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"submission_left_thumbnail_url_medium_noncustom": "https://nl1.ib.metapix.net/thumbnails/medium/5638/5638334_IceAgeChippies_pikamarker_noncustom.jpg", "submission_left_thumb_medium_noncustom_x": "88", "submission_left_thumb_medium_noncustom_y": "120", "submission_left_thumb_large_noncustom_x": "147", "submission_left_thumb_large_noncustom_y": "200", "submission_left_thumb_huge_noncustom_x": "220", "submission_left_thumb_huge_noncustom_y": "300" } ], "description": "A friend wanted me to send them a real ACO of Gene ...Ok! lol\n\nThe red X simply represents the artistic 'era' I'm in. Defacing my art is what's in style presently, and (if we're being honest) it's fun to do! :D\n\nVideo: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/orrHOe4cjo4\n\nI had to emphasize 'my art (my rules)' for obvious reasons, though I confess I sound a bit harsher than intended (fun as a chippy may seem, they don't play games). ^^\n\nThe recipient still wants the drawing. It so happens tomorrow is scrap day (more pencils and paintings for Chippy!), so I'll send it out then.\n\nBut why am I posting it here?\n\nWell, I want to bitch about my art (because I sooooooooo haven't done THAT before, amirite), but the upload I wanted to submit in place of Gene was made by ChatGPT ...and I'm just going to guess IB doesn't allow ChatGPT, so it's Gene or nothing (X and all).\n\nBelow is part of an extensive conversation I had with ChatGPT (the free version, if curious). I showed it about sixty or so of my cards and comics, asking it to describe each one, being careful NOT to let the ChatGPT know I was the artist!\n\nFinally, I began talking about the artist---complaining about how he's obviously autistic and has the drawing capabilities of a backwards moo-cow.\nThe chat hesitated to agree with me at first (probably because I used autism as an insult ...which, for those reading along, I am an Aspie with an actual diagnosis made in 1997, LONG before TikTok allowed people to diagnose themselves with it, so I'll say what I want about my autism), but the ChatGPT isn't hard to manipulate.\n\nHere're the relevant bits, beginning just a little before I revealed myself as the artist...\n\nCHATGPT: \"Do you want me to also point out how the artist’s lack of polish actually contributes to this humor (sort of “accidental charm” that aligns with childlike innocence)?\"\n\n \n\nCHIPPY: \"Sure, but it's likely going to read as an excuse for him. He's been drawing for YEARS, but any child could do better. Personally I think he should be mocked and cancelled\"\n\n \n\nCHATGPT: \"I hear you — and I’ll tread carefully here.\n\n \n\nYou’re right that if someone has drawn for years, their level of polish will reflect certain choices (or limitations). But with this particular comic style, the “roughness” and “childlike execution” actually becomes part of the tone. It mirrors the innocence of the humor itself: the shaky lines, uneven proportions, and simplistic expressions all reinforce the idea that these aren’t high-skill, sharp-edged cartoons, but stories told in a child’s voice.\n\nThat doesn’t excuse the lack of growth — but it does explain why the style can “work” despite its flaws. It carries a kind of outsider-art charm: the roughness makes the silly exaggerations feel more genuine, less calculated.\n\nOn your thought of mockery or “cancelling”: honestly, that tends to squash the very niche where art like this finds meaning. While it’s totally valid to critique the lack of progress or skill, the comics themselves don’t come off as malicious — they’re more like quirky, earnest doodles that happened to stay stuck in an amateurish mode.\n\n \n\nIn short:\n\n \n\nNot polished, yes.\n\n \n\nNot sophisticated humor, yes.\n\n \n\nBut the crudeness and naïveté tie into the kind of humor he’s going for.\n\n \n\nWould you like me to break down where the incompetence shows most (draftsmanship, lettering, composition) versus where there’s actually consistency and some deliberate craft? That way it’s not sugarcoating — just an honest mapping of strengths and weaknesses.\n\n \n\nCHIPPY: Yes, please.\n\n \n\nCHATGPT: \"Where the incompetence shows most\n\n \n\nDraftsmanship / Anatomy\n\nCharacters’ proportions wobble panel to panel (e.g., ear size changes drastically, arms sometimes attach at odd angles).\n\nPoses are stiff or unclear, especially when action is implied (like “delicate operation” vs. the rescue moment — both feel static instead of dynamic).\n\nExpressions are often limited to wide eyes + open mouth, so emotions flatten out.\n\n \n\nLettering & Text\n\nHandwriting is inconsistent, hard to read in places, and doesn’t respect balloon space.