So Instagram allows 30 hashtags per post – are you using all of them? If an artist hashtags #contemporary art on their art but a curator doesn’t see it, is it still like-worthy? Joke. But in all seriousness, in an Instagram-savvy world, everyone is hashtagging like crazy. But are art world hashtags overdone, or will hashtagging your butt off get you more followers? Here are five things to never hashtag and why.
#contemporaryart
This hashtag is too popular, just like #love and #followforfollow. While you might think you’re drawing more people to your posts, you could just be drowned out by museum-goers who are posting random shots of art, which will disappear in seconds and difficult to find again on the discover page.
#museumselfie
Remember that woman who destroyed a work of art while taking a selfie with art? The anonymous gallery-goer was visiting an exhibit by Hong Kong-based artist Simon Birch at The 14th Factory in Los Angeles and accidentally knocked over one artwork in a series, which made the entire row topple over like dominoes, causing $200,000 in damages. There is a ton of crap in this hashtag category and a lot of families posing in front of dinosaur bones in natural history museums, but some of the face swaps are funny.
#artstudentproblems
Nothing says ‘first world problems’ quite like the art student problems hashtag on. Got it, student loans suck. But if you’re just looking for attention that you’re lazy, this is not the way. Usually, it’s first and second year undergrads attempting to finish a class assignment, or as a lot of them say: “I should be in the studio, but…” it’s kind of a waste of a post and a waste of time. That being said, the memes in this category are not awful.
#artfair
One major issue with hashtagging is using generalized hashtags that aren’t relevant, like #art and #artist. Another key issue is using the same hashtags over and over again, and many social media experts say it’s important to have your own ‘library’ of hashtags you can rotate with for each post. Otherwise, you might just be billed as spam!
#artistic
Nothing screams amateur quite like the artistic hashtag While there’s nothing wrong with having a creative bone in your body, it’s really too vague and tacky.
Text by Nadja Savej
Photos via westelm.com, lovethispic.com, bomb01.com, onsizzle.com, pinterest
