Community response of new ubuntu artwork

[Ryan Thiessen]

On Thu, 14 Oct 2004 16:11:49 -0400, Benj. Mako Hill <mako at canonical.com> wrote:
> FWIW, I personally like the images and they convey the intended
> meaning to me. That said, I am very concerned by the sharp reaction
> against them that these lists have seen and think that there are a lot
> of very justified concerns that deserve answers of one sort or
> another.

Amongst others, I am very anxiously awaiting to see how or if this
debate will be resolved.  As of right now, Mark has provided an
excellent response detailing the rationale for the selection of the
Ubuntu artwork.  However, the user and developer community response to
this seems to quite consistent: no matter what an individual might
think of the artwork itself, using half naked people with seductive
looks in the default GDM and splash screen will make Ubuntu a tough
sell in corporate environments and in many regions of the world.

It will be very interesting to see how this is resolved.  If the
images stay in the final release of Ubuntu Warty despite the
overwhelming negative response, it may send some unintended messages
to the user community.  The first potential message is that whatever
Mark thinks is appropriate is what will end up in Ubuntu -- after all
Ubuntu bills itself as a meritocracy.  The second potential message is
that Canonical doesn't care about users in the Middle East and other
parts of the world where these suggestive poses are unacceptable --
and in conservative corporations where the Linux Desktop has a lot of
room to grow.

If the artwork in the Release Candidate is indeed final, I plead with
the developers and with Mark to take a lot of care to avoid
unintentionally sending the above messages, as it could to a lot of
harm to the community.

Cheers,
-Ryan Thiessen-