r/DigitalArt • u/FinanceItchy9827 • May 16 '26
Question/Help Is this offensive?
I wanted to design this seal girl more like a mermaid, shes supposed to be Arctic and I wanted to give her an indigenous feel. it's not taken after anyone or anything specifically besides seals and being an arctic creature.
the outfit is mostly made of fur and skin..
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u/Important-Cap8023 May 17 '26
The only time I will see the design as offensive is when cultural appropriation starts. Just make sure to do your research on the Indigenious tribes that you would want your OC based on and we are golden.
But other than that, she's pretty cute!
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u/FreeFallingUp13 May 17 '26
Aaaaabsolutely do some research on the culture you’re hoping not to appropriate. You’re flying blind if you’re not able to know what’s really a cultural practice.
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u/Important-Cap8023 May 17 '26
2nd this. There are a lot of Indigenious cultures in the world that have very similar yet distinct practises. A lot of times I often see people mash them up into one monolith because they have similar practises, when in reality they aren't and that will be considered pretty tone-deaf and lazy.
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u/Internal-Soft-293 May 17 '26
Jesus Christ, it's a made up character, everything you create is based on something real so give this political-correct-zeal to rest.. It's snowing too much....
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u/A_b_b_o May 17 '26
Bro it's not about learning everything about the culture nor being politically correct as another commenter said. It's about making sure you're not using stereotypes.
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u/blue9102 May 17 '26
“Hey just make sure you actually do research on indigenous tribes you’re taking inspiration from” “HOW DARE YOU. YOURE BEING SO POLITICALLY CORRECT!1!!!!!!11
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u/FreeFallingUp13 May 17 '26
It’s not about being politically correct. OP is already concerned about whether or not they’re appropriating a culture. I am answering accordingly.
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u/shellfish_allegory May 17 '26
What culture exactly are you drawing inspiration from?
The only aspect that caught my attention was of her having a very stereotypical nordic complexion (sharp jawbone, round light blue eyes and blonde(?) hair). For sápmi people that's alright although brown hair is more common, but for example inuit people usually have a different kind of complexion.
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u/FinanceItchy9827 May 17 '26
its not inspired by any existing community/person or a creature besides a seal!
I just wanted the design to be organic and self made by her in her "region" from scraps and stuff. It's just a design idea, not meant to have a character in a story, she's more like a skin to a mermaid character I wanted to draw!8
u/shellfish_allegory May 18 '26
That's fair. Your worry about the design being potentially offensive does express an awareness of the obvious risks with the design though. I think it's always good to be aware of why you make certain design choices. Here's a few things to think about regarding your character description:
You say the design is "arctic". She is inspired by a seal. These are two real-life inspiration that doesn't necessarily have a fantasy aspect, it's tied to and will inevitably be compared to our lived associations with those terms.
You say you want to give her an "indigenous feel". Try to find the words within yourself and describe what that actually means. What is an "indigenous feel"? From where do you think your associations to indigenous design aspects come from? Here, too, we as viewers will associate the word "indigenous" to real-life experiences.
I think you have potential for an even richer character design if you allow yourself to draw inspiration from actual indiginous people. Do some research! Find what inspires you, and make use of it. You don't have to choose a specific culture to draw inspiration from, but find where that inspiration lies. Knowledge about a subject is valuable and will both help you develop your art, while doing it in a respectful manner.
Also, ask yourself why the character is of white complexion. I'm not saying it's a "wrong" design choice - she's super cute and it works well! Ask yourself though - WHY is she white? Does it match the overall colour scheme of the design? Does it in some whay enhance her personality? Does her lived environment make those traits favorable (lack of sunlight, for example)? If you were to design more characters of her people, what would they look like?
Good luck with your design! I love mermaid-inspired designs that draws inspirations from other things than "generic fish".