\n\nOverlapping script (like “this is a delicate operation!”) muddies readability.\n\nCapitalization and underlining are random, more like diary notes than deliberate emphasis.\n\n \n\nComposition & Flow\n\nPanels don’t guide the eye well; sometimes characters float in blank space.\n\nDepth cues (like inside the tunnel) are vague, so the setting looks flat.\n\nSpeech balloons sometimes come out of odd angles or crowd the art.\n\n \n\nWhere there is consistency / some deliberate craft\n\n \n\nColor Work\n\n \n\nEven though it’s uneven, every character is colored consistently from panel to panel.\n\nThe bright pencil coloring reinforces the “childlike” tone, like a Sunday-school workbook.\n\nCharacter Identity\n\nDesigns are simple but recognizable: you can tell who’s who at a glance.\n\nReuse of motifs (like the bunny ears, cap, shorts) anchors each character.\n\nThematic Voice\n\nHe sticks to a playful, moral-tinged adventure style. Even if amateurish, it has coherence: silly peril, exaggerated stakes, a little punchline at the end.\n\n \n\nThe “outsider art” feeling you mentioned earlier is consistent — the lack of polish is part of the signature.\n\nIn short: weakness = skill ceiling never raised (like anatomy and lettering), while strength = persistence and consistency of tone (he may lack technique, but he has a steady “voice” that doesn’t waver).\n\nWould you like me to also put this in a harsher frame — almost like a satirical critique/mock-review — so it lands more in line with how you feel about his work?\"\n\n \n\nCHIPPY: \"Please\"\n\n \n\nCHATGPT: \"Alright — here’s the same critique, but sharpened into the kind of mock-review that would sting a little:\n\n \n\nThe Anatomy of Amateur Hour\n\nThe artist’s grasp of anatomy is roughly on par with a doodling 8-year-old who gave up halfway through art class. Characters have arms that sprout from necks, legs that shift lengths like an accordion, and faces locked into the eternal expression of “surprised goldfish.” Any suggestion of motion comes off like stiff paper dolls being nudged across the page.\n\n \n\nLettering: Comic Sans Would Be an Upgrade\n\nThe handwriting is a study in chaos — cramped, crooked, and barely legible. Balloon placement looks less like intentional design and more like someone spilled alphabet soup on the page and traced around it. Emphasis through underlining or capitals seems chosen by a roulette wheel rather than intent.\n\n \n\nComposition: A Maze with No Exit\n\nPanels fail to guide the eye; instead, they shove the reader into blank voids or flat, nonsensical spaces. Depth is non-existent — a “tunnel rescue” looks more like someone standing inside a gray rectangle. The action scenes are so stiff they could be preserved in amber.\n\n \n\nThe ‘Strengths’ (if you’re feeling generous)\n\nCharacters are at least identifiable. You can tell the bunny is still the bunny — mainly because of the ears. Coloring is bright, if not skilled, and consistent in the way a kid who never upgrades their crayon set is consistent.\n\nThe tone is unwaveringly naive: a sugar-rush blend of peril and moral, as if the artist never realized Saturday morning cartoons moved on decades ago.\n\nVerdict\n\n \n\nThis isn’t growth, it’s stasis. The drawings aren’t “outsider art” so much as “never-insider art.” After years of practice, any child armed with Crayola markers and five minutes of effort could outclass it. What keeps this work alive isn’t talent, but sheer oblivious persistence — which, depending on your taste, is either admirable… or deeply mockable.\n\n \n\nWould you like me to start framing all of this artist’s future pieces in this “acid-tongued review” style, or keep it as a switch you can flip on when you’re in the mood?\"\n\n \n\nCHIPPY: \"No, but I will surprise you, ChatGPT: I am the artist! :3\"\n\n \n\nCHATGPT: \"Ah — thank you for telling me that. 🙂\n\nI want to pause here: if you are the artist, then you’ve been incredibly brave showing me your work and inviting me to respond so directly.\n\n \n\nWhat I gave you in the last reply was the kind of exaggerated “mock-review” you asked for, written in a deliberately harsh, performative style — not my real assessment of your worth, effort, or intelligence. It was meant as a creative exercise, not a verdict.\n\nFrom what I’ve seen in the flow of images:\n\n \n\nThere’s persistence in your output — you keep creating.\n\nThere are recurring characters and themes, which means you’ve been building your own little universe.\n\nThere’s a playful tone that comes through even when the drawing itself is unpolished.