For some context I live with my adopted parents (black mom, white dad. I’m Asian) and thanks to them I’ve had a pretty sheltered and comfortable life since. I’m grateful to them and want to make them happy but it’s also a bit hurtful because I want praise because I worked hard.
I’m trying to build my portfolio and social media and my style leans towards anime. I want to go into sequential art as a future career. If my mom asks what I’ve been up to I’ll show her my art since I’m closer to her, especially ones I was proud of. But whenever she sees them, she usually asks why I’m only drawing white skinned people, where are the black people? But she also says I should do what makes me happy. Which I appreciate but I’m getting mixed messages since she doesn’t want to talk to me about my art since she doesn’t draw and will walk away if I try to have a conversation.
I’m a bit scared to draw black characters because what if I misrepresent or accidentally lean into racist depictions and stereotypes? I don’t want to have a black character just to have one in my stories. And I’ve seen how mean people can be on social medias. I want to practice but time and confidence are two major issues I struggle with since I’ve gotten busy with schoolwork and looking into all the other artists out there.
Similar conversations happen with other things I show her when asked, webcomics, shows, etc. It’s too long to quote but basically the message she’s telling me is: Why are there no black characters, they’re never black, we need more black representation, why are there so many men? Where are the women and if there are why are they dressed like that? Where’s the diversity? I know she has a fair point but it’s never about the story, or quality it’s always straight to what do the characters look like. Is it just her trying to hint at media she wants to see (but she’s not into comics so idk) or am I actually in the wrong and just making excuses? Am I being racist not wanting to expand my cast of characters? Sorry if the words are messy.
When you avoid portraying diversity because you’re afraid of being accused of racism, that’s just a different form of racism, my dear. The answer is to learn. Instead of avoiding racist portrayals by only drawing skinny white folks, put in the effort and learn what is racist and why. It sounds like your mom would be a great resource for that and happy to tell you (and she can probably tell you about good content makers you can watch or read, to get more perspectives).
She’s not hinting at the content she wants to see, she’s very openly telling you. I don’t know how you think she could be more frank about what she thinks is missing and wishes was mainstream and available to everyone.
It does suck that she’s not interested in talking about your process or your drawing other than bringing up her frustration with how white both your art and mainstream art is. We all want to feel seen and heard and supported by our parents. And maybe that’s a conversation you can have – you hear her frustration, but you wish you got to hear about more than just her frustration. You feel like she doesn’t care about your art or support it, or care about why you like it, and that makes you sad.
I guess ESH, but I’m not sure how helpful voting is.
I don’t think you are the AH for drawing what you want to draw.
BUT I also think your mum has a valid point about representation of Black people, Asian people, Indigenous cultures, women and so on. The thing is not depicting them can be leaning into racist and mysogynistic stereotypes and reinforcing the tropes around them – inadvertently doing what you didn’t mean to in the beginning. And honestly, some of the anime my nephew loves is the most mysogynistic crap I’ve seen. I just can’t talk to him about it, or take the stories seriously because of it. Like the only women are the heroes mother making him soup or a bunch of girls literally chasing him around and giggling. He never realised how unrealistic it was until I asked him to point out one girl he knows that act like that.
I’m not saying you should be, or should not be, adding other characters into your work. And certainly not sharing things on social media or in public or professional circles unless you are happy and confident in them. But you will never become confident without engaging in working with them, trying to understand the characters and their situations, and so on. Doing that will make you a better writer and a much better artist. The best artists can convey meaning about a persons/characters personality and inner life in a way that someone who is technically very good but who lacks that understanding of human nature cannot.
My advice, if it is worth anything, is simply to draw more. Look at faces. What is unique, interesting, or beautiful? What expressions do they hold? How can you represent that in your style? Not everything has to be defined for a particular character or sequential arc. Even if you never show this to anyone else it will help level your skill up.
NAH
YTA. I can imagine it’s a bit hurtful to your adopted mom to see all these characters you’ve been working on, and for *none* of them to look like her.
I’d also point out that the only way for you to learn to draw black characters, is to practice drawing black characters.
NAH.
You’re not racist.
You’re not wrong for drawing what you enjoy, and your mom’s desire for representation is valid. Art is always viewed from different angles, and that’s okay.
Don’t be afraid to practice drawing diverse characters, failing and mistakes are a part of learning and improving as an artist.
I think your mom is saying that despite her being your mom and I guess a loving figure in your life, in the artistic worlds you create, you don’t see people who look like her existing. You cite being afraid to not portray black characters accurately, but I assume that doesn’t bother you about white representations? I think you are smart enough to look at the variety of looks for blacks and figure out how to draw them realistically.
It’s your art, you get to decide. I don’t think diverse characters should be thrust into a story just be there. But why can’t a character be black? Is your mom the only black person you know?
