Wednesday, August 6, 2008

Awards and Memes? What Do You Think?

I received this URL from a friend who sent it to me.


http://with-heart-and-hands.blogspot.com/2008/07/brillante-weblog-premio-hoax-award.html


Apparently, this lady researched the Brillante Weblog award that has been going around (and that I was given by Claudia Rose which I then sent to 7 bloggers - one of whom declined).


Surprise! These are sent around with the intent of getting more viewers to your blog. Didn't we all know that? I don't see this as a problem. Truthfully, would you really - really - be blogging if you didn't get a single person read or comment on what you write? If you don't want others to read/see your work, then why not just make a personal journal and keep it hidden from others?


I think every "award" I've received has been given in the spirit of honesty and with good faith and I've sent awards along that way. I am not going to send you an award just because I like you - unless the award is for "best buddy" or something like that.


I am not interested in my ranking on Technorati. Really, I'm not. I'm not registered there. I am interested in knowing people read my blog, comment on it (either here at the blog or to me when they see me somewhere), and like what I am doing. And having created this blog, I do feel an obligation to share work that is of a high standard - well, as high as I can get it right now in this art journey of mine.


So...to accept awards or decline? What do you think? I'd love to hear some opinions.


Have a great day - off to Greater Cincinnati Watercolor Society this morning to watch and paint along with a George James DVD called "Mastering Yupo." I bought three sheets of yupo from Sandy yesterday and am going to play sometime this week with creating more textures on them, a la Molly Brose. I really like her work and didn't realize she works on yupo until just recently. Check her out at A Day's Work.

6 comments:

Watercolors by Susan Roper said...

Interesting, Rhonda....

I think the recognition is great and in your case well-deserved. I show my Arte y Pico award proudly. The only bothersome part is the "requirement" to choose a set number of others on whom to bestow the awards, and on whom we place the responsibility to find that set number of blogs, etc...Personally, I have learned more about the blogs of others through yours and others' links lists than through the awards process. We all have so many different contacts and art sites we enjoy and it is always such a pleasurable discovery to seek out and enjoy new ones.

Every time anyone makes a comment on my blog I feel they honor me since it shows they are following along in my art life (and sometimes personal life) and that is a great part of being a blogger. Even though our blogs were originally intended as art blogs, they allow us to peek into the lives of fellow artists, seeing their photography, travels, some of their family lives, etc. All of these things are important in understanding where their creativity has come from and is inspired by. I agree, if you don't want people to read your blogs, why have them?

Thanks for always having such thoughtful and interesting blog entries, they keep me coming back daily to see what is up in your world.

Sandy Maudlin said...

Thanks, Rhonda, for putting it so well about awards. Although they can be fun, I find that they also can be distracting from the purpose of a blog, consuming unecessary time and space. You sure have a great outlook on how to handle them.

Anonymous said...

I don't see any harm in the awards. I found your blog yesterday. I like your work and I like your blog. Paint and write on!

Candy in Las Vegas

Nava said...

Ha! So, what is a "real" award? I mean, really - all awards are given based on subjective personal taste, so I do not really see a problem here.

When I got the "Art y Pico" award, my sister was ecstatic for me, which made me laugh, as it was just a matter of recognition by someone who liked my blog. Same here - it's all a matter of recognition.

And, it's not like once we get an award we cling at the laurels and live on our fame, right? ;-)

It's fun to be recognized, and then we move on, doing what our blog is really all about: sharing our art work and thoughts with others.

Or, in short: "Like, Duh?".

RH Carpenter said...

I really appreciate your comments and your opinions on this. Thanks so much, Susan, Sandy, Candy and Nava. Candy, come back and visit anytime :)

Vicki Greene said...

I am new to blogging and I am thrilled when someone leaves a comment on my blog. It lets me know that someone is actually taking the time to look at my blog. I am sure that it can be a bit distracting to follow up with this or that when you receive an award but it can also be a wonderful way for others to find new and interesting sites to learn from.