the reason the whole strangers-drawing-me-on-the-internet-situation is so absurd is i’ve found about 200+ illustrated portraits of the same selfie now. more than 200 people have actually sat down and drawn my face. i have them all screenshot and in a folder on my computer and every time i stumble upon a new one i save it. i was thinking of compiling them as an art project from my own personal hell but we’ll see if i ever get to it. for now i just screenshot them to feel like i’m in some sort of control.
anyway, it’s not the first time someone’s making money off of it – i’ve even had for-profit companies include it in their social media content and paid ads. sometimes illustrated sometimes just flat out using the original image.
i don’t have the energy to do anything about it at this point and it hasn’t had any real life consequences for me other than colleagues and clients stumbling upon my face on pinterest, and i’ve had strangers tell me they recognize me from somewhere. i used to think i had a doppleganger but i have a feeling they’ve scrolled past that selfie and then forgot about it. or saw it on a moodboard.
i just want to say this though: i don’t mind people using me as a reference for illustrations – i’ve used pictures too when i used to draw people. if you follow me here and drew me once it’s okay, i’m not upset about it and you don’t have to message me with a link. it’s the sheer scale that’s nauseating. just me minding my own business on a sunday afternoon and finding a whole set of products with my face on them from when i was in college.
i’m not a public person, not even an aspiring blogger. i really don’t care to be known or recognized on here or anywhere else so it’s…….. uuuhhhhhhh. not great. i know i can claim ownership and ask ppl to take the images down but i feel better not thinking about this. so for my own sanity i’m going to go on with my life