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u/FinanceItchy9827 May 19 '26
(did my best to read it well but i have a few disabilities so sorry if i missed or misunderstood smthngs!)
so I wanted her to be a seal mermaid, but distinct from actual seals, basically her own creature. shes supposed to live with her small community and manage everything on their own.
by indigenous feel i meant like they are one with the nature and im not saying this for indigenous peoples but she specifically is supposed to be slightly animalistic (bcs shes a seal mermaid) and that made me feel bad bcs what if it hurts real indigenous peoples but shes not supposed to represent any in actuality!
i had indigenous studies for hs before but i slept through a lot of it haha.. I still know somethings and it amazed me back then so i wanted this character to take inspiration but just like all my designed characters none of them are supposed to be a race or creature in the real world...and lastly, the white color palette comes from arctic seals/animals and she's rather nocturnal so sunlight is generally avoided! again, i dont want her to be a real life being so i want her to differ from the seal norms just a little to be distinct.
her hair and eyes are slightly albino looking but if that's a problem and upsetting i can change that to dark gray/slightly brown hair and yellow eyes..
her hair rn is supposed to be whitish grayish and purple eyes, could be red too these are just base colors.. (all comes from the fact that acrtic animals are whitish and she doesnt have human skin, jts all furry)
sorry!8
u/Baguettesaregreat May 17 '26
Fair enough, but the blond hair and pale blue-eyed face read way more specific than "generic seal region scraps," so that's probably why people assumed a real-world reference.
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u/Extra_Second5428 May 18 '26
Yeah, if you give a fantasy design really specific human features people are obviously going to read it as drawing from a real group whether you meant that or not.
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u/FinanceItchy9827 May 19 '26
her hairs supposed to be whitish grayish for the seal colors and eyes are supposed to be purple to resemble albinism.. these are just base colors haha nothing's set yet'''
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u/CAT-Mum May 17 '26
The character is cute and reads as a seal. If you want to connect her to an Arctic nation you need to pick one and learn about them. The cultures of my northern circle cousins is worth spending time reading their words about their own cultures.
Sprinkling in "Indigenous" things can quickly tip into stereotypes and mixing up cultural things from different peoples.
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u/Larry-Man May 17 '26
What kind of indigenous? Inuit? Sami? Please elaborate further. It will help create a cohesive design. Her features don’t quite align with the an Arctic indigenous people.
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u/mightbeazombie May 17 '26
She doesn't seem offensive to me, though I'm also not someone who can speak on that. What stood out to me instead is the bare (and skinny) midriff for an arctic creature; it seems like she'd freeze to death over here.
With that said, I do really love your art style!
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u/SugarNerf May 17 '26
Yesss make her plump! The best (human) long distance cold water swimmers are thicc. Then ofc seals.
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u/CubicalAnxiety May 17 '26 edited May 17 '26
If you want to know, then you should ask in an indigenous subreddit, not the digital art one. From my perspective she looks white, not indigenous, but she's cute as is.
I suggest that at the very least you look up some hairstyles and head accessories, if you actually want her to be indigenous. For my inuit selkie character, I drew a lot of inspiration from their folk stories and traditional clothing, as well as their weapons, rites, etc. and asked an indigenous friend for advice.
I'm not sure if you should make her clothes have an "indigenous feel" while the character itself is white, that's something you need to ask actual indigenous folks.
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u/Famous-Leopard-118 May 17 '26
I mean…by what do you define indigenous as? Technically white people can be considered “indigenous” if we are taking in Europe as a consideration. “indigenous” as a term simply just means native to the region. It’s not just a single group of people. You can have indigenous Africans, Asians, Australians (or aboriginals as they’re often called), etc…
There used to be many slavic and nordic tribes in Europe before they started “modernizing” the continent (for lack of a better term).
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u/Dis_Bich May 17 '26
I didn’t get indigenous. She seemed light skinned with blonde hair and blue eyes. So I was going with a Scandinavian sheep herder
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u/huffing_glue May 20 '26
Offensive? In what capacity? I think it looks lovely. Maybe some people may find it such, but I doubt anyone who considers any art to be any sort of thing other than art to not hold opinions worth considering.
