Why do I love the OMM so much?

Wed 9th Jul, 2008

I really like the idea behind TOMM, and who wouldn't? I mean, a million artist, a million squares, one picture. It's just great. I also like to hang out on this site, and that's no wonder either. What i do find weird, however, is that I just cant get enough of drawing on those tiny squares with very limited tools. I like it better than Photoshop, paintshop, painter, everything. Why?

I've been thinking about this, and the conclusion I've come to is:

The reason why I like it is exactly the same as why I shouldn't like it. It's so simple, but that makes it esier. When I paint in PS I always keep thinking about what I'm going to do, and how great I want this painting to be when it's finished. Here on TOMM I don't do that. I'm free to do whatever I like, it doesn't matter if the square turns out bad, because it's too small to become anything great, and I can just change it later. I can just doodle away without thinking. I feel more free than when painting in PS. And I love that.

But it irritates me that I can't have as many squares as I want. I want a subscription! But I don't have money. sigh..

Comments & discussion:

What I like is that it doesn't really matter how great your picture turns out, you can still do so much even if your square really isn't very good. The OMM is much more than just an art exhibition - you do well in the OMM if you have a great square, or a really orginal idea, or a really original technique, or if you contribute a lot not just on your square but in the forums or on the news boards or by commenting on other people's squares. So it is fun to just doodle and keep on adding to your picture because it really doesn't matter if it is simple. Obviously some people do the most amazing pictures, but you don't have to be an amazing computer artist to enjoy it.

I also really like OMM a lot - for me, it's not because the tools are few and quite simple - although I'm not so sure if that's the correct way to phrase it - there are a lot of artists here who create anything but simple pictures. Me? I just have fun. What I'm hooked on is the playback feature! It's just so cool. Makes me want this drawing tool/program/format for myself. And that is the reason I like doing more pix. It's just too fun and addictive - but in a really really good way!