One of my values, and the values of Those Stories, is to limit harming other people. I even attempt to ignore online trolls, but that is difficult. Of course, this value has many exceptions, including holding influential people accountable and calling out immoral behavior.
When you’re telling stories, starting a business or creating art, there is a chance that someone may get hurt in the process, even if that is not the goal. So each of us must weigh the potential cause and effect of our actions.
However, not ever hurting anyone is an excellent place to hide.
Nina is a graphic artist who creates subversive advertising. She models a lot of her work around old print ads. Especially in this livestream age where everyone is broadcasting their thoughts, I like how she plays with the façade of these near-perfect ads.
Nina showed me a coke ad in the cartoon style you might see in a soda shop. It showed a teenage boy and girl clinking coke bottles. Everything felt normal until you read the caption. “I’m forever heartbroken. If only I’d told you the truth. Enjoy Coke.”
I felt a mix of sadness and melancholy looking at the ad. Nina was upset that I didn’t tear up. I’ve never cried at a soda ad, and I’m not about to start.
Nina told me she didn’t share ads like this with the public. “I fear that someone will see this ad and have a full breakdown. I don’t want to cause that much pain.”
Nina is hiding. She believes that she has the power as an artist to break strangers. If someone stumbled across this on the Internet or an electric pole around town, they’d be unable to continue with their day.
I think Nina’s real fear is that she won’t get a reaction. Maybe she’ll discover her art doesn’t make everyone cry, which is a lousy measuring stick since people cry for different reasons.
No one is forcing Nina to take this path. She has every right to decide that she doesn’t want to bring up sad or melancholy memories. She’s a talented artist and could be subversive in positive ways. If she wants to have less emotional intention, she could still make a huge impact.
Nina’s other choice is to lean into this kind of work. She could trust that her art will emotionally move her audience while accepting that she is not responsible for their reactions. If her work causes the legs of a stranger to give out in despair as they read “Enjoy Coke” on the street corner, that’s good art.
While hiding behind good intentions, she’s hiding her art.