Good thoughts, thanks! Planning my own analysis if I can ever get my hands on the book. On hold by the publisher I understand. But I appreciate your measured response. There is a bit of a typical social media angry mob effect happening it seems. I went through the same emotional rollercoaster as you. I still believe this is, at best, lazy research by Jake, his publisher or both. Was it ghost written? A lot of speculation it was. Seems like it. This doesn't seem creative enough to be Jake's direct writing work. I think he missed an opportunity to give us something uniquely him and his process. I saw enough to see this wasn't it. Completely agree on Alphonso's ability to explain these concepts well. Good stuff!
Thank you for watching! I also wish I could get my hands on both books and do a comparison myself. Of course, depending on how this ends, Jake's book may not end up published at all. We just have to wait and see.
Another youtuber pointed out that Jake doesnt illustrate/teach the style of art in his book, but Alphonso does...every video and in both books. Jakes work appears more animated/anime/digital with less detail and texture, but Alphonso specializes in details and texture. Jakes website is more about the business of art and not basic drawing skills yet his book illustrates basic drawing skills as Alphonso has demonstrated in nearly all his 100+ videos and 2 books. The issue is not the content but the presentation and explanation of it. Seems like old school plagiarism.
I am leaning towards ghost written as he had his own book coming out at the same time they announced this one. I am impartial there are always more than one side to a story, and I know that from first hand experience.
The likely scenario is Jake Parker allowed a bunch of publishing company hacks and interns to bang out a book in his name, for his trademark, in order to meet an October 2020 deadline. They appropriated the style and content of Alphonso Dunn's already published tutorial to avoid the work it would have taken to create a well thought out volume highlighting Jake's own style. Jake and the company are paying the karmic and financial price for their disreputable behavior. I'll be drawing this season, but certainly not under Jake's trademark.
It's a really upsetting situation because whatever is the truth, most of the people posting on Twitter and Instagram don't know Jake or Alphonso and yet are making judgments on their characters, saying nasty things about them, forgetting they're normal people with feelings. And this is a complex situation that only Jake, Alphonso and the publishers are going to be able to sort out. What you said was really well thought out, Hannah, thank you.
Yes, it seems the internet has made their swift decision on the matter. I've already seen people doing away with Inktober in response and I mean, that's their right but I wish people would wait until more info comes out. I was one who at first boycotted the challenge too but now reflecting on what we have regarding this situation, I'm going to wait before I decide which author is in the right here. At least if I (or anyone really) is going to boycott someone/something, they should be 100% certain and with all the facts to back up their decision.
@@illegaltuna7755 With social media, it's so easy for people (myself included) to publish their first thoughts on things before truly thinking about them, and really if we do that, we're just adding to the negative noise, and not helping anyone. I genuinely think (and hope) that neither man has knowingly done wrong here, and hopefully the facts will come out and some peace will be found between both men and the art community as a whole.
I searched for pages of ink drawing books and I can tell yes you can find books that has similar wording that has similar structure, simular illustration, but I wasn't able to find a book where every single aspect matched on one page. And I was always able to find something new at another page. While Jake Parker's book just the same content as Alphonso Dunn's work. Even if it wasn't conscious copy because he had acces to Dunn's book he should had put effort to change his book to make it less identical.
@@StudioHannah @Studio Hannah because i was curious about the Katy Perry Dark horse issue I watched a lot of video about Copyright in this year and they say accessibility has a huge role. The jury found Katie Parry guilty because she said she never heard the original song and that wasn't true. Even though musicians say the two song are not similar musically. Even if I give the benefit of the doubt that it was cryptomnesia or an cosmical accident. It is hard to belive There was no point where he was like oh wait, it is very similar to another book that is still on sale and I own and even posted a page of it should I do something to not harm Alphonso Dunn's business? Okay maybe that didn't happen and he never realised it but then it is a level of incompetence that is harmful to independent authors.
@Mile Dávid This is exactly where I'm currently coming down on this as well. Well said! I've ordered the book to take a closer look. That is if it ever comes out. I understand the publisher has it on hold due to all this... at least for now.
The Mind of Watercolor , you can’t just compare books though. Jake has been teaching this stuff long before Alphonso’s book came out. It’s up for grabs either is plagiarizing, or BOTH are just using long recognized and effective tools to teach, something ALL teachers do. I believe creatives are being destroyed by cancel culture to the point no one is safe. And, I grieve that kind of world. We need our creatives. Like yourself.
@@rainastor4789 I hear you, but the mistake that I see many commenters make is that this is not purely about the techniques taught. It's the totality of how they are presented, organized, illustrated and verbiage used. When several of those points line up at once it's usually a copy whether intended or accidental. Even if you could say Jake was totally within his rights to copy those principles, what I saw was non-creative, "me-too" mediocrity. Not what I would expect from Jake. I'm not saying it's an open and shut case by any means. It will probably never see legal action. This also has NOTHING to do with cancel culture. It's about protecting IP. Copyright law is generally misunderstood in the extreme and that ignorance is what gets many people in trouble. Those laws are there to protect creators. Those who complain against them often have no idea of the hard work that goes into creating something unique only to have it copied. In such cases all of a sudden those laws make sense. Regardless of the law, ethically there is a possible case to make for shoddy, lazy research. There is a lot of rush to judgment on both sides though so, lets see the whole book!