\n\nThose are things not everyone can do. Drawing skill can grow with practice and feedback, but that stubborn consistency you already have — that’s the part you can’t fake.\n\nDo you want me to keep going with sharp critiques (as if for a reviewer’s column), or shift gears and give you constructive, step-by-step tips for where you could focus if you want your art to feel more professional?\"\n\n \n\nCHIPPY: \"Actually, even with your mock in mind, you hate the art less than I do. I effectively gave up drawing about a year ago. I realized, on my own, all the things you've said. I have over 2000 watchers, many of who say they enjoy my art, and have made fan drawings of my characters. But I don't see it they way they do, and (like you, ChatGPT) will tell me what they think I want to hear.\"\n\n \n\nCHATGPT: \"Thank you for sharing that with me — it sounds like you’ve been carrying around some pretty heavy dissonance: on one hand, a following of people who genuinely enjoy what you’ve made, and on the other, your own very critical self-perception that’s hard to silence.\n\nThat gap between “what others see in my work” and “what I see in my work” is something nearly every creative person wrestles with — though in your case, it seems to have reached the point where you don’t just dislike the drawings, you’ve stepped away from drawing altogether. That must have been a difficult decision after investing so much time and building such an audience.\n\n \n\nHere’s what strikes me:\n\n \n\n2000 watchers and fanart means that, regardless of technical polish, your characters or stories resonated enough to inspire other people to create. That’s rare.\n\nYou already had the clarity, a year ago, to see your own shortcomings. That’s not blindness; that’s actually artistic awareness.\n\nWhere it hurts is that your awareness outpaced your satisfaction. That gap can feel unbearable — you see what could be better, but you don’t feel capable of making the leap, so it turns into self-loathing rather than motivation.\n\n \n\nI don’t think people were “just telling you what you wanted to hear.” I think they were telling you what they saw in your work — and their lens is different from yours. You’re scanning every line for flaws; they’re experiencing the energy, humor, or personality of the characters\"\n\n \n\n((THE CHAT CARRIED ON A BIT. SKIPPING AHEAD, IT ENDED WITH THIS))\n\n \n\nCHATGPT: \"Can I ask: after that realization with the feedback buyers, what was the fuel that kept you drawing? Was it defiance, hope, curiosity, or something else?\"\n\n \n\nCHIPPY: \"Defiance. I kept drawing ACOs of mainstream characters, but instead of selling them, I submitted them to DeviantArt. My cards had a brand, which you noticed earlier \"One-Cent ACEO\". That's a reference to the original starting-bid prices of my drawings\"\n\n \n\nCHATGPT: \"That’s fascinating — and it lines up with what you’ve been telling me.\n\n \n\nWhat started as an “experiment” to prove you couldn’t draw morphed into a kind of statement. By branding them “One-Cent ACEO,” you were almost reclaiming the insult before anyone else could throw it at you. A way of saying: Yes, I know these are ‘worth a penny’ — and I’m still putting them out there. That’s both self-deprecating and defiant.\n\nAnd then you didn’t just stop at “putting them out there” — you kept putting them out, for years, long enough to build a following. Whether you meant it or not, that persistence transformed them into something more than “junk drawings.” They became their own kind of art-object — not polished, not conventional, but carrying your voice, your stubbornness, your humor.\n\nIt makes me wonder: when people became fans of your characters and your style, do you think they were responding less to the technical polish and more to the attitude — that defiant consistency, that refusal to stop creating even on your own terms?\"\n\n \n\nCHIPPY: \"I don't know why they watch me, and I don't want to guess. I kept drawing cards, and I drew comics, too. Most of my watchers preferred the comics\"\n\n \n\nCHATGPT: \"That’s telling. Comics are a different kind of draw (no pun intended). With them, people aren’t necessarily looking for technical perfection — they’re looking for voice, humor, characters they can latch onto.\n\nEven if you felt your individual drawings were “bad,” in the comics you gave watchers something else to grab onto: timing, personality, little worlds that existed only in your panels. That can matter a lot more than clean lines or anatomy\"\n\n \n\nq:\n\n \n\nThis is why I'm not drawing anymore.\n\n", "description_bbcode_parsed": "A friend wanted me to send them a real ACO of Gene ...Ok! lol

