Do Non-artists Really Not Know How Long Art Takes?!?

[Callirai]

My mom does the same thing! She will listen to anything I have to say about art and the program I am using. She listens, she will watch me draw and watch speed paints or even look at other artists work and help me analyze it anytime I ask! I love that she is like that!

[Freemints30]

Eh, computer is drawing everything for you

Yes, just open clip paint or sai and tell it to draw a full 30 panel webtoon episode, leave it on and in 30 minutes its 100% complete and ready to upload

[snailienz]

High key I think thats exactly it. They either don’t realize how long art takes, or they think that because we do it for fun that being willing to do it for peanuts makes sense to them. They don’t get that it is like asking a professional landscaper who likes to garden in their time off to come over to their house and perform work for barely anything, they think it cant possibly be work!

One time I had a doctor ask me what animation was. After telling me I was going to be poor my whole life and should get used to bussing tables if I wanted to do art for a living.

Just because I’m an artist doesn’t mean I’m going to supplement my art paychecks with food service, lady...

[Kelheor]

@Freemints30 oh yes, I want

[Rhonder]

The typical case is "no, not really" lol. I do think that people that are steeped enough in a family member's or friend's work can have a pretty good idea, but the general populace who either doesn't know someone like that (or like in the case of the sibling in the OP, evidently didn't pay very close attention despite having a family member doing art) definitely not.

Like for example, I think my close group of like 5-8 friends have a pretty good idea of how long my art takes since they've been around me doing it for like... over a decade. Same goes for my parents who would see me working on different drawings growing up and probably don't know the intricacies but definitely have a sense for it. But I'd be hard pressed to believe that any of my more casual acquaintances who follow my art pages or extended family really have a good idea of the time it takes.

[mappypaint]

Imagine even in my case of custom painting where paint has to dry properly I get inquiries if the paintjob can be finished in a day and if they can wait for it to be done. Like cleaning, sanding, and masking the item to be painted can take the whole day already... and that's just the prep stage; before the first coat of paint even touches the surface. Now putting the base colors and the designs on it when following proper drying time between coats takes some time as well. They think projects that takes me 4-7 days to do can be done in a day so I always tell them my procedure and how its not comparable to DIY paint with spraycan done in a day project.

[SpavVy]

Yup, I've seen that before which is part of the reason I don't offer realism anymore plus I hate doing it. I once started a commission for this woman that was friends with my mom to do a small tarot deck and the offer was pretty low for all that work plus she was pretty rude so I ended up dropping the commission. And then I get the occasional aspiring writer asking me to draw their manga stories for free labeling it as a "partnership" it's like, what do you think I do just throw my Cintiq pen at the screen and BOOM theres art? I have medical bills to pay there's no way I'm working for free or accepting low offers.

[gempompadour]

It's even worse when some comics and artists have help and can crank out pages and pictures like it's nothing. Be it flats, lineart or effects, having help in any of these stages shaves off hours. People just see the finished product and ask why can't you do that as well, not realizing that there's a lot more going on behind the scenes.

[kmlangleyauthor]

If you’ve never sheared a sheep, you probably have no idea how long that takes. As someone who raised livestock, it takes f’ing forever because you have to first wash the sheep, then blow dry it, then shear. And wool coats aren’t exactly quick to dry.

I had no idea!!!! That’s so crazy!!! (And also super cool! )

I only recently started digital art and, even after doing traditional for ages, I had no idea how much time it entailed. Most people don’t ever take the time to find out and they expect everything to be the price of what they can find in a box store forgetting that it’s a custom piece, not reprinted millions of times to keep cost down, and all the little things that go into it. (People also tend to want instant gratification and will also get upset with how long stuff takes to get finished )

[spadedigsbutts]

Yeaaaah I hate when that happens sorry to hear that. I think this happens a lot since after the industrial revolution and stuff, we can now just get goods that used to take a craftsperson or two working for days or hours for like next to nothing in no Time at all and people just then naturally assume that tracks everywhere else as well, including art.