I hope it all gets resolved, BUT many people go back to “he didn’t invent the techniques”, if I’m not mistaken, he never said he did. He is talking about the order and layout mostly, of the way the book is presented. Maybe Jake Parker got a book made for him and he just designed the cover... 🤷🏻♂️
I think there is a logical order to how you would teach drawing that could account for that, BUT you’re right, which is why I’m still hesitant about how I feel about all this.
I'm not simply trying to promote another video here... so if it's not appropriate I'll delete it. But MOLOCH has a video analysing the situation from someone with publishing and design experience and explained his take on the layout and design aspect of the comparison of both books ( at least what's been seen on both books so far).
If that's the case, Jake is still responsible. If someone else made the book and is going to publish it under the Jake Parker brand, then Jake is obligated to review and approve the content. Alphonso shows in his video that Jake is not ignorant of his work.
Thom Beech please go watch the Moloch video on this. I’m honestly concerned for Alphonso now. The charges are not that clear cut. And the fact that Jake is already being punished for this may come back on Alphonso. If it does, it could be very bad for him, financially and otherwise. 😬
I stand with Alphonso Dunn. Out of my many art books, I have 2 Pen and Ink type books, that both cover a lot of the same material as Alphonso with similar techniques, but they explain their methodology in a way that is all their own. And going through my other art books each artist yet again is describing the same thing but with vastly different language. It would be one thing for 1 or 3 of Jake’s lessons to share similarities with Alphonso’s, but for (what appears to be) 3/4 of his lessons to be lifted straight from Alphonso’s book and simplified, that’s plagiarism. And waiting for Chronicle books to give their opinion is like having cops investigating other cops for murder/ abuse of power charges. Chronicle books has a vested interest in publishing Jake’s book, so I’m not gonna hold my breath.
I think Alphonso said that his own publishers were looking into it, so I'm hoping that both publishers are doing independent investigations that won't be all one-sided. Thank you for watching!
I bought Alphonso Dunn’s book last year, and if I had bought Jake Parker’s new book, I would have been SO disappointed that so much material were the same. And that says a lot about Parker’s book.
@Kim Hansen, that's fair. Most of the books that I own have first chapters that are so basic that I usually skip them and search for the unique teaching style in the rest of the book. Sometimes I find it, sometimes I don't.
@@solarydays Dunn never said he invented crosshatching or the techniques. Just that the layout and lessons were similar, which he's right. Trust me. I'm an art student. I've purposely taken the same classes over with different teachers because I know that each teacher teaches differently. So even though it's the same class, I will learn something new (unless the teacher is really bad or something). Hell, my fiance is a teacher so he can probably explain this better than me. It's the same with books. I have multiple books about drawing, animation, and storyboarding because there's enough of a difference that I will learn something new from each. If there's too much similarities, it's plagarism, plain and simple.
@@solarydays it's not so much the concepts themselves, but the way they're being explained and the visual examples. Yes, the concepts are common, but the way they are being taught is what differentiates art books from each other. To my knowledge, Alphonso didn't say he invented cross hatching or any other techniques that were mentioned, rather the way the techniques were explained is what made the difference. Most people who are saying the layout is similar might mean that the order of the book as a whole instead of one page at a time, although they could simply be reinforcing opinions they agree with and have already seen. I see your point about the layout, since the order of teaching specific techniques would get confusing if it didn't follow the same sequence. However, from what I've seen, the 2 books are uncomfortably similar. Page wise, some points could be boiled down further than what Alphonso's book had, but keeping those "extra" points to explain further made his way of teaching unique. Now, I'm not saying Jake Parker copied or plagiarised Alphinso Dunn's book, buy if I were to write a book to teach people about something I care about, I'd double check the references and inspirations I used to make sure they're not too similar.
We know Parker owns Dunn’s book. It’s impossible to believe that Parker didn’t look at Dunn’s book as he was working on his. Why wouldn’t he look at Dunn’s book? He owns it. He’s making the exact same kind of book. And do you think he’d admit he owns Dunn’s book if there wasn’t proof? Do you think he’d admit to looking at it while making his? I would be willing to guess that if Parker told the truth (which OBVIOUSLY he’s not going to), he’d admit that he used parts of Dunn’s book as a guide and felt that he changed things enough to make it his. And I’m not sure that everyone can breathe a big sigh of relief that Parker’s publisher is reviewing the situation. I’d find it hard to believe that the books weren’t already printed. They’re not going to be concerned about any moral questions about plagiarism ($$$$$$). They’re going to be concerned if it’s bad enough that it’s really obvious and if there are any legal issues.
I think Alphonso’s publisher is also looking into it, or at least they really should be. Both publishers should be taking this seriously. It’s fair to look at what other people have done before while you’re researching for your own creation. The point that would drive me to condemn Jake would be if he purposefully copied versus somehow accidentally ending up with something similar. We can’t know until more information comes out.
Studio Hannah I doubt “the public” is ever really going to know what really happened here. Unless people get to see the book Parker was going to release, we’re never going to know how similar it is to Dunn’s book. If Parker’s book is already printed, they could destroy them and Parker, with the help of the publisher, could redo enough to avoid similarities with Dunn’s book. The extent of the similarities would never be known. How much was changed would never be known. And Parker could go on claiming there was no plagiarism. If Parker did plagiarize parts of Dunn’s book, he should be begging his publisher to allow him to make changes. It’s his best chance to salvage whatever is left of his reputation.
We don't know if Parker credits or references Dunn in his book, because it's not out yet... He very well may have. But Parker has been actively promoting Dunn's book, which would be a weird thing to do if he plagiarized it. I honestly think it never occurred to Parker that Dunn might see his book as a copy, since those things are talked about so widely in literally every inking book ever made...