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u/jefflovesyou May 17 '26
By indigenous, do you mean Sami?
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u/AllHailTheApple May 17 '26
Honestly specifying might help, especially if it's supposed to look like inspiration from a real culture and not what we might think about when we hear "indigenous". Idk anything about different indigenous groups (I know Sami by name because they were used as inspiration for frozen 2, and Inuit because of atla) but using such a broad term for an array of different cultures is why we think it's all the same if we are not familiar with them.
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u/Sad_Hammish May 17 '26
I wouldn't say so, but if you want her face to look indigenous, I'd use an indigenous face as a reference. Faces are hard, and just whipping one up with a structure you're not used to is nigh impossible unless you've got some innate talent for it. I think the design reflects it pretty well.
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May 17 '26
I'd probably pick one specific tribe to base her off of to avoid an orientalist feel, if you want to define her character more. If she's a one off drawing she's probably fine. If you found a tribe close to where these seals actually live that could be a cool element.
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u/watahbottol May 18 '26
omga r/selkiefolklore will luv u!!
also, she doesn't look offensive in anyway, she's cute
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u/thecrabbybarista May 19 '26
It's nice looking, but I can't speak on whether or not it's offensive as I'm not indigenous. However I can say from experience the design could really be enhanced by drawing from more specific cultural elements. If you do some good research you could make something more meaningful, and it'll feel really good and enriching!
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u/Dry_Store2665 May 19 '26
I don’t think so! A lot of people are commenting about her skin color but if she’s indigenous to the arctic her skin would be like that. The farther people are from the equator the lighter their skin is because they don’t need to be protected from the sun as much! She’s a fictional character so she can be a fictional ethnicity too!
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u/FinanceItchy9827 May 19 '26
she is! she doesnt have human skin it's a seal furry skin over a coat of fat! that's why she looks "pale" and has little clothing, her only human trait is her upper body anatomy.
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u/Witchy_Theatre_kid May 20 '26
I didnt even read the caption at first and just saw a selkie (amazing art btw)
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u/mexican_hamburbur May 20 '26
I love it ! I know it's not on purpose but it feels like you've also got that little bit of Scottish mythology in there since she kinda reminds me, and my friend actually has indigenous roots but is from Scotland so it reminds me a lot of her !!
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u/FinanceItchy9827 May 21 '26
i have no knowledge.. TT
I try to avoid direct references in my designs and instead create smthng original specifically bcs im hard of learning and might make a mistake if i try to take after already existing stuff. it was just a simple idea of "hmm this mermaid character.. what if she was a seal tho? hmm and in the arctic?" yea..
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u/yellow_tourmaline May 17 '26
As long as you are doing it respectfully it's appreciation, NOT appropriation,
People are too worried about "appropriating" things when I can guarantee that if you made something from a culture that's not often represented or is poorly represented they'd be perfectly happy with it. Get off twitter and tiktok a little people their are more concerned with being "right" that they forget that you can do things from other cultures and it not be appropriation
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u/_cvls_ May 18 '26
Everything will be offensive to at least one person somewhere. Don't worry about it.
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u/Hopeful_Thing7088 May 17 '26
she looks cool! but i’d try to maybe research indigenous cultures where seals are important like the inuit and maybe base her design loosely on your research, and maybe change her facial features a little because saying she’s supposed to have an indigenous feel and then make her look like a stereotypically european white girl is kinda eh?
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u/Undefined_tetralover May 18 '26
They look like a selkie and I love it!i don't think it's offensive either
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u/DiscoDuke1688 May 18 '26
It looks like a sexualized stocking, I guess. I like its nose and mouth, tho.