[CosmicLeon]

You would be surprised. I have met a lot of people at conventions that wanted it now. I told them it takes me a bit. Most people are understanding but if you give a time estimate, try to keep it because people will check. As long as you are clam about it you can avoid conflict in these kinds of conversations. Always give yourself extra time XD

[Inspector_Spinda]

let's be honest. artists don't know how long artists take. ive had art friends who assumed they were the only ones who took 10 hours to do something that looked pretty simple. im guilty of it too. artists who of a lower skill level often also assume very skilled artists are very fast which is usually not the case (at least not to the extent they're picturing). we assume once you become skilled you stop making mistakes somehow and everything just goes quickly.

it's what keeps us going

[Ardelvion]

No, they don't. When I was just a reader, I had no idea how much labor was put into comics that I read even though I did ask some artists online why it took them very long to release one chapter for their comic. Now that I'm both a reader and creator, I gradually understood why making comics is a labor-intensive process.

[rajillustration]

Oh they have no idea, that's why I offer prints instead of commissions to internet randos. A print I can take however long I need it and sell it forever (some prints I've been selling for yearrrrrs). Art is very expensive not just in money but also on my body--it's really painful to put out art like that, and ever since getting carpal tunnel, I've been very careful about accepting jobs that don't pay enough. my hands simply can't afford it.

[shooshell]

Evidently, artists themselves dont really know how long art takes, because my silly butt thought I could finish my comic in 2020 :'D

(But yeah. The amount of literal labor it takes to make any art at all baffles a lot of people, even well meaning ones. I guess artists are just so humble, we make it look easy...)

[pilot-obvious]

Every day of my life is me telling my boss/coworkers... no, I can't have that to you in 2 hours... Yes, you heard me right, I said it would take at least two weeks to get that design fleshed out and finalized. No I can't just copy what you see on Google Images.

Slightly less art related: My boss wanted me to completely redesign our website, provide all the visual assets, and get our copywriter to completely rewrite everything on that website... in two weeks. He just genuinely had no idea how long that kind of work took. I said it would probably be 6 months at least.

I don't think people understand the decision making that goes into creative work. You don't always automatically have the perfect first idea that becomes the final product, no matter how creative you are.

[spadesart]

Had an abusive design client last month ask for detailed proof of work when he found out it took me 7-9 combined hours to work on around 6 designs. Ended up not getting paid around $200 for the work I did for him and ended up having to block him because he expected me to be available 24/7 and would continue piling new projects onto me after I told him I would no longer be doing design work for him.

When I recommended other freelancers in the area he said their pay rates ($20-$35/hour) was 'robbery' and not 'freelance'. Funny considering how he would continuously dangle payment over my head and never deliver.

[Shanny8]

Evidently, artists themselves dont really know how long art takes, because my silly butt thought I could finish my comic in 2020 :'D

This. Thought I could crank out a chapter a year until I got a visit from my now enemies carpal tunnel and RSI...

[DiegoPalacios]

That client took the "free" of "freelance" way too literally

Those people are not worth it.....what they want is an actual human slave.

[ar-ninetysix]

That time spent creating any piece of media's never really gonna be understood by people that consume it in such a small fraction of the time. Even more so, if it's intended to be a full product to be enjoyed in minutes or even seconds.

Entire comic and manga series that have spanned several years in creation can be consumed in a day or two. Albums and animated TV episodes are created in months, but the finished product is meant to be enjoyed in 25-45 minutes. A single handdrawn piece of art that took several days to make can easily be looked at for few seconds and judged almost immediately just based on its presentation... It honestly kinda unsettles me sometimes just how easy it is to immerse yourself in so many different creative works while being incredibly detached from the creators who made 'em.

When that consumption time is such a tiny fraction of all the work put in, it's no wonder how some people just don't know any better about the creation process. Literally, seeing it being done in real time is the only way some people can truly comprehend that any creative endeavor is more than just a hobby you can pick up at any time.