Sta.sh
deviantART's Community Relations Team provides a unique collective effort that seeks to create and sustain collaborative relationships among deviants and to develop innovative opportunities within the global art industry. These relationships are meant to provide and encourage opportunities to foster creative genius. The CR Team acts as a window of information for the community on how to utilize deviantART in a way that will empower and enable themselves as respected and successful artists.
Our ultimate vision is a community of artists that come together unified and strengthened by sharing the belief that they hold the artistic power to create and shape their own success. In order to realize our vision, our mission must be to exceed the expectations of our community, whom we view as partners, and we will accomplish this by committing to our shared core values. Our core values are listed in FAQ #84: What are the Core Values of the Community Relations and Operations Departments?
Director of Community Relations
:Table of Contents
1. Welcome!
2. Groups & Group Testing (Alpha Groups)
3.Daily Deviations and self-suggestions
4. Volunteer Openings in Community Relations
5. Question from the forums
6. Share your Opinions!
7. Llamas
8. Charity & Fundraising
9. Community Projects
10. Official Contests
11. Important & Interesting Links
12. News from the Galleries
1. Welcome & Thank You & Changes
We would like to welcome `CookiemagiK to the Volunteer Gallery Moderator team. He is the new Gallery Moderator for emoticons
Every person that comes into Community Relations, enhances and touches the community in a positive way during their time - and they should be celebrated for their efforts and love for the community.
With that, we give our love, adoration and eternal gratitude to `FaMz, `bypass2020, `OneFreeInternet, `Jules1983 and `shebid
Also note that !Sander-Seto has taken over the traditional art -> Typography galleries as well as the Digital -> Text art galleries.
2. Groups & Groups Testing (Alpha Groups)
As many of you have noticed, we have launched several alpha groups to conduct testing which will lead to our beta release
. I'm going to bring you some insider information Currently $fourteenthstar and I are working on Basic (Me) and Super ($fourteenthstar) group defaults. To help establish the needs and requirements of a variety of group types, I've enlisted some community members and created the following Alpha groups for Basic testing:#britain - devMEET Group
#Writers-Workshop - Art Group
#firefly - Fan Group
#GimmeFeedback - Art/Social Group
#LegendaryCreatures - Art Group
#toronto - devMEET Group
#dAllamas - Social Group
#one-stop-stock - Resource/Tutorial Group
$fourteenthstar will be touching on the Super groups in her next Community Operations newsletter so make sure you stay tuned to herWe appreciate that watching this from the outside can be a bit confusing, exciting and frustrating but I assure you we're hearing you and have heard you throughout this whole process. With that in mind I'd like to take time to speak about "Groupies"
When it was released that the groupie limit for basic was currently set to 100, there was some minor freaking out
I appreciate this because I believe there to be a lot of confusion about the role of groupies and what they are. So I'd like to explain my thoughts on groupies and what groups could use them for and how current alpha groups are utilizing them currently.First, it is important to recognize that groupies is like unlocking a new level in a game. You've never had them before, they aren't a cool name for group members - they are something completely shiny and new and unlike anything you've probably had before. With that in mind let's think of groupies in terms of band groupies and your group is the next "great thing".
So you have this kickass band and you have fans, people who buy some of your albums, come to some of your concerts but you also have groupies. Your groupies buy ALL of your albums, and they go to ALL of your concerts and they tell ALL of their friends about you. So in terms of deviantART groups, your groupies can be your street team. Groupies can be your marketing team, the people that promote your activities or help generate buzz. For the purpose of basic groups, I feel that groupies can be very powerful and valuable. I feel that groupies within a basic group are probably people that you have some sort of interpersonal relationship with. They are in that first tier of your groups inner circle and should be "chosen".
After a ridiculous amount of research into community and group sizes, I've found that the "magical" number for the amount of people you can logically stay "connected" to is somewhere around 100-200 depending on the type of connection you're shooting for. So this gives you a little insight into why our testing number is at 100 and while the final "product" may have a different number, I wanted you to hear what the logic was in arriving to our 'magic number'. That being said, what founders use the groupie level for is up to them. For instance here are a couple of examples:
^Beccalicious has determined that the groupie level for #Writers-Workshop should be reserved for deviants who were previous members of the workshop and various members of the literature community.
`sodalicious had decided that the groupies of #toronto should be reserved for deviants who live in Toronto.
The use-cases are endless and the power is in your hands. I simply wanted to show you the way my brain was working in regards to groupie limits for Basic groups
Note: Also be aware that if you don't know at this point, you do not need to be a groupie in order to submit deviations or faves to the group. Also, a quickly circulating rumor
Now that I've exhausted your attention on this one topic, what are your thoughts about groupies? How do you envision them being used? Do you feel the limit makes sense? Lets hear it.