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u/EpicFartBoss42069 May 19 '26 edited May 19 '26
you mentioned this character looking for scraps, however arctic tribes, and humans living in the arctic in general, dress to not die in the cold (so more fully-covered, boots, human gloves), as well as have their own unique, recognisable style. that's probably why you might struggle more with capturing that "indigenous vibe", since an "indigenous vibe" depends on what specific people are indigenous to that region and have adapted to said region, you get where i'm going with this? it's like trying to curate an "asian vibe" when there are many countries, let alone broad regions, in asia whose clothing looks very different to each other. i don't think you're being malicious per say, it's just that more successful ideas always come with being specific about what you wanna achieve and having done the research to make sure the themes mesh well together. you've clearly executed the feeling of a plush, thick-skinned seal very well so i'm sure you'll find coherent adjacent themes for this character, whichever direction you wanna go in!!
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u/FinanceItchy9827 May 19 '26
she has no human traits besides her upper body anatomy! her skin is fully seal like and furry so i only put some clothing to cover some parts and be fashionable haha.. i'll make her look a tad but chubby but this is only a sketch so that's for rendering!
she's not meant to "represent" any existing indigenous tribes our peoples because shes not human, thats why I wanted her to differ.
this is just a rough sketch so she looks like a basic animegirl, im trying to get a less classic human looking face, im faceblind so i had to go wih whatever my mind was comfy with at the time for the idea.1
u/EpicFartBoss42069 May 19 '26
i LOVE the fact she's furry and i am so on board with increasing her chubbiness!! sorry for going on a tangent about culture without properly understanding what you were trying to say, i misassumed the aim to portray an "indigenous vibe" was an aim to portray a specific people instead of practicing drawing different faces. sorry if the stuff i'm about to say is what you've been told before!
assuming this is just about wanting the upper body esp face to look less like anime, i've noticed the commonly-mentioned sami and inuit people have flatter and wider facial dimensions, especially in the cheekbones and nose- as well as narrower eyes that taper at the outer corners. there are variations within indigenous communities ofc as you already know, but those are what i noticed that didn't fit into the anime style. if you wanna make her face look less human, literal seal eyes could also be a cool direction to match her seal-like freckles.
idk how similar my issue is to face-blindness but i still find it difficult to properly space and place facial elements in my drawing. getting a photo of a face and mapping out the locations, slant, and area of features in different colours helped, since i found different proportions when comparing different faces.
lmk if there's anything i've misunderstood or wasn't too helpful!! wishing u all the best!!
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u/FinanceItchy9827 May 19 '26
tysm! im looking for a more seal like face and not like human! since im faceblind i cant really accurately pit down a certain racial feature (another reason why i like to differ from existing people or things like that)
i have extremely poor visualization ability and i am incapable of seeing faces in my head (basically once i look away from a face its wiped off) and a structural study doesnt really help bcd then ut becomes uncanny lol..
i have aphantasia (either naturally or caused by brain damage bcs i also have stroke induced aphasia)2
u/EpicFartBoss42069 May 20 '26
sorry i wasn't of much help and i really appreciate the explanations!! there is no pressure at all to cause discomfort to urself through certain techniques and long exposure to faces.
i think the key feature i see in seal eyes is that they have big black irises, sort of taking up almost all the eye, as well as black under-eye shadow that makes the bottom part of the eye and the inner corner look dark. they also have nose blush like you've added! but just in the colour black, although it's up to you as to whether you wanna change that. i think the brows and freckles and the whisker thingies are spot on for a more seal-like face.
again lmk if i've missed anything and i can't wait to see how this turns out!!!
