photographs by Clementevb: LINK​

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4) 3rd Voice

From the Comics Division

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​Evan Dahm is maybe the most prolific indy comic creator I know of. He's completed massive comic projects with thousands of drawn pages. A real testament to just sticking to it and drawing on your book every single day:

He just launched his latest comic project: 3rd Voice and it looks cool.

Here's how he pitches it: "3rd Voice is a long-format fantasy graphic novel updating with one scene or so a week. It concerns an invented world in a state of apocalyptic crisis, and the precarious lives of many people therein."

Excited to read it this year as he drips out pages.

You can read it here:

Website: LINK​

Webtoon: LINK​

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5) On Traveling

From the Inspirational Thought Unit

'Tis the season to take some time off and spend it with those you love. Over the last couple weeks I have had some of the nicest experiences with my wife and kids. It's been good to focus on what really matters in life: relationships. Life's hard enough as it is to do it alone, and I'm lucky to have them in my life. I like how Charles Shultz puts it:

This next year, whether it's neighbors, friends, business partners, your spouse, or your kids take some time each day to cultivate those relationships, and not just have it always be about the next destination. Lift, inspire, be inspired, share the load, or take a break and just enjoy the view from where you are.

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That's all for this week. Thank you for reading this newsletter and hope you have a great weekend!

-Jake

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My sponsor for this newsletter is…me. It's me, because I'm not accepting sponsors for my email list, and don't plan to any time soon. Really, I'd just like people to buy stuff from my shop. If you like this newsletter, you can support it a few ways:

​Order something from the shop (Best)

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I'd appreciate any of these when you can. Thanks!

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