The Digital Siren - “we don’t know if Parker credits or references dunn in his book” yeahhh that’s weak.... If Parker were to credit or “reference” Dunn... he would’ve (or should’ve) let Dunn *know* about it in the first place
I’m in the same spot. I have been a big fan of Jake for years and he has helped me tremendously in my art. The evidence in Alphonsos video is pretty damning but at the same time the whole situation makes no sense to me. Like Jake has been producing and teaching for years and is very aware of his huge following. He has posted Dunn’s work from his book. What doesn’t make any sense is why he would do this and in any way think he could get away with it when he must be aware that Alphonso is aware of him and the art community is aware mostly of both of them. It seems it would’ve been inevitable that he’d get caught. So that only makes me wonder how is it possible that something like this could happen? Unless Jake is truly an idiot, there is no way in my mind that he would think he’d get away with just blatant copy. So I’m not saying it’s not possible but I certainly think there must be some info that we are missing that can explain all of this. For now I’m not jumping on any hate toward either artist because I think that is very unproductive and not fair to either artist.
I read in another vid that its possible Jake had hired a team to help him make this book, and they perhaps used it as a reference, leading jake in the direction that this book was going
It's simple, Alphonso clearly tried to claim that his book idea was stolen, yet books like that have existed before. It's really dumb and needs to stop.
@@JimmyScribbles You are misunderstanding why he was making that copyrighted. It's to stop people from using his intellectual property in their products, like making inktober branded things and selling them. Don't sit there and say that it's wrong because you as an artist would copyright your work as well and cry about it being used. AKA the AI art issue, so stop being a hypocrite.
Alphonso's video was pretty damning. yeah you can go find the concepts and techniques in a hundred different pen and ink books as far back as you can find them. But the manner in which Jake presents that information is straight up copied from Alphonso. What really galls me is that Jake is apparently thinks no one would notice. He shamelessly promotes "his" book on his IG and Twitter. This tells me that Jake thinks I'm stupid and/or blind.
Thom share the same view as you a lot of people are staying on the fence saying that Alphonso concepts are not his own but the difference is that Alphonso spent time in how he presents the information in his book he did a lot of trial and error and came up with a way to explain things that are digestible. That is the USP of Alphonso Dunn not that he is presenting something that already exist but teaching it in a way that a beginner can digest and put into effective practice. Jake Parker and I respect him is a man of talent and a teacher and his work and inking Ideas are different in style. Jake talks about his children book and his illustration and draftsmanship is amazing so If Jake Parker is making a book then I would of course I would once again expect the core fundamentals to say the same ( nature of fundamentals duh) but an inktober book with jake parkers style and what I saw from Alphonso's flip through of Jake's book was that he really took Alphonso's book layout and patterns of explanation and exercises and is selling a book . I look at Alphanso and I see his work in the book when I see Jake's it is a bit disappointing. I am waiting for a statement from Jake about this cause he will have to present his side so that his community and his fans know what is going on because with everything that we have not Looking so good for Jake and the is hard to say that because I am his follower too
“Making a reactionary conclusion based on a small bit of information is different from responding to a holistic collection of information that may reveal more than ‘he good, he bad.’” Very well articulated, Hannah. I believe that it’s really none of our business (meaning everyone apart from Dunn, Parker, and their respective people involved) to draw conclusions based on the limited scope we have seen. It is up to Dunn and Parker will need to sort this out. I just wish that Dunn had directly contacted Parker before posting it on UA-cam (it’s best to communicate first and directly to the other person involved.)
Jessica Vanderpol Yep. It’s all out here for everyone to see now, though. I really hope there will be a good ending to this but I really don’t know :/ Thank you for watching!
I’ve seen a lot of people bringing up texture samples (and some other art fundamentals exercises) in an attempt to say “hey look Alphonso didn’t create this”, yet they unknowingly just prove alphonso’s point... The more pages of other art books I see the less differences I see between Jake and Alphonso’s wording, layout, listings, sequences, descriptions, etc. Hope this gets sorted out soon enough, I’ll still give Jake the benefit of the doubt because we haven’t seen the whole book yet, but not really digging participating on Inktober this year
The one thing that makes Jake Parker look pretty guilty to me is the fact that he tried to make this book or let someone else put it together and didn't bother to look up "ink drawing" in Amazon ONCE to check in. If Jake Parker did his research, he saw Alphonsos book and should have seen that the formatting etc are a little too similar. If he didn't do his research - how is JP even a professional artist!? Because that's the first thing you do if you come up with an idea for a book - research the topic.
If he hadn't researched the topic at all, any similarities really would have been a 100% accident, though, so I'm not completely sure how that scenario would make him look guilty. I'm sure he did plenty of research, as well as relying on his own many years of expertise. We do know that he owns or has owned Alphonso's book, for what that's worth, and I know he owns other books on ink and other art topics. He's promoted ones that he likes to his followers before. The question here is, did he purposefully take that research and use it in a non-transformative, plagiaristic way, or did he make his own book and end up with inadvertent similarities? And, if so, are those similarities at a high enough percentage to warrant being called plagiarism? Since we don't have both books to compare them in more detail, we can't know yet.
