The ‘Selfish Art’ Advice Killing Small Businesses — Why Art Is SUPPOSED to Be Selfish
“Stop making selfish art?” Ummmm how about… Go fuck yourself. 😂
ART IS SELFISH.
I repeat. All art is selfish.
People need to stop telling others to “Stop making selfish art and selfish decisions for THEIR shop.”
Why?
Because art and products of all kind wouldn’t exist PERIOD without those selfish choices. Make the damn thing. Slow burns are better than virality. Yeah sure, they might not sell as well, but sometimes it’s just about more exposure, better marketing, better photography, and timing.
The whole point of creating something authentic is that it comes from you! Your vision, your obsessions, your weird specific taste that nobody asked for. That’s not a bug, it’s the entire feature. When you dilute that to chase trends or please algorithms, you’re not just compromising your work, you’re removing the exact thing that could make it irreplaceable.
The market is already oversaturated with safe, optimized, focus-grouped content & products. What it’s actually starving for is stuff with a distinct point of view, even if that view only resonates with a smaller audience at first. Those are the things that build real communities, that people tattoo on their bodies, that stick around for decades instead of disappearing in a week.
My original hand-drawn designs wouldn’t exist if I wasn’t fucking selfish. Period. They came from me sitting down and making what I wanted to see in the world, not what some advice-giver on the internet told me would perform well.
All my success comes from going where others aren’t. And in this case, that meant trusting my own hands, my own ideas, my own weird vision instead of copying what was already working for someone else.
To the people telling others this stuff? Swallow your words, because when I wrote this piece I was making consistent sales weekly and I JUST started a few months before that. Now I’m sold out TWICE and cannot keep up with demand. Not because I played it safe, but because I didn’t.
The “selfish” art is often the most generous in the long run. It gives other people permission to be specific too, to trust their own instincts instead of second-guessing themselves into bland mediocrity. Every weird little shop selling oddly specific things, every artist making work that “nobody asked for,”— they’re all proof that there’s room for more than just what’s trending this week.
I hope this resonates and inspires some people to make their art & start their shop because the world needs it. Fuck what these people are saying. There’s room for everyone.
It’s beautiful to make original selfish art from your own hands. Let it find its people slowly. That’s not failing, that’s how anything worth keeping actually gets built.
Also, please tell me what non-selfish art looks like? 😂 seriously.
That’s the absurdity of the whole argument!
Like, what would that even be? Art made by committee? A design you hate but made because a trend report told you to? Something from The Giver? A product you have zero connection to but some guru said “this is what’s selling right now”?
That’s not “non-selfish art” — that’s just bad business strategy dressed up as selflessness. You’re still making it to make money, you’re just doing it without any actual vision or point of view. So it’s selfish AND soulless at the same time. Even art made “for others” comes from YOUR selfish decision about who you want to serve and how. A commission? You chose to take it. Fan art? You chose what you’re a fan of. “Accessible” art? You chose your definition of accessible.
Every creative decision is selfish because it comes from a person with preferences, experiences, and a specific brain. That’s not a flaw — that’s literally what makes it art instead of algorithm-generated content.
The people saying “stop making selfish art” really mean “stop making art I personally don’t understand the market for” — which is just them being selfish about wanting you to make something THEY can categorize and predict.
The call is coming from inside the house. 😂
And if you need proof that this isn't just theory — that selfish art actually wins — look at someone who staked his entire career on it.
If you need proof that selfish art works, look at Bad Bunny.
The music industry has a long history of pressuring Latin artists to crossover — sing in English, soften the sound, make it digestible for American radio. Bad Bunny looked at all of that and said no. He made exactly what he wanted, in Spanish, rooted in reggaeton and Latin trap, completely on his own terms. And he became one of the biggest artists on the planet doing it. Not despite the "selfishness." Because of it.
This isn't just about stickers or Etsy shops or physical products. Art is selfish across every single medium — music, language, lyrics, paintings, designs, words on a page. All of it comes from inside a person. All of it is someone saying "this is what I need to make" before they know if anyone else will care. That's not a flaw in the process. That's the whole process.
I wasn't handed Bad Bunny by an algorithm when he got popular, I was already hunting for Spanish music on SoundCloud and sketchy pirating websites years before it was a mainstream conversation. I'm Polish. Nobody handed me that. I just loved the language, loved the way the music felt, and followed my ears wherever they went. When my partner — who's Dominican — met me, he was genuinely confused about why this girl already had Spanish music in her rotation. The art found me because I stayed open, not because an algorithm told me to listen.
When I think about my own creative frustrations, I think about Bad Bunny's. I think about every moment in his career where the world hadn't caught up yet, where the safer path was right there, and he didn't take it. He followed his heart so loudly that eventually the whole world had to pay attention. That's the dream. Just making the thing that's yours and refusing to water it down until the right people find it.
Selfish art built his career. It's building mine too.
Here’s what actually needs to be said:
I stopped watching and following a lot of people who give this “stop making selfish art” advice. If you’re one of those creators, do better. Stop with the lazy advice-giving and start helping people actually sell their work.
The real advice isn’t “stop making what you want.” It’s “your art needs better photography, better videography, better marketing, and more exposure.” It’s not about changing WHAT you make — it’s about changing HOW you show it to the world.
People don’t buy because you said “this is my art, please buy it.” They buy when you show them “this is the art, and here’s why you should care about it.” People don’t buy products. They buy stories. They buy experiences. They buy the WHY behind it — why you made it, why it matters, what it says about them when they own it.
So here’s the actual advice that will help you sell:
1. Take better photography.
Watch a 2-minute video about the rule of thirds. That’s it. Better photos instantly make your work look more professional and worth the price. You don’t need a fancy camera or professional editing equipment. You just need a phone, an eye, an understanding that good things take time.
2. Create better videography.
Once you have rule of thirds under your belt, you’ll be able to do this better! Make all the ideas you have just because you can and have fun with it! Use apps like InShot, CapCut, or Edits to edit. Cross-promote it to every short-form platform (if you want to) (Instagram Reels, YouTube Shorts, TikTok, Pinterest.) With each piece, you’ll get better at videography. More content = more eyes on your work. Don’t worry about the numbers, hashtags, or whatever. Just have fun!
3. Write better product descriptions.
Why did you create it? Who’s it for? Who does it help? People don’t buy products — they buy stories and experiences. What are they getting from it? Your art can be selfish, but it can also tell a person why it should matter to them and how it benefits them. Be honest and specific about what makes it different.
4. Market yourself.
What’s different about you? Your art? Your process? Your shop? Not comfortable showing your face? That’s fine — that’s unique to you! Be proud of it and put a spin on it. Own your quirks because that’s what makes you memorable.
5. Show people what your shop is about.
Half the world is on their phones. If you’re an Etsy seller, utilize the Etsy Seller app to upload videos from step 2 — they show on your storefront.
When you get into the Etsy Seller app, on the bottom menu
click MORE,
scroll down to EXPLORE,
then click CREATE.
Use it to your benefit.
Your selfish art isn’t the problem. Your storytelling and presentation might be. Fix that, and watch what happens.
Till next time!
Diana~
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