3. Daily Deviations and self-suggestions
This topic seems to have a lot of passionate feelings behind it so I want to formally explain my view on why I asked people to remove "Do not suggest yourself" from their personal DD rules many moons ago. We are an art community, filled with amateurs, semi-pros and professional artists. We are rampant with people who want to make their living making art. and I will tell, as will anyone else who's worked professionally. If you cannot market yourself, if you cannot promote yourself - you will get eaten alive.
Therefore I believe it to be a disservice to yell, scream and jump up and down when people come at you with notes saying "OMG LOOK AT MY STUFF" or calling them egomaniacs because they self suggest themselves for a DD and this applies to the community at large.(staff, volunteers and fellow members of the community)
We should be encouraging people to promote themselves! However, I want to help everyone who wants to market and promote themselves but isn't quite sure how.
To be honest the "PLEASE CHECK OUT MY GALLERY [LINK]" doesn't really work here. This is an art community and people enjoy a lot of give and take. First, engage yourself in the community, if you want more comments on your stuff, it's usually good practice to comment on other peoples work. If you want thoughtful critiques, leaving "OMG AWESOME" on the works of 50 random people is probably not going to encourage that. You get from this community what you put into it. If you are looking for help with your technique, ask specific questions when you engage people. Instead of "CHECK OUT MY GALLERY" maybe "I really want some input on my black and white work since I've just started. Do you have any photoshop tips for fixing the levels and what's this about curves?"
It's better to take time and think about what you want to get out of the community and act accordingly.
The point is that we as a community SHOULD be nurturing a future generation of artists and that means educating each other on the positives of self-promotion.
4. Volunteer Openings in Community Relations
If you're interested in learning more about being a volunteer on deviantART please read FAQ #85: Can I be a volunteer on deviantART?
To see current openings on the Community Relations volunteer team please go to this journal
If there isn't a spot open please consider helping out from within the community. Read How to be a guiding light and shining example by the awesome `RockstarVanity
Please note that there are a lot of inquiries that come in and I may not be able to respond to each and everyone. Your understanding is appreciated
5. Question from the forums!
Taken from this forum
~andrew-black asks :I'm not sure if this is the right place or not or if it's been discussed at length before but I was just wondering if there was any thought of adding a music side to DeviantArt, as there are so many musicians on here and basically we don't want to have to leave DeviantArt to have our music elsewhere since we love DA and it's communities, we'd like to have all of our artistic lives on this fantastic site and not have to venture out into the rest of the ugly cyberspaceworld
Respect,
Andrew
This is a question that comes up often and I would love to bring music to deviantART however, the issues involved with such an endeavor are huge. The music industry is litigiousness and we aren't in a position to deal with that level of wrath and fury should people decide to upload their favorite CD's (and you all know they will). I won't say never because who knows, I recognize music as art and I enjoy it and would love to see a way around the legal insanity that will rain down upon us but at this time, we simply don't have the resources.
6. Share Your Opinions!
I'm actively using my personal forum to try and connect more with the community and I have a series of threads:
The top things you need to know to be deviant?Questions for Community Relations - ask me anything!
Tools of the Trade - What do you use?
Profile Page Modules - What should we build?
General Feedback
Gallery Changes or Additions
Community Relations Project Requests
Subscriber Feature Requests
Requests for improving Literature on deviantART
these forums are all accessible from my profile page at $Moonbeam13 as well and I will be adding more. I encourage you to speak up and get involved! We're in this together
7. Llamas
!Commander-Luminaire
said that this newsletter should contain no less than 5 llamas.. so here we go:
8. Charity & Fundraising
Support the Beth Anderson Fund
Have a charity or fundraising effort you want to promote?? Note me with the details!9. Community Projects
Want to show your devious pride and get involved in ongoing Community Projects? Check on one of these: Inspire Your Heart with Art Day World Cancer Day The deviantMIX Project Random Acts of Kindness Project Positivity That Was Then, This is Now Chaos Gerbil Helen Levitt Tribute Dave Arneson Tribute Pimp the Positive Stamps! May Events/Awareness/Holidays June Events/Awareness/Holidays Michael Jackson Tribute Farrah Fawcett Tribute July Events/Awareness/Holidays My Personal Nightmare
These projects are open all year round, despite whether they represent a particular 'day' or 'month' 
10. Official Contests