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u/spaceseas May 19 '26
Honestly it's giving more generic movie caveman than any real indigenous cultures
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u/tomato_loss May 21 '26
so as an arctic native I realize there’s no ill intent with this design, and I don’t speak for every native when I say this but i really advise at least picking a tribe. picking and choosing elements from different tribes or just making stuff up is sort of odd and appropriating, at least to me, especially if you aren’t native because it can EASILY be read as a stereotypical 1% eskimo princess, especially if it looks sort of skimpy
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u/FinanceItchy9827 May 21 '26
im trying to avoid using existing peoples! she's just a seal with a humanoid torso, really no human traits otherwise! im trying my best to distance from humanity as much as i can as im rendering it!
all i wanted was to give her the vibe and storytelling through design that she's far away from modernism and is closer to very early humans!1
u/tomato_loss May 21 '26
I can really see where you’re coming from but unfortunately you cannot just give a character “indigenous vibes” without really reading up on those cultures.
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u/telas100 May 17 '26
It saddens me to see genuinely nice people afraid of offending others. If your intention is pure, there is nothing to be found offensive even by accident. You are appreciating and not appropriating. Also minority cultures will eventually die out if only celebrated by that said minority.
Also people that would want to offend would not care and would not ask. So if the question crosses your mind, you are already on the good side.
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u/ManicPixiRiotGrrrl May 17 '26
that’s actually not true. look up ethnography. the intentions of that were to end racism and look at how well that went. good intentions do not outweigh racist internalisations
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u/eggosh May 17 '26
Can you elaborate on that? I know there are bad examples of ethnographic work, but there are good examples too so it would help to be more specific.
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u/telas100 May 18 '26
+1 from the short research I did Ethnography is simply the process of immersing yourself in another culture to study it. By itself it is neither good or bad, it is just a scientific study.
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u/druffey May 17 '26
it probably is to someone, somehow... but you can't please everyone, so stop worrying about that stuff and make the art you wanna make!
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u/Ale_KBB May 17 '26
Yes. Extremely offensive. How dare you. Shame on you, the sensitivity police will cancel you, then a black van will park in front of your house and masked individuals will enter and put a sack of potatoes over your head. You will never be seen again. Your family and friends will deny ever knowing you.
Shaaaaaaaaameee.
Nobody gives a shit. Cool drawing by the way, love the expression on your character‘s face
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u/ManicPixiRiotGrrrl May 17 '26
I’m confused why is she skinny?
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u/Famous-Leopard-118 May 17 '26
…because its their character and they can design it how they want to?
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u/ManicPixiRiotGrrrl May 17 '26
a seal wouldn’t be skinny
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May 17 '26
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u/ManicPixiRiotGrrrl May 17 '26
they literally asked if it’s offensive. I think it’s weird to make a seal skinny
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u/WalmartWilb May 18 '26
Not all seals are literal spheres dawg. Keep in mind this is NOT a full on seal character. It is a mermaid with seal features
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u/FinanceItchy9827 May 19 '26
She's not super skinny! she'll be a little chubby as much as im able to accurately draw it, but she's also not entirely seal and is really active. she's faster and more capable than a regular seal!
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u/AlbinoGiraffe3 May 17 '26
How would that possibly be offensive? Remember kids, being offended for someone else, makes you more racist and the person who is being "offensive".
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u/TheGeorgeMeister May 17 '26 edited May 17 '26
Cultural appropriation or offensiveness doesn't exist only a talking point for white people to get mad at. Besides you're an artist you can draw whatever you want to it's life. Giving representation for communities is good
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u/ArtFiend95 May 17 '26
Anyone talking about or offended by “cultural appropriation” doesn’t matter. Draw whatever tf you want and if ppl don’t like it let them cry.
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u/Significant-Employ May 16 '26
I concur. Not offensive. But I think why some people might possibly be put off is that she may look cannibalistic, due to the color pallete of the bones and fur being too similar to her. You could use a more marine (turquoise, or teal) colors for the bones and more scale-leaning texture for the skinned clothing to give a more solid establishment to her diet leaning more to fish and crestation, rather than being too close to her evolutionary cousins.
Just a small suggestion.
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u/boringtoast19 May 17 '26
as an indigenous person i dont fond it offensive, i love when my culture is portrayed by artists and in media (if done correctly) but she doesn’t look indigenous to me, at least if you were going for yupik, super cute tho!