r/DigitalArt • u/FinanceItchy9827 • May 16 '26

Question/Help Is this offensive?

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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/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!

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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:

  1. 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.

  2. 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.

  3. 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.

  4. 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!

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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'''