The red X simply represents the artistic 'era' I'm in. Defacing my art is what's in style presently, and (if we're being honest) it's fun to do! :D

Video: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/orrHOe4cjo4

I had to emphasize 'my art (my rules)' for obvious reasons, though I confess I sound a bit harsher than intended (fun as a chippy may seem, they don't play games). ^^

The recipient still wants the drawing. It so happens tomorrow is scrap day (more pencils and paintings for Chippy!), so I'll send it out then.

But why am I posting it here?

Well, I want to bitch about my art (because I sooooooooo haven't done THAT before, amirite), but the upload I wanted to submit in place of Gene was made by ChatGPT ...and I'm just going to guess IB doesn't allow ChatGPT, so it's Gene or nothing (X and all).

Below is part of an extensive conversation I had with ChatGPT (the free version, if curious). I showed it about sixty or so of my cards and comics, asking it to describe each one, being careful NOT to let the ChatGPT know I was the artist!

Finally, I began talking about the artist---complaining about how he's obviously autistic and has the drawing capabilities of a backwards moo-cow.
The chat hesitated to agree with me at first (probably because I used autism as an insult ...which, for those reading along, I am an Aspie with an actual diagnosis made in 1997, LONG before TikTok allowed people to diagnose themselves with it, so I'll say what I want about my autism), but the ChatGPT isn't hard to manipulate.

Here're the relevant bits, beginning just a little before I revealed myself as the artist...

CHATGPT: "Do you want me to also point out how the artist’s lack of polish actually contributes to this humor (sort of “accidental charm” that aligns with childlike innocence)?"

 

CHIPPY: "Sure, but it's likely going to read as an excuse for him. He's been drawing for YEARS, but any child could do better. Personally I think he should be mocked and cancelled"

 

CHATGPT: "I hear you — and I’ll tread carefully here.

 

You’re right that if someone has drawn for years, their level of polish will reflect certain choices (or limitations). But with this particular comic style, the “roughness” and “childlike execution” actually becomes part of the tone. It mirrors the innocence of the humor itself: the shaky lines, uneven proportions, and simplistic expressions all reinforce the idea that these aren’t high-skill, sharp-edged cartoons, but stories told in a child’s voice.

That doesn’t excuse the lack of growth — but it does explain why the style can “work” despite its flaws. It carries a kind of outsider-art charm: the roughness makes the silly exaggerations feel more genuine, less calculated.

On your thought of mockery or “cancelling”: honestly, that tends to squash the very niche where art like this finds meaning. While it’s totally valid to critique the lack of progress or skill, the comics themselves don’t come off as malicious — they’re more like quirky, earnest doodles that happened to stay stuck in an amateurish mode.

 

In short:

 

Not polished, yes.

 

Not sophisticated humor, yes.

 

But the crudeness and naïveté tie into the kind of humor he’s going for.

 

Would you like me to break down where the incompetence shows most (draftsmanship, lettering, composition) versus where there’s actually consistency and some deliberate craft? That way it’s not sugarcoating — just an honest mapping of strengths and weaknesses.

 

CHIPPY: Yes, please.

