Comments | minako134: translation of a statement about the nature of art meant to cheer on victims of the Tohoku quake

minako134

translation of a statement about the nature of art meant to cheer on victims of the Tohoku quake

Mar 13, 2011 12:49

This will probably be edited as I get more help translating some of the stuff I couldn't figure out well.

There have been quite a lot of art submitted at Pixiv with things like "Hang in there, Japan!!" included in them. Some of them are great to see, but others, it feels like it's bordering on being out-right insensitive. I realized I wasn't the ( Read more... )

hetalia, japanese, fanart, fandom, translation, pixiv, rl, japan

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Ahm... anonymous March 13 2011, 23:06:49 UTC

Okay, maybe it's not in my best interests to come out and say this, but ( ... )

Re: Ahm... anonymous March 13 2011, 23:52:59 UTC

I'm sorry, I take it back.
I take it back.

I totally just saw a picture of chibi!Japan being crushed by an 'earthquake' while another goes 'NOOOO NIHON NOOOOO'.

THAT was not okay.
Not by a fucking longshot.

Re: Ahm... kecen March 13 2011, 23:54:35 UTC

What the hell D:

Re: Ahm... tsubasafeathers March 14 2011, 05:37:13 UTC

ya ...some people really do not know what it means to be insensitive which is why its not okay most of the time

Re: Ahm... ecchipiro March 14 2011, 00:42:11 UTC

What you listed as things you've seen are things from the past; not current or ongoing. The situation in Japan is not just last Thursday, it is happening right now.

I know you've withdrawn your comment, and this isn't meant as a personal attack. I just wanted to highlight why art about the earthquake etc. right now are too soon. Way too soon.

Re: Ahm... retteliebe March 14 2011, 00:48:42 UTC

I, personally, don't think that there should be any type of thing saying "It's too soon."

My Jewish friend still gets angry at any mention of Holocaust jokes, for example. That didn't even happen to her.
And things like 9/11, or the Vietnam War, that happened long ago that people still remember, are taken lightly, as well. Katrina's still taken lightly, too.
People seem to act like "Oh, this happened a few years ago, so nobody cares anymore." People who were affected aren't any less affected as they were the day it happened.
So honestly, I don't see the difference.

Re: Ahm... ecchipiro March 14 2011, 01:02:43 UTC

The difference being that people are suffering right now. Right this very moment where I am replying to you.

There is a huge difference, and, no, I do not think one should make jokes about 9/11, the Holocaust, or the Vietnam war, or any other horrible moment in history.

As the original writer of this text says; even art that was drawn with good intentions, meant to show support, is not a wise idea.
It is disrespectful.

It's like prodding an open flesh wound, and asking if it still hurts.

Re: Ahm... retteliebe March 14 2011, 01:18:55 UTC

And yet in New Orleans there are still people suffering. In Haiti, too. It's not different. It's happening all over the world. Just because this one just happened doesn't mean that it's any less okay to make artwork of other places of the world that are suffering the same amount. Because honestly, there are many, many places that are ( ... )

Re: Ahm... ecchipiro March 14 2011, 01:28:11 UTC

You've mentioned the Holocaust, 9/11, and the Vietnam War. Things from the past. Things that aren't ongoing. Haiti is very much still ongoing. So is what happened in New Zealand.

Okay, the Agent Orange situation in Vietnam is still ongoing.

I'm not discussing the merits of art in and on itself. There is no point.

I made my point based on what you used as examples of bad taste in art; then you turned to using examples of what pretty much made up my point. Then you say art is controversial, basically making your own statements null and void.

This conversation is over. I'm not going to discuss who suffers more than anybody else with someone on the internet.

Re-read what the original writer said. Maybe you'll understand them better.

Re: Ahm... retteliebe March 14 2011, 01:35:51 UTC

I'm mentioning plenty of stuff, actually. And they all actually relate ( ... )

(The comment has been removed)

Re: Ahm... retteliebe March 14 2011, 02:35:14 UTC

That's exactly my point, though. Not all of the fanart that's been showing up is so disgusting. There's actually a large amount of artwork like the one you just showed of Vietnam. I actually went through the pixiv tags, and there's alot of just pictures Japan that don't comment on it or anything other than the words "Pray for Safety" or "Pray for Japan" or "You're Not Alone" or something. I'm trying to sort of bring awareness that there ARE pictures that aren't disrespectful in the least, and these seem to be completely overlooked, and everyone seems to be saying that you shouldn't make any type of artwork, supportive or not.

Re: Ahm... madcapjest March 14 2011, 09:55:22 UTC

It's perfectly fine drawing art of Japan, and I agree that there's plenty of him that's not disrespectful.

It is not perfectly fine drawing art or writing fic that references this tragedy while it is still occurring, and the fact that over 7000 people on Pixiv alone have said it makes them uncomfortable should be more than enough to stop you from doing so. If you want to draw Japan being strong, like in that picture of Vietnam Mekky provided, that's fine, but the second you put down 'Pray for Japan', it's gone from being a generic picture to one that may potentially upset the very people it's meant to support. Yes, the pictures may seem inoffensive to you, but right now, it's better to err on the side of caution. There are plenty of other ways to show support, from donating to charity to simply saying that you'll keep those in Japan in your thoughts ( ... )

minako134 March 14 2011, 02:12:15 UTC

Then my question is this:

The people who answered "I want them to reconsider/use restraint/have more respect", the majority of the votes; are you saying they should accept the art simply because of intent, because it should just be taken as support, even though it makes them feel uncomfortable?

That...doesn't make sense to me.

retteliebe March 14 2011, 02:31:53 UTC

I'm not saying that. No, no, I know that there's a lot of art out there that isn't okay at all. The ones that they seem to mean. Like the infamous "NOOOO NIHON NOOOOO" picture. But I'm also saying that there are people here saying that no artwork should be made at all, which is an entirely different matter, and entirely wrong, in my opinion. Because there are some pictures that are, actually, supportive.
There are just a few that definitely aren't.

minako134 March 14 2011, 04:20:18 UTC

Okay, thanks for spelling it out; as intelligent as I'm trying to sound with this post and the one at hetalia, I'm actually kind of a dumbass and need help sometimes..

In which case!

Even if the art is supportive from the perspective of the artist, this poll seems to indicate that there's a large, LARGE amount of people (6,000+ !!) that think many of the earthquake-related art requires more restraint and respect for the victims who are dealing with all this, as long as the disaster is still happening and the stress is still so high. In my opinion, it comes down to the victims' wishes and those closest to the victims, and considering Pixiv's large Japanese population (naturally), it seems a valid enough reference for giving this one to them.

I do get the feeling, though, that Pixiv users are responding positively to works that are meant to encourage but don't actually include anything in the artwork that have to do with the disaster or have direct "Hang in there!!" statements in them, the title, or the tags. An example I'm bringing up with ( ... )

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