Presentation

The most common reason a moderator will delete an artwork entry is because the artwork does not meet our presentation rules. Artwork with the following characteristics will usually get flagged for presentation:

• blurry/out of focus
• pixelated, low resolution
• not properly cropped as in you can see the surface the artwork was photographed on or you can see the artists fingers/toes.
• the canvas or paper is crooked
• rings or ring holes from the sketchbook are showing.
• sketch is too light.
• text isn't legible on comic entries.
• entry is a screenshot of a computer application.
• distracting watermarks (see Watermarks section below)

When an artwork entry is flagged for presentation it will most often be deleted and the artist will be asked to fix the image and repost it. On rare occasions, the entry wont be deleted but instead the artist will be asked to edit their submission and upload a fixed image.

The following are examples of artwork that do not meet our presentation guidelines.

Watermarks
Watermarks are an effective tool to deter and prevent art theft and plagiarism and we suggest that all artists make use of them. However, we do have guidelines against overly distracting watermarks under our presentation rules. We consider distracting watermarks as spam since the artists name and/or website becomes the focal point rather than the artwork.

Watermarks over the central focal point of an artwork are strongly discouraged. However, if a watermark must be placed over the main focal point, the watermark should be at a very low opacity (around 10%) and not distract too much from the overall composition. You may want to add an additional placement of your watermark within the corner of your artwork at near full to full opacity and at a small size. The larger and subtle watermark, while not very legible, keeps the artwork from being reproduced/printed while the smaller one tells the viewer who the owner of the artwork is.

For non-central watermarks, its ok if the watermark overlaps part of the drawing but it must not be too large or too opaque. Something between 10 and 60% opacity should work fine. The watermark should not be large and/or opaque enough to become a focal point in the artwork's composition. In other terms, the watermark should not act as a bullseye guiding the viewers eye first to the watermark and second to the art.

This watermark example is acceptable

The following examples are NOT acceptable

Photography

The second most common reason artwork is deleted is because the primary element of the submission is photography. For the most part, photography is not allowed in our gallery. The only exceptions to this are photos of sculpture, photos of 2D artwork in the event that a scanner is not available to the artist, and if the artist uses a photo as a background element for a 2D drawing. Please read the photography help file for more detailed information about what sorts of photography are allowed. We also do not allow photo-manipulation, meaning taking a photo and painting ontop and/or adding affects to it. However, you are free to do photomanipulation techniques on your drawings.

In the case of 2D artwork using a photo as a background, if the photo appears to be too strong of an element of the art piece's composition the entry may be deleted. The main focus and a large part of the canvas must be the drawing.

As an alternative, you can post some of your photos in your Image Folio (Members Area > Submit > New Photo).

Posting someone else's work

It is against our site rules to post artwork belonging to another artist. Often times members will post a request or commission that they purchased from another artist and posted it in their art gallery. This is not allowed and these images should instead be posted to the user's image folio. You also cannot post artwork by your family members.

There are exceptions to this rule however. In the case that the artwork is a collaborative piece, you are allowed to post it as long as you have permission from the other artist to do so and you properly credit the other artist.

Only your own work should be in the gallery.

Multiple Posting of same artwork

Members are allowed to post multiple versions of the same work as long as they are distinct. For example, the artist may decide to post a sketch of the work, then a line drawing, then the finished colored piece. However, multiple versions of the same artwork with very few visual changes is not permitted because the repitition in the gallery catches the viewers eye and gains that artist unfair extra exposure.

Also, members are not allowed to post an artwork entry, then delete it a while later and then repost it exactly as it was. This is seen as stealing extra front page exposure.