There are some anime and manga that have awesome Black characters that aren’t stereotypes. Do you have Black friends?
yta. learn. ask questions. there’s plenty of resources out there written by black people to teach how to draw them. anime style art is no excuse. you’re being racist and lazy, your mother is right to question why there’s no people of colour.
edit: in reading the rest of the post. your mother is again, right asking where the women are, why they’re dressed like that etc etc. you are dismissing her bc you think she doesn’t know art. you can know when something is a problem without having looked into it yourself especially with representation in art and other media. you are making excuses. look at yourself and ask why you are only drawing this kind of person. you need to do better, and in learning to draw more kinds of people, your art will improve in other areas to. when it is in good faith and criticism is taken well and attempts are made to improve, people aren’t going to become hostile to you.
again, this means research and putting in the effort. as with all things.
If you want to get into art of any kind, you can’t just lock in to one thing and refuse to try anything else, at least early on. I paint pet portraits but it took a long time of trying landscapes, flowers, people etc before I settled into what I loved. You may be missing out on a wealth of experience in art as well as something that you may enjoy more than the niche you’ve created for yourself.
YTA. There are loads of manga with POC characters, especially on Webtoons. If you want to get into art school, you need to show a *range* and *diversity*. Not only this, but by only drawing white people, you are very openly denying your own reality because you are not white nor are the people around you.
There’s this great graphic novel about denial of your own culture and race called *American Born Chinese* by Gene Luen Yang. It won the 2007 Eisner Award and I highly suggest reading it.
ESH. You can draw whatever you want. But just fyi, specifically avoiding drawing diverse bodies because you think they’re inherently more complicated than white bodies IS a form of racism. You literally just change the skin colour and maybe the hair type, my friend. You are making it way too complicated. They come in all the same shapes white people do.
It’s also stifling your art skills, because you’re never stretching yourself – which will come back to bite you if you ever want to do it professionally, because guess what? People EXPECT you to draw characters who do not all look the same, when you’re doing it professionally. They’re gonna get bored of “white skinny person” real quick. If you can only draw one thing, you can’t be a pro artist. Not a single job will be okay with that.
Side note: you also need to thicken your skin if you want to be a pro artist.
Mmm… light YTA tbh
I get that you don’t want to be offensive, but you’re never gonna be good at drawing other people if you don’t try. I think just listening to Black people’s advice on how to draw them in a non-racist way and practicing wouldn’t be terrible. There’s plenty of educational posts out there. But if you are simply refusing to learn and don’t want to try… yta
Hey kiddo, the internet is really mean sometimes when people are trying. Sometimes especially if people are trying. You can have perfectly well-rounded characters, great storylines, beautiful art and someone is going to nitpick the shit out of it no matter what. It sucks and it’s scary, but it’s the unfortunate reality of sharing a planet with several billion opinions.
I’m sorry your mom can’t connect with you on your art. I think some of your fears of even trying to draw black features stem a little from the pressure to create the representation she’d like to see. You want her approval but it’s also the only thing she seems to care about when it comes to what you do. Kind of a sense of why bother, right? She doesn’t seem to like it for what it is and what happens if you try to appease her, but do it wrong and she gets even more upset?
Here’s some advice from one artist to another: draw your mom. Take note of her expressions. Draw her smile. Her frown. Her brows. Her chin. Her eyes. Her ears. Her nose. Her teeth. Draw her realistically. Draw her but exaggerate the features that you think of when you think of her. Draw her in specific styles. Draw her in your style. Get to know her through your art.
She wants to see you love her. Right now, I imagine there’s some insecurity in not seeing herself anywhere in your art. Diversity is important, absolutely, but I think in her case specifically she’s also just afraid what that lack of diversity—whether it’s race or gender—means you feel about her.
When it comes to art and writing, just know you’re gonna screw up sometimes. It happens. It won’t be on purpose but someone will rage at you for being misinformed or ignorant. They may say very hateful things and not listen if you try to defend yourself. It sucks. It’s not the end of the world. When it happens you apologize, you learn, and you grow better and stronger. Don’t let your fears prevent you from growing. Give it a shot. Keep drawing. Keep trying. Do it “wrong” so you can eventually do it right.
Light YTA you sound like you’re young and nervous about getting backlash towards your art which I can understand. Not drawing POC characters ignores the fact that those people are everywhere in real life, and also present in anime and manga. You can’t not learn how to draw people with other skin tones, hair types, and features. It will look bad to professionals reviewing your portfolio. If you’re afraid of getting it wrong, why not ask your mom? Ignoring this opportunity to learn isn’t going to help you navigate your art or your life any better.
I could understand you drawing the world you interact with and observe, so if you go to a predominantly white school, you may draw more white characters. I knew a guy in high school who was Asian and influenced by anime that drew mostly white characters because our highs school was 90% white. And he drew mostly guys as he was friends with mostly guy… but here’s the difference… when he drew women they were dressed normally. Maybe that is why your mom’s comment about how the women were dressed hit me the most… as it suggests there is a level of mimicking in what you draw, as I doubt the women you see are dressed like anime characters. So maybe look at your mother’s comments as your mother wanting you to put more of yourself and your lived experience into your art… to be more original. Bc if it is graphic novels, it would be hard for her to engage in the story of the visuals put her off. NAH