dA Llama 4th Birthday - Deadline September 10, 2009 Spectrobes - Origins - Deadline September 11, 2009 Myths & Legends - Deadline September 13, 2009 Beasts of 9 Creature Contest - Deadline September 18, 2009 From Scripts and Flicks Ultimate Fandom Contests 4 - Deadline September 25, 2009 deviantWORLD - September 27, 2009 Story of a Nude Contest - Deadline September 30, 2009 Art History Contest: Baroque - Deadline September 30, 2009 dA Emoticomics - Deadline September 30, 2009 Think Pink IV - Deadline October 2, 2009 RTS Challenge - Deadline October 11, 2009 Beyond the Frontier: Unknown Moons - Deadline October 31, 2009Please note that all contests end on the deadline stated at 11:59:59 PM PST
11. Important and Interesting Links
Official dA News
CEA Update; Invalid "Art Theft Report" - Why? Celebrating Deviousness: Sept 2009 9th Birthday Coloring Contest Results AdCast Goes ShinyInformative News & Events
Know your rights as a Photographer Six Easy Points: Why Disabling Share hurts you big Art Marketing, DA & You Five-a-day Project deviantART 101 - Part Three Miscellaneous [Photomanipulations/Mixed Media] Om Nom Nom it's a delicious Widget 5 secrets of the Photoship Crop Tool Control your Camera Remotely with iPhone Fan Art: A Guide Raising Awareness: Anxiety Disorder Canon Unveils EOS 7D high-end digital SLR The Art of Critique (in horror and beyond) Comic Resources Index Positivity in Action Amazing Copic Marker Blog Over 100 Prompts from Me and You Tutorials Brainstorming Help for the RTS Challenge Art History Spotlight: Baroque 10/18 & 11/8 Adam Chilson Photography Workshops DEVIANCE Wants You to be on the dTEAM! I need, I offer N3 #ProjectComment wants to help you get constructive commentsFeatures & Interviews
Digital Art in Retro Behind the Symbol with snowmask Interview with Pixel Artist Fool Spectacular Stock, Awesome Art 1 The blueprint of ... Gothic Armour - Full View. The Cutting Edge 35/09 Photojournalism Interview(s) #11 [thermalraven] dAknitters' September 2009 Collection The Comic Pros Say "Adam Hughes" Stunning Under 60 #2 3DLove #6 Shadows + Echoes: Volume 03 Artistic Nudes - Fleshy Features #10 Science Fiction Art of the Month v.18 Artisan Crafts DDs for August 2009 Fashion Photography Interview with hellwoman Film & Animation DD's - August 200912. News from the Galleries
Ring Master Anthro Artisan Crafts Comics & Cartoons - ^Thiefoworld Comics & Cartoons - `majnouna Customization Digital Dolls Emoticons Designs & Interfaces deviantART Related Digital Art 3-Dimensional Vector Fan Art Film & Animation Literature Photography Abstract & Surreal & Fetish Artistic Nude Animals, Plants & Nature Horror & Macabre Photojournalism - `evanhwong Photojournalism - `Helewidis Resources & Stock Science Fiction & Space Art Traditional Art
But it'll be also fun to either volunteer with the @MN Team and yes, I've sent an email for that one.
I jut need to worry less and continue with whatever I'm doing at the moment.
Thanks for this news article though.
Also there should be an option for removing inactive groupies and adding some fresh meat ;9
And each group should have an assigned llama to take care of, feed, pet, milk and worship.
It would be lovely to have a group with a list of currently hosted contests divided by art categories involved in the contest.
IMO the best thing would, instead of limiting who can be a member of a group, allow the owner of the groups to set "rights" as they do on forums. IE: you join and the mod can give you rights to posts journals OR post pictures. So you can follow a group, but maybe not have permission to post things.
The other thing is - my biggest complaint about "clubs" is that when pictures are posted it is usually a double post. So you click on the photo only to be redirected to the *same* photo on someone's profile. You also get angry letters if you fav the picture in the club instead of the original photo.
It would be great if instead of posting a photo you can post a "link" to a photo that shows up as a normal deviation in the gallery and in your inbox under #groupname but when you click on it, it brings you to the owner of the picture's page. You can comment and fav it without neglecting the original deviation.
They need to stop lingering at Jerry Garcia's grave.
...and stay off the lawn!
As for people suggesting themselves... I've never had a problem with it and think it's a good idea
First the groups is a great idea and I know a lot of group owners wanted this so badly for years now! To actually have official groups like what is being set up. So I am excited to see how this works out.
I am also VERY glad to see DA growing and UNDERSTANDING us artists who try so hard and feel left out sometimes on here. Being able to just have the option to suggest our selves for a DD with out seeming conceded (when most of us aren't and just want to be acknowledged for our hard work) it's wonderful and shows just how DA is really all about not only just the art but also the artists. It's sometimes hard to post on DA so often as a lot of us are very busy making new art, studying and researching, jobs, etc.. It is nice to know that this mentality on the subject has changed.
As for the music side of things I think in time it will happen in time. DA has been around for awhile and keeps working towards getting better and better.
C.R.E.A.T.E.
I see what you did there.