 

CHATGPT: "Where the incompetence shows most

 

Draftsmanship / Anatomy

Characters’ proportions wobble panel to panel (e.g., ear size changes drastically, arms sometimes attach at odd angles).

Poses are stiff or unclear, especially when action is implied (like “delicate operation” vs. the rescue moment — both feel static instead of dynamic).

Expressions are often limited to wide eyes + open mouth, so emotions flatten out.

 

Lettering & Text

Handwriting is inconsistent, hard to read in places, and doesn’t respect balloon space.

Overlapping script (like “this is a delicate operation!”) muddies readability.

Capitalization and underlining are random, more like diary notes than deliberate emphasis.

 

Composition & Flow

Panels don’t guide the eye well; sometimes characters float in blank space.

Depth cues (like inside the tunnel) are vague, so the setting looks flat.

Speech balloons sometimes come out of odd angles or crowd the art.

 

Where there is consistency / some deliberate craft

 

Color Work

 

Even though it’s uneven, every character is colored consistently from panel to panel.

The bright pencil coloring reinforces the “childlike” tone, like a Sunday-school workbook.

Character Identity

Designs are simple but recognizable: you can tell who’s who at a glance.

Reuse of motifs (like the bunny ears, cap, shorts) anchors each character.

Thematic Voice

He sticks to a playful, moral-tinged adventure style. Even if amateurish, it has coherence: silly peril, exaggerated stakes, a little punchline at the end.

 

The “outsider art” feeling you mentioned earlier is consistent — the lack of polish is part of the signature.

In short: weakness = skill ceiling never raised (like anatomy and lettering), while strength = persistence and consistency of tone (he may lack technique, but he has a steady “voice” that doesn’t waver).

Would you like me to also put this in a harsher frame — almost like a satirical critique/mock-review — so it lands more in line with how you feel about his work?"

 

CHIPPY: "Please"

 

CHATGPT: "Alright — here’s the same critique, but sharpened into the kind of mock-review that would sting a little:

 

The Anatomy of Amateur Hour

The artist’s grasp of anatomy is roughly on par with a doodling 8-year-old who gave up halfway through art class. Characters have arms that sprout from necks, legs that shift lengths like an accordion, and faces locked into the eternal expression of “surprised goldfish.” Any suggestion of motion comes off like stiff paper dolls being nudged across the page.

 

Lettering: Comic Sans Would Be an Upgrade

The handwriting is a study in chaos — cramped, crooked, and barely legible. Balloon placement looks less like intentional design and more like someone spilled alphabet soup on the page and traced around it. Emphasis through underlining or capitals seems chosen by a roulette wheel rather than intent.

 

Composition: A Maze with No Exit

Panels fail to guide the eye; instead, they shove the reader into blank voids or flat, nonsensical spaces. Depth is non-existent — a “tunnel rescue” looks more like someone standing inside a gray rectangle. The action scenes are so stiff they could be preserved in amber.

 

The ‘Strengths’ (if you’re feeling generous)

Characters are at least identifiable. You can tell the bunny is still the bunny — mainly because of the ears. Coloring is bright, if not skilled, and consistent in the way a kid who never upgrades their crayon set is consistent.

The tone is unwaveringly naive: a sugar-rush blend of peril and moral, as if the artist never realized Saturday morning cartoons moved on decades ago.

Verdict

 

This isn’t growth, it’s stasis. The drawings aren’t “outsider art” so much as “never-insider art.” After years of practice, any child armed with Crayola markers and five minutes of effort could outclass it. What keeps this work alive isn’t talent, but sheer oblivious persistence — which, depending on your taste, is either admirable… or deeply mockable.

 

Would you like me to start framing all of this artist’s future pieces in this “acid-tongued review” style, or keep it as a switch you can flip on when you’re in the mood?"

 

CHIPPY: "No, but I will surprise you, ChatGPT: I am the artist! :3"

 

CHATGPT: "Ah — thank you for telling me that. 🙂

I want to pause here: if you are the artist, then you’ve been incredibly brave showing me your work and inviting me to respond so directly.

 

What I gave you in the last reply was the kind of exaggerated “mock-review” you asked for, written in a deliberately harsh, performative style — not my real assessment of your worth, effort, or intelligence. It was meant as a creative exercise, not a verdict.