@@StudioHannah you're right, of course. But the fact THAT he shared Alphonsos Book before and owns a copy really means (at least in my opinion) that the research already has been done. That would mean it was either on purpose or he just wasn't aware - and at that point he should have done more research, would have found AD again and should have contacted him... You dont write a how-to book without research... And AD has evidence on figuring pretty specific stuff out. You dont come up with that on the fly. And if there's traces of these quite unique ideas in JPs book, credit would be due. And there can't be credit given if you don't contact the artists... One way or another, I am ready to wait on how this unravels. I'm still more suspicious of JP though, but that may be a deeper rootet personal bias. He's just not the kind of person I would trust, even before all of this happened... JPs statement made me a little furious though, because it seems as if he's really just playing the victim - but how could he proof that he did not AD? That's a hard one. I'm curious and ready to give him the benefit of the doubt STILL. But that's also because of his popularity. And I always felt like JP is kinda relying too much on his community's trust to get out of stuff like this... Which may have lead to AD making public accusations in the first place (I'm sorry if I worded my points badly, I'm not a native English speaker)
"Character and generosity" .... Trademarking the Inktober name and have lawyers threaten people who publish sketchbooks using the word Inktober....... ......
I felt like some images were similar, but I have, like you, seen the same concepts and similar images in various media. I have access to Udemy class that uses lines and strokes explanations (for digital and traditional work) that are similar to Alphonso's book. If Jake Park did plagiarize Alphonso, then shame on him, but from what I can tell, we can't assign blame or guilt to anyone yet. Thanks for a great video.
8:17 This is an important point for so many current events these days. It’s sad, but true. By the way, it is possible to accidentally plagiarize. I learned that the hard way in graduate school. In my defense, there were so few resources for my topic (which was a brand new topic for me), and I memorize information pretty well... I clearly credited my source, but I still made the layout of the information too similar. Thankfully, my professor and the school dean understood that what I had done was completely accidental. I did get a zero for that grade, but my other grades in the class were good enough to keep me at an A for my final grade in the class. I also had to redo the project for no credit, but at least I wasn’t expelled or anything. I was extremely upset about that. I am someone who is very much against cheating and stealing of any kind and I felt like I was a hypocrite. However, I did learn from that incident. I was extra careful with any other papers and projects I did during grad school. I never had that problem before or since that horrible situation.
Erin Last Name Redacted Yeah, I remember doing several designs in college where people were like “this reminds me of XYZ” and I realized how close my design was. I basically redesigned the Firefox logo without realizing it, for instance. This is why peer review is really helpful, because I’d miss something like that without other people’s input. Thanks for watching!
This was a brave, balanced, mature and well done video. Thank-you for being an adult in the room. It's heartening to hear you say this, especially in the face of of all the bad and negativity currently out there. I'm subscribing. I can't wait to see more of your work in the future!
I agree. All of this. I feel like the writing on the concepts would be where you can draw clear lines of theft, in my opinion. We can't really know until we can see it all. It is definitely a tough one. Emotionally charged too... which I have to assume is partly due to our collective worlds being stressed. I'm not really invested in one or the other, but I do love the communities they share so I hope everyone can keep it together in that respect. Bright side is that I found your channel!
Regardless of what happens between Alphonso and Jake, I do hope that the online anger doesn't divide the arts community for too long. Thank you for watching!
I feel like art teachers all use incredibly similar examples, samples and styles in part because beginners learn the same tools because art begins with those tools. From there the styles, information and samples are incredibly different just in the small samples that we can see. I'm as torn on this as you are and only wish now that I'd waited for Jake's book and didn't already own Alphonso's book because I feel smudged (not in the new age way) by this whole thing. I'm glad to see you're also waiting to see what's next. :D
Why didn’t Jake just recommend Alphonsos book, and refer to it, instead of putting out such a similar book and making money from it? Maybe Jake could put out another book on drawing covering other aspects, maybe aspects that are unique to his own style of working........hmmmm? Really, he’s just put out a book that competes in the market......not too cool to do to a fellow artist, especially one who is an Inktober participant.
We know some of the pages have some similarities, but we haven't seen the vast majority of Jake's book. Until we do, we don't know what else he talked about and what unique things he had to say. Thanks for watching!
This is the 1st I'm hearing about this "controversy" and I rarely comment on peoples content , but I was so glad to see you didn't go with your 1st reaction video. I'm sure your dog is too 🤣. You hit the nail on the head when you point out that these comparisons to elements in both books are of common knowledge. I was given a book on pottery techniques, which was produced in the 70s when I was in Uni and every other book I've picked up, bought or been given on the subject since has shown those techniques in a near identical way, I can go on Pinterest and find the same stuff for free. You'd be hard pressed to find a book or youtube video that explores these common techniques in a new and unique way. What's important and stands these books apart is the subject matter being explored, the way they interpretated it and the artwork they've produced, which at the heart of it, is the only reason why people buy more than one of this type of book. Thank you for taking the time to reflect before posting & giving a balanced view on the issue and not making a hyperbolic reactionary video, which we see too often from other content providers. Ps. don't worry about how often you post, personally I'd rather see the great work you produce and a video every so often, than be bombarded with content and see your art work and passion suffer for it, its about quality not quantity 😉
@@StudioHannah thank you. What me mostly shocked in this situation, how easy people start to punish and accusing some one. How much people from 200k viewers has check definition of "plagiarism" or Fair Use doctrine in Copyright law? Before attack. But it's just a 2(two) or 3(three) pages of text. Awful situation.
