BLPH

The first groups went live in September, 2009; almost 4 years ago. It was a long-anticipated feature and the general response was mostly positive. Better ways to promote yourself, finding like-minded, appreciating folders full of awesome deviations... the list goes on.


For a couple years, I've been involved in groups. From watcher up to founder. Throughout these years, some things have made me question the righteousness of the existence of groups. I'll try to give a few insights on them from different perspectives.


Member/Watcher
In a poll, I once asked how many people are member of groups: blph.deviantart.com/journal/po…
The outcome was pretty clear: the giant majority is member of at least one group. The reasons to join a group are manifold. But that's not the point.
Being a member of some of the largest groups on dA puts you into the position to present your artwork to an unfathomably large audience (assuming it gets accepted). However, will the public really look at your work? Personally, I find it extremely tiring to get flooded with 300+ deviations each day. The question is: do you actually look at each work that is being submitted to a 30,000 people strong group? Possibly even multiplying it by several large groups you follow. Isn't it just more tempting to ignore the deviations in your message-center completely?

Founder/Co-Founder/Contributor
In case you have at least one group that you administrate, you have probably seen them. The submissions that make you question everything. What was this person smoking while slapping that image together? Why can't he/she pay attention to submitting to the right folder? Did he/she actually look at what this group is about?
Declining is usually the only way to go. Some accept the rejection more or less silently while others go on a giant shitstorm elevating themselves to the greatest "artist" the world has ever seen.
I've seen it so many times, it's not even remotely funny anymore. It just makes me think that numerous people don't give a thing about anything; as long as they potentially increase their exposure. Submitting an image to 5 groups? Well, okay. 10? Borderline. 150? No comment.


From a more personal point of view, I think that groups started out as a great idea but over time, they've lost this "special something". The submitter doesn't really get noticed because the watchers/members don't look at others' works anymore. Some might disagree harshly but those usually represent a minority. People are mostly lazy...


What is your opinion? Are you an avid lover of groups or do you wish they were never created at all? Post your thoughts down here!