What to share? My Social Dilemma
I’m reading Share your Work by Austin Kleon (http://www.austinkleon.com) for the fifth or sixth time and finding new ideas yet again. It seems like depending where I am on my art journey, there are different parts of the book to connect with.
This time, I’m interested in the concept of what to share on social media, specifically things that aren’t my art.
Art podcasts often debate what goes into an Instagram feed. Should the creator only post original, finished art? Or create a stream of progress shots? Is it okay to tuck in a picture of what you ate for dinner or a cute picture of your kid? Does it even matter?
What it comes down to is that my feed is starting to bore me, so I think it’s time for a change. I don’t want to share what I ate (pasta, again?) and as awesome as I think my son is, I’m not putting him on public display. When I look at the feeds of other artists, I want to see all things related to their art, not their lives, unless it’s connected to their work.
Like all collage artists, I’m a collector of paper. And while I love a great gelli-print, the lure of vintage paper ephemera has me hunting down treasures wherever I go. When you start collecting one thing, it leads to another and another, until you wonder if you need to start hiding things or selling them. (Anyone need a player piano roll?)
Kleon writes about the validity of sharing your collections if they relate to what you are doing as an artist. People want to see what you care about and collect. I want to talk about my collections and find out more about the things I find and don’t understand. My followers are probably experts on all kinds of things that I’m interested in and can teach me about all the odds and ends I’m squirreling away. What great conversations I could be having if I just started sharing my collections and asking for feedback and information.
My world is full of stacks of paper that someone else must want to see.