I'm kind of like you on this. I felt the same in that I've personally seen so many similar books over the years and done almost these exact exercises in my middle and high school art classes. It doesn't seem to me like Jake Parker plagiarized Alphonso Dunn's book, however they are similar and I can also understand where the suspicion comes from. I am seeing a lot of artists on instagram falling into that "cancel culture" mindset and making announcements that nobody should support or take part in inktober anymore. That doesn't sit right with me. I don't love Jake Parker (although I appreciate all the content he's put out) but I do love inktober and I don't want to leave it behind. So in a nutshell, I am leaning towards not plagiarism but am totally open to multiple perspectives on this and if anyone was genuinely wronged in this situation of course I hope that it all gets sorted out in the best way possible. P.S. You are NOT the worst art youtuber ever, I claim that status and you cannot steal it!! lol, jk but not really.
It’s all about the information available, and the info not available. I don’t like cancel culture though. People hip in bandwagons so fast. Thank you for watching!!
I loved it when you said, 'I am still waiting to see more? Both Jake and Alphonso have been loved and adored by the art community for years, and they both have been very generous with their teachings in art. They work very differently and the community seems to have decided that jake and his team have stolen from Alphonso's hard work. If this is the case, Jake needs to be responsible and contact Alphonso and make a collaboration with him so we again can have peace in the art community. We want both to stay! But it all depends on Jake and Alphonso! So we are still waiting to hear more from them!
So, I am not in "this" Art Community at all but as a 3D Artist since 1998, I think its a little bit..mimimi. Why. See, when I want to learn something on a particular topic for game design, I tend to watch 10-15 videos/tutorials or written things covering the same topic over and over, because every artist who explains the topic is doing it similar - but each have several additions on their own while the content sometimes is 80% the same. And some people love others work, use this as a base in their tutorials and so on. When is something really just copy and paste for getting some money out of it. One third, one half, two third? Lets move to C++, Java and Co. There, its even more difficult to say when everybody is taking the Wumpus problem as an example for basic AI programming and that Wumpus from one book is looking nearly 1:1 like the one in the other book.. what now? Overall, Peter Han was right with his statement that he would have contacted Jake in private first and not taking the cancel-culture-smelling-social-media-war-zone route. Well.. good press for Mister Dunn though - free advertisement. And thank you Hannah for posting the Recap, interesting topic.
I stand right now with the facts. I'm sitting with a lean to Parker, but I find your explanation the closest to where I sit on the speculative topic. I think Parker unconsciously pulled stuff from what he'd seen in other books...but I also think Dunn might not understand the consequences of making a public "call out" video the way that he did (especially without taking a moment to step back and think before posting an emotionally charged video). I hope the YT art community can walk the line rather than taking a HARD-side when we just don't know enough to do anything but speculate.
I’m like you. Not enough information. This is sad, because it’s so polarizing. We’re supposed to have a reprieve from these trying times when we’re occupying the art world. I’ve got an open mind about this, and nobody wins.
I am sure hat more than 75% percent of people just watched alphonso's video and BLAMING JAKE PARKER RANDOMLY without seeng other half of pictur that what the other artist has to say and those are the people who are most likely haven't gone through both books.
It would have been hard to go through both books since Jake's wasn't yet released at the time of these videos coming out, and now it's no longer being published because of this accusation. It's a shame. I was still able to get my hands on one, and I do think they're different enough for Alphonso not to have worried. I likely won't be making a video about the comparisons because it feels kind of scummy for some reason, and I trust my gut feelings. It's interesting having both books side-by-side on the shelf, though.
@@StudioHannah well some people still received the book. Someone shared a few pages comparing the two books (Alphonso's one and the one from Jake), which you can see here: pin(dot)it/4p2Dc4j By these pages, you can see that both the layout and the drawings are very different. Alphonso also lied about the concepts being made by him. There's tons and tons of ink related books released before Dunn's book that talk about the exact same thing in a similar way. For example, Rendering in Pen and Ink by Arthur L Gulptill. So if Jake plagiarized, Alphonso also did the same thing. Another detail is that Jake Parker at least mentioned his inspirations for his book...and Alphonso Dunn was one of those people: i.pinimg.com/originals/7f/a9/e7/7fa9e77127155c7a5c8aee3bdb69db58.jpg
@@daftcruz here is a small list of books that cover some or all of the same things that are in Dunn's book. They have similar or same verbiage , chapter order, and illustration examples. Drawing with pen and ink by Arthur L. Guptil published 1930 How to draw in Pen and Ink by Susan Meyer and Martim Avillez published in 1985 Pen and pencil techniques by Harry Bergman published 1989 Drawing pencil techniques by David Lewis published 1984 The Art and Technique of pen drawing by G. Montague Ellwood published in 1927, reissued 2003 Drawing in pen and ink by Claudia Nice published in 1997 Creative pen and ink techniques by Ian Sidaway published in 2001 Pen and Ink Techniques by Paulette Fedard published in 1992. Complete book of drawing and painting by Mike Chaplin published 2004. Dynamic bible by Peter Han 2016
"What has been will be again, what has been done will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun." This is absolutely true of artists, and has been the case for hundreds of thousands of years. We all stand on the shoulders of those who have come before.
Now the rub, and for some this is going to be like coarse sand paper on skin. There is nothing new under the sun makes plagiarism a much harder thing than it would be with an academic subject like chemistry... Mr. Dunn is a fantastic artist. I have become an appreciator of his work. That being said, I have not seen anything in Jake's work or Mr. Dunn's work that I did not already receive in high school. Thank you Mrs. Thompson. One uses spheres. One uses cubes. Heaven help us all if I create a how do draw book with pyramids are they going to come after me as well?... I am feeling as though some of us have spent too much time inside. Let's all go take a walk.