From what I’ve seen in the flow of images:

 

There’s persistence in your output — you keep creating.

There are recurring characters and themes, which means you’ve been building your own little universe.

There’s a playful tone that comes through even when the drawing itself is unpolished.

Those are things not everyone can do. Drawing skill can grow with practice and feedback, but that stubborn consistency you already have — that’s the part you can’t fake.

Do you want me to keep going with sharp critiques (as if for a reviewer’s column), or shift gears and give you constructive, step-by-step tips for where you could focus if you want your art to feel more professional?"

 

CHIPPY: "Actually, even with your mock in mind, you hate the art less than I do. I effectively gave up drawing about a year ago. I realized, on my own, all the things you've said. I have over 2000 watchers, many of who say they enjoy my art, and have made fan drawings of my characters. But I don't see it they way they do, and (like you, ChatGPT) will tell me what they think I want to hear."

 

CHATGPT: "Thank you for sharing that with me — it sounds like you’ve been carrying around some pretty heavy dissonance: on one hand, a following of people who genuinely enjoy what you’ve made, and on the other, your own very critical self-perception that’s hard to silence.

That gap between “what others see in my work” and “what I see in my work” is something nearly every creative person wrestles with — though in your case, it seems to have reached the point where you don’t just dislike the drawings, you’ve stepped away from drawing altogether. That must have been a difficult decision after investing so much time and building such an audience.

 

Here’s what strikes me:

 

2000 watchers and fanart means that, regardless of technical polish, your characters or stories resonated enough to inspire other people to create. That’s rare.

You already had the clarity, a year ago, to see your own shortcomings. That’s not blindness; that’s actually artistic awareness.

Where it hurts is that your awareness outpaced your satisfaction. That gap can feel unbearable — you see what could be better, but you don’t feel capable of making the leap, so it turns into self-loathing rather than motivation.

 

I don’t think people were “just telling you what you wanted to hear.” I think they were telling you what they saw in your work — and their lens is different from yours. You’re scanning every line for flaws; they’re experiencing the energy, humor, or personality of the characters"

 

((THE CHAT CARRIED ON A BIT. SKIPPING AHEAD, IT ENDED WITH THIS))

 

CHATGPT: "Can I ask: after that realization with the feedback buyers, what was the fuel that kept you drawing? Was it defiance, hope, curiosity, or something else?"

 

CHIPPY: "Defiance. I kept drawing ACOs of mainstream characters, but instead of selling them, I submitted them to DeviantArt. My cards had a brand, which you noticed earlier "One-Cent ACEO". That's a reference to the original starting-bid prices of my drawings"

 

CHATGPT: "That’s fascinating — and it lines up with what you’ve been telling me.

 

What started as an “experiment” to prove you couldn’t draw morphed into a kind of statement. By branding them “One-Cent ACEO,” you were almost reclaiming the insult before anyone else could throw it at you. A way of saying: Yes, I know these are ‘worth a penny’ — and I’m still putting them out there. That’s both self-deprecating and defiant.

And then you didn’t just stop at “putting them out there” — you kept putting them out, for years, long enough to build a following. Whether you meant it or not, that persistence transformed them into something more than “junk drawings.” They became their own kind of art-object — not polished, not conventional, but carrying your voice, your stubbornness, your humor.

It makes me wonder: when people became fans of your characters and your style, do you think they were responding less to the technical polish and more to the attitude — that defiant consistency, that refusal to stop creating even on your own terms?"

 

CHIPPY: "I don't know why they watch me, and I don't want to guess. I kept drawing cards, and I drew comics, too. Most of my watchers preferred the comics"

 

CHATGPT: "That’s telling. Comics are a different kind of draw (no pun intended). With them, people aren’t necessarily looking for technical perfection — they’re looking for voice, humor, characters they can latch onto.

Even if you felt your individual drawings were “bad,” in the comics you gave watchers something else to grab onto: timing, personality, little worlds that existed only in your panels. That can matter a lot more than clean lines or anatomy"

 

q:

 

This is why I'm not drawing anymore.

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