3 minute read
Beware the Hobby Gatekeepers
By K. Coats
I’ve done my fair share of craft fairs in the surrounding area, and recently I participated in my first one since COVID-19 struck. I was elated and having a great time as folks walked around my booth. Making quilts is part of my artistic expression, and I enjoy displaying and selling them. Loads of fellow quilters came through and complimented me, and we all talked shop about our different projects. The fun came to an abrupt halt when I was visited by the “quilt police” twice later that afternoon. They pursed their lips and looked down their noses at my art – art that had been complimented profusely. Isn’t it strange how two people’s negativity outweighed an entire morning of compliments? But I find I’m not alone in this – and neither is quilting.
I think every hobby has gatekeepers – people who want to guard their hobby from what they perceive as impurities. But it comes at a steep price. Those people will be the same ones lamenting that their hobby is dying out. I hear it from fellow quilters all the time – no “young people” want to learn how to quilt. I wish those people had met the young people who spoke with me about wanting to learn. When I told them I was self-taught, their faces lit up, and I made sure to encourage them to keep going. I said, “Welcome to the fold!” and gave them my card in case they had any questions. They were happy to be encouraged and supported. And I was happy because new people were wanting to join the hobby. But, sadly, that attitude, which should be universal, isn’t shared by everyone.
Gatekeepers are people in a hobby or fanbase who feel protective of it to the point they begin acting as guards, deciding who is worthy to share and who is not. What they fail to understand is that any hobby or fanbase is akin to any other human institution. It has to change, grow, and adapt to the times. I love quilting, but if I were limited to churn dash blocks, I’d never have stuck with it as long as I have. Gatekeeping forces a hobby or fanbase to stagnate, and eventually its members become curators of a lost art instead of a creative community. It ends up taking the fun out of it both for creators and those who would appreciate that art.
A great example is Star Wars and how gatekeepers in the fanbase were so serious about it that George Lucas lost interest in his own creation. The gatekeeping fans had guarded it so zealously that they’d also guarded against the fun that originally drew them and the creator in. I like Star Wars. Do I like every film? Certainly not. But other people like the ones I don’t, and who am I to say they are wrong for finding joy just because it wasn’t to my personal taste? At the end of the day, be it a fanbase like Star Wars, Marvel films, or a hobby like quilting, knitting, or pottery, people find joy in it, and sometimes that joy can turn toxic if not checked.
We all can get possessive over things we care about. I feel that’s only natural. But when does that care shift from joy to gatekeeping? Here’s a list to help determine this. 1. Do you find yourself wondering if someone is a “real” fan or creator according to your own arbitrary standards? 2. Are you intolerant of variations or changes within your hobby or fanbase? 3. Do you like to feel superior to newer members of your community? 4. Do you often “test” people’s knowledge when meeting them to Continued on page 16 n Mondays and Wednesdays
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