I've just started getting into pen and ink drawing and have been getting into Alphono's videos because he's quite highly regarded. I've got his book coming from Amazon so looking forward to reading. I've seen some of Jake Parker's stuff and he also seems like an excellent teacher. I've only been really drawing for about a year now so a lot less experienced than most people here, don't have many art books and a lot less knowledge on plagiarism and intellectual property so I've really got no opinion on all this other than it's extremely fascinating. I am a bit shocked that Alphonso did a UA-cam video attacking Jake for the plagiarism. Wouldn't it have just been better to leave to the solicitors?
I have an issue with the formatting looking super similar. No one owns a teaching concept, but how it is presented on a page looks too close to me. Doesn't mean it's straight up plagiarism, but it almost makes it not worth buying if I could get the same layout already done by someone else.
True. Then I guess it would be up to the content itself, and what proportion of it was different/worth owning. If 10 pages were, say, nearly exactly the same, but 90 pages were totally different, I would consider the added content still worth it. If the books were 80% the same, then it probably wouldn't be.
Anytime someone creates a book or even just an product of any sorts, they should do thorough research to avoid plagiarism... That's the main reason why school drills this in our heads.
heyimgreen We have to make our best efforts for sure, but it would be pretty hard to thoroughly check every art book that existed. At the end of the day it is still fallible humans doing the checking, so there is a wide margin for error. The best way to avoid plagiarism would be just to not plagiarize. Thank you for watching!
What you shared about your emotional journey with this is familiar to me too. I think that's why people have reacted the way they have. Alphonso told the story well and we were right there feeling his feelings. But watching the flip through a second time with the sound off, I was surprised how few examples there really were and how different the page layouts were and how much of Jake's book is flipped past and how Alphonso is scrolling up and down his book to find the comparisons. The idea that the books are in the same order or have the same layout is really not standing up. There are phrases that are the same or similar and there are a few illustrations with a similar idea. But we know Jake owns and likes and recommends Alphonso's book, so he could have either subconsciously drawn on that, or he might have consciously been inspired by it and given Alphonso credit. I don't think the evidence is strong enough to shout Plagerism to a 600k+ audience. This is someone's livelihood and Alphonso hasn't even seen the whole book or gone down the usual channels for a copyright claim. Instead his supporters have potentially damaged the book sales, delayed or prevented publication. If this turns out that Jake has done nothing wrong then Alphonso has made a huge mistake and is open to claims of defamation from Jake, and loss of earnings from him and the publisher etc. It's a complete mess. I can understand putting up the video in anger, but not leaving it up with that title and thumbnail once he's seen the reaction of his fans. He's financially benefiting from people buying his book and cancelling Jake's. You'd want to be absolutely certain that you were right before leaving that to stand - and he hasn't even seen the rest of the book. I'd want legal advice about the potential infringement and any defamation I might be liable for acting so rashly. He was obviously hurting in the video. But this will be gutting for Jake too.
My only real issue with Jake trademarking Inktober was the lack of communication with the people who would be affected by it. Same thing here. Alphonso really should have communicated directly with Jake or through lawyers since Jake and he are the ones involved. Good communication skills can fix a lot of problems before they really start.
I like your video. I feel the same way. Minus the initial anger at Jake. When I was watching alphonsos video I was thinking, “wow, I need that book” and then I was thinking, “wait did he just claim to invent gradations, and light sourcing and practicing on cubes and spheres?” It almost seems like he learned all of it on his own. And if he did, that’s pretty impressive, but he needs to come out of the bubble and realize he has discovered things that have been discovered long ago by lots of other people. The mad part came when I started to see the virtual pitchfork mob that just went, beauty and the beast style, after Jake. Not cool. This is something that should be handled professionally and cautiously. If Jake is in the wrong, let the publishers pull his book and the lawyers have him issue a public apology. If Alphonso is wrong, there could have been a relationship started there that would have been beneficial to the whole art community, but now he’ll just be guilty of slander and potentially other things too. There’s no way to mop up this mess now. The cancel culture of the internet is just horrifying.
You people are something else. You want to believe so hard that Jake is not a snake. Alphonso went into so much detail explaining why he thinks his book was plagiarized and your conclusion is that he's claiming he invented gradations on cubes and circles? Come on, man!
The layout of the book and the structure of chapters is blatantly copied, of course the concepts are comon knowledge, but Parker presented them in the same order and manner.
@@morza7154 I recommend you watch Moloch's video on the subject. He breaks down the layout of the books and the order/structure, and under scrutiny and a non-emotional analysis they actually seem to be incredibly different: ua-cam.com/video/GDNsHVDHfnk/v-deo.html&lc
D N it is not blind loyalty. There is really not much of a case here. If you watch Molochs video about it, he explains it very well. Most people don’t know what they’re talking about in regards to layouts and things. And moloch is not much of a fan of Jake Parker. I’m honestly pretty worried about Alphonso, because if the case gets dropped, this could backfire on him in a huge way. There might be case for financial loss and defamation of character. He could be in a pretty crappy situation fairly soon just because of how quickly his fans took to social media to tear Jake limb from limb over this. 😬 I think if people want to support Alphonso, they need to buy his books - which look excellent! And then hang tight till things are verified.
When you said, "You insult me, you insult my dog.." , it kinda reminds me of Mushu's "Dishonor on your family, dishonor on your cow!" 😂😂😂 Anyway, I love your levelheaded perspective about this situation. I very much understand that you are upset not just on the controversy, but how the hell did this controversy even exist in the first place. *Joins you in your uncomfortable seat*
Hahaha, that bit was referencing what Ethan Becker does in a lot of his art videos. He's a really sarcastic, funny, and talented art UA-camr, you should look him up! *it ok we can uncomfort together*
@@StudioHannah yes exactly. Unless this is a common abstraction (I own multiple older drawing books, and they don't have it), this points to someone scanning over the page and excerpting the most striking sections.
