After being a GM for about a month now it is apparent I need to address something. Here on deviantART, there sometimes seems to be issues regarding "Political Correctness", Moral Standings, Casting Judgment and Following Stereotypes. These are all things that people on deviantART need to try and put past themselves and move on, when looking at art that they would otherwise not appreciate.

If you don't like it, don't look!

First and foremost, if you don't like it. What is the golden rule? Don't look at it!
If you don't like the Anthro or Anime galleries, then why are you browsing through them? If you don't like Horror & Macabre, then why are you hunting down the most horrific of them so that you can specifically leave your distaste in the artists comments? You are setting yourself up to be displeased and if you already know that you do not care for whatever type of art, nobody is forcing you to look at it. If you don't care for deviations with mature content in them whether it be nudity or blood and gore, turn on your mature content filter and then you do not have to be bothered with it. If you see something that you sincerely believe must be marked mature, report it! The same goes for if you see something which you think breaks one of deviantARTs submission rules. Your report will remain anonymous to the artist and a member of staff will review your report. It's that simple.

FAQ #155: How do I report a submission which I think breaks the rules?

Regarding hateful, rude and bullying criticism in deviation comments

If you have something nasty to say on a persons work of art, are you considering the repercussions that your words may have on the artist or anyone else involved in creating the art? Regardless of why you think what you're looking at is wrong, disgusting, unmoral, ugly, untalented or whatever else combination of why you cannot appreciate it.. your words may not only be hurtful but they can be harmful. When you cast judgment and assumptions towards all parties involved in the art in question, you may be mistaken and you may be causing yourself and or the artist more trouble than you intended. It is my honest hope that people can learn to be mature and decide that when they see something here they sincerely dislike, they can either politely give constructive criticism on how the artist can improve, or they can make the decision not to say anything at all. It's really not that hard. Try putting yourself in the shoes of the artist. If you think they could do better, then kindly give them feedback on what you think they should change. Some people will never appreciate this kind of feedback, but it is feedback. That is the difference. Instead of saying "This sucks, I hate it", you can say "Maybe you could change this aspect of it in order to achieve this effect". And instead of saying, "Wow that model is ugly" or "That model is so thin they must be anorexic!", it might actually be best if in that case you didn't say anything at all. Because no matter how right you think you are about your assumptions or your judgments on another persons work of art, you may cause the artist a lot of hurt. Instead try and find something in the artists gallery that you do like! And then compliment them on it. It's amazing how far kindness can go. If you go out of your way to say something nice to somebody, you could even make a new friend. Think of how it feels when somebody compliments you or favorites your artwork. It feels good right?

FAQ #238: How do I report people for abuse, harassment, or another issue I may think is a violation?

Look at your Options

Say something rude and hurtful because you don't like the image and you're going out of your way to make sure the artist knows it. They might lash out at you or they may shut down and start questioning their ability as an artist. You have absolutely no idea how a person can react. They might shrug off your comment and not care or they may really take it to heart and get really upset over it. In some cases, other people who see your comment on the artists work might attack you for what you have said. Then you have opened up a whole can of worms that would had otherwise remained shut if you had decided not to leave your comment.

If you leave constructive criticism, you're not going to offend anyone. The artist may not appreciate it (some people do not like criticism no matter what kind it is) and they may not want to hear it, but at least you're not hurting anyone. You're trying to be helpful and that's what matters. If you go out of your way to help the artist improve by giving encouraging words of advice or suggestions, there is no drama, there are no hurt feelings and you can go on with your day knowing that you're not going to sign in to DA later on, to find a whole lot of aggression exploding in your face via the internet.

If you decide not to leave a comment, even if you absolutely hate the artists work, who is it hurting? Nobody. That artist never has to know that you didn't like their work and you never have to waste your time dealing with internet drama. In fact, now that you know you do not like their work, you don't have to talk to them and you don't have to look at their work again. Simply make the choice to move on. In the end if you want to avoid a lot of problems and a lot of bickering, this is usually the best thing to do. You may disagree with me. But I speak from personal experience and I have seen these problems arise from both sides of the spectrum. It's not pretty and it's quite a pain to deal with.

FAQ #873: What do I do when I disapprove of a Daily Deviation feature?

Important things to remember on an art website with so many people

You can't please everyone. Everybody here has different tastes, different moral standings, different opinions. We all come from different walks of life, we were all raised differently and we all think very differently. In the real world, you see people fighting all the time over petty disagreements. Here in a place where we're supposed to celebrate creativity, why is it necessary to bring in anger and hurt feelings? Isn't that what we're trying to avoid? We make art to express ourselves, no matter what kind of art it is. Some people make art for fun as a hobby or a profession, while others feel like they simply could not breathe without it! Not everyone is going to like what kind of art Jane Doe creates and John Doe might not even be a very good artist. But the point is there are so many different people here on DA that while some are professionals, some may be amateurs. And while some may like to draw fan art or paint in abstract, others may like to take photos of models sporting fashion or eating each others brains. Other people like to write poetry that comes from the heart, while others may enjoy art involving nothing but a naked body. Can we learn to appreciate our differences and move on? I believe we can. That is part of the reason why there are so many different art forms on DA. And I believe that is worth celebrating. Try and remember that regardless of what kind of art you are here on deviantART for, that this is a place for everyone to share their art and to express themselves through it.

I challenge you to go out of your way to encourage and compliment someones art, suggest to an artist how they might continue to improve or explore the different art genres that deviantART has to offer. You might discover a new art form you like or find an artist who becomes your new favorite!