J. T. That was actually one of the points that I found to be weaker, actually. Both books have a good breakdown of simple ways to dissect what you’re drawing, but nothing I hadn’t seen before. I actually thought Jakes visual examples were an improvement for people who might be less familiar with the terminology. The two spots that actually made me do a double take on the similarities were the choice of textures used that I showed in my video, and one spread with similar headings. That’s enough to make me go “huh,” but that’s about it.
@@StudioHannah interesting how different people can see this... I found the things Alphonso himself and others pointed out very straightforward and was quick to agree it looks like a copy, but many others seem to believe the opposite just as easily. Maybe we're led by our own bias more than we know.
Parker and Dunn are both taking about the 5 main skills or basics to drawing. They are just applying them to drawing with ink. If you google "the 5 main skills of drawing". Different artists use slightly different terms but all have the same meaning. Some call it the 5 foundation skills of observation as well
Layout and techniques are one thing, but the language and teaching style are what would make this plagiarism or not to me. Ive gone through numerous art classes, no teacher is the same.
I would say that I initially took Alphonso’s side, and I cancelled my SVS subscription for the time being. The reason is that if Alphonso is right, I don’t want to support Jake. If Alphonso is mistaken or Jake is right, I can apologize for it and rejoin SVS. At present I’m doing my best to not support/condemn either of them any more than I have so far. :/
Korudo That seems like a good way to stay neutral. I don’t think you’d need to apologize for it though :) It’s your decision where your own money goes and if you aren’t comfortable with spending it somewhere then no explanation is needed. Thanks for watching!!
I just want to say that none of us here are judges and no one made us the ruler of art society and who are we to say that one is right and the other is wrong or atleast you will withhold your judgement until all the information is available. think of it as your self if your were being pressured by a group of people who are not qualified enough to make the decision and just giving their judgement after seeing only one side of picture
I don’t have time to read comments so I apologize if this has already been said. Jake has been teaching a long time. Much of his material I assume has been part of his teaching for years. Jake Parker would not plagiarize work in a community where it would be noticed. I just don’t think this is as simple as people assume. He’s deep and seems helpful and honest. I’ve also enjoyed Alphonso’s material. I just hate cancel culture. I read a comment saying “Jake Parker is done.” Really? I call bs. Cancel culture is removing valuable creatives from the world. Who will be next? Who will be left? What a tired boring world everyone is striving for.
Rain A’Stor I’ve seen some pretty wild conjecture about Jake that have nothing to even do with this issue. When people want to be mad they want to search for any reasons at all to be mad, even if it means actually making things up. It’s insane. Thanks for watching!
phoenix yip exactly. It’s an ache. He’s been teaching for years. Much longer than Alphonso’s book has been out. We don’t know who copied whom. These are techniques that have been around a hundred years or more. Who really “owns” them? They are both great artists and teachers but the techniques are not new or revolutionary. There is a growing voice in the world that takes joy from destruction and pain instead of creativity and community. If we let that voice win.... picture the world that will be left. Nothing but concrete and pools of blood. I’m not a fan of that. Every time an artist goes away we all lose.
I own Mr. Dunn's 2 pen and ink book and spent quite a substantial time copying his hatching and texture demos (and also did take notes about practical advices from his paragraphs. I also took Jake Parker's pen & ink class on SVS (site shared with Will Terry) and most of the shading and texture hatching techniques he now shares with Alfonso (in the new Inktober book) were NEVER discussed in the video lesson of his class!!!! (as of last year when I had the SVS subscription), unless he learned them after reading Mr. Dunn's book. And most shameful to m , Jake seemed to have also borrowed Alfonso's words and syntax about how to vary and improve hatching techniques. I hope they both talk it out: we love them both as fans and students. Thank you for your time.
I think the thing that strikes me is Jake parker has unique style and the book doesn't show that..... how much of it references inktober? From what I understand very little... it's about inking yes but that title i would expect more about how to apply it to inktober or why inktober all year round?
That is a good point about the style. I did see, I think in the flip-through that Jake did, that he talks about the prompts and more specifically Inktober stuff. I wish I had both books in question side-by-side so I could compare them but we only have so much to go on.
This is exactly the right response to a situation like this. We always need to wait for all the facts. How can anyone even make a definitive decision without even hearing a response to the accusations? Let's wait and see.
Excellent video! What ever became of this? Any new information ever come out? There were a ton of similarities between the books (based on Dunn's video) however, it was difficult to tell how exactly the information was laid out and displayed in the books. From what I could tell, there was a lot of jumping around to random pages in an attempt to share similarities, but it was difficult to see how similarly the information was conveyed with all the jumping around. I also really would be curious to see if there was a "further study" or "references" page in Jake Parker's book. (basically: did he cite?) There are 2 bits about this whole thing that sit poorly with me: 1) Jake Parker's response...aka: "my lawyers advised me not to say anything" is such a disheartening response. and 2) Alphonso Dunn's video. This is such a huge allegation to make, especially before the book is even published. Releasing a video publicly, right at the time that Jake's book was starting to take pre-orders, helped boost his own book's sales while also seriously damaging Jake's career. (2020/2021 inktobers were a shadow of the former years, due to many people boycotting.) Since the book was never released, it all just comes down to "he said this but he said that..." I really wish he would have waited till the book came out, and if it was plagiarized, published the most damning video he could, instead. Then we could have all seen for ourselves, unfortunately, now we're all just left wondering.
The only updates I ever heard were that Jake’s book got pulled from sales because the publishers weren’t willing to deal with the allegations. Whether that means they believed it was plagiarism or whether they were just not up for spending the time and funds figuring it out, I don’t know. I did accidentally get my copy of Jake’s book from an early shipment Amazon made, and I have Alphonso’s book as well. A cursory flip through them made me believe the allegations were unfair as there’s a lot more content that’s different than that’s similar, but I haven’t bothered doing a deep dive. I don’t know that I’d make a video about it even if I did since I’m not trying the a drama channel and I don’t want either men involved to have to rehash this again, but who knows? Maybe it’ll be relevant. Alphonso was actually referenced and his books were recommended in Jake’s book. It’s sad that Jake obviously had respect for Alphonso and that Alphonso didn’t go to him first in all this :/ Just a disheartening situation all around. Thanks for watching btw!! I appreciate it!!
Dunn’s video was made 2 weeks ago. Parker’s publisher was informed almost immediately. They have Parker’s book and could have gotten Dunn’s book immediately. If this was a clear cut case of no plagiarism, it wouldn’t take long to determine it. They have both of the damn books. They’ve said nothing. Their silence is deafening.
Thanks for a nice balanced video. I work in television, often with copyright and trademark issues and I wouldn't want to form an opinion until I had both books side by side. We can only wait and see how this will all fall out.
Similarities? Sure. Plagiarism? Doubtful. Instead of jumping to conclusions, I'll just wait and see what Jake Parker has to say, beyond what he already said on Instagram. Meanwhile, I don't understand why people are accusing him of trying to make money off other people's artwork. He trademarked the Inktober logo that he designed. He clearly says on his website that you can use the word Inktober, just not the logo.
I've seen a lot of people misunderstanding what a trademark even does, and I feel like it's because a lot of people are just kind of young and/or haven't studied copyright law. Can't blame people too much for that, but I do wish they'd do some more research before making claims.
I am just confused I was seeing that there was controversy around inktober but I had no idea about this.. thank you for explaining in a fairly neutral way. I hope this situation gets solved quickly..
Great video! I’m not currently on either side right now, and seeing the very heated emotional responses on either side of the argument is causing me anxiety. I watched Alfonsos video, but I’m not convinced that he’s right. I believe he believes he’s right, but without seeing the actual book, know one can know for sure. One point in particular, about the pens drawn and described, is a feature I’ve seen in almost every art book aimed at beginners. An example of this is in Frank Logan’s book Pen and Ink Techniques, which I believe was published over a decade ago. As for the actual order in which the ideas are laid out, we don’t know that, because Alfonsos video shows him scrolling back and forth a great deal. So I’m waiting until I have more information before I can actually make my verdict. I’m not prepared to pick up a pitchfork and end either persons lively hood based on the current evidence presented.
sweetshelly739 I agree. Until the end of this, try to step away from the fire being thrown online and take some deep breaths when it gets to you. It’s poking at my anxiety, too! But ultimately we can’t control the situation, only how we react to it. Thank you for watching!
These are all basic techniques taught in drawing 1... like in the first week. Neither of them invented these. They both look like good books but some of the terms in Alphonso’s book isn’t the terms that are used in college.
Yeah. I understand Alphonso’s concern about how similarly worded the books are, but there are only so many ways that you can say common art terms, and so many books include them to help the newbs who may be reading them. The difference between a good and meh teacher is being able to explain those concepts WELL, but the concepts themselves are pretty universal.
@@StudioHannah I think, before starting mass bullying of Jake, Alphonso was should taking to lowsuits. Google "are a methods an object of copyright". bad situation.
in my sketchbook I found a 9 eggs from Alphonso's "9 way to hatching" , but I definitely know, that those 9 eggs and hatching I did from old book about pencil drawing. And I don't remember an author, sorry. This hand in Your video, I saw that before, for sure. Some kind of "Michelangelo" style and "studying" old masters, may be also was in pencil. Those cubes and lights on planes - I think it already should be in 'public domain', this drawing and explanation are old like world. May be it was in book for architects, but years ago. Alphonso did a good job to collect it in one book, but...
For me, when Alphonso said "Jake says feathering, but I say varying the line weight, that's the same thing! " it really raised a red flag.these are two different phrases describing the same technique, so you can't argue the words used here are the same. But if you're gonna base the accusation on this sort of thing, then how could the accusation of " the similarities are in the wording, not that anyone is accusing the stealing of techniques" stand? This kind of red flag really leads me to question that maybe Alphonso is dismissing or simply not seeing alot of the differences in the books because he was very set on looking for similarities, and any differences he sees just becomes similarities in disguise.
I'm confused why some people are feeling hung up about potentially not taking part in Inktober? In my ignorance, I assumed we can still draw and ink for 30 days during the month of October without slapping the inktober label on it? Is it not the same practice with almost the same benefits without the popular branding?
Good thoughts. I think some people just want to totally separate themselves from anything to do with Jake at this point. Some people are still "doing Inktober" but under a different name. I've seen #artober going around. Thank you for watching! (Also headcanon you are the real Ahsoka Tano, nobody can convince me otherwise, sorry about all that stuff with the Jedi, that sucks).
@Octavio Marín that is exactly what I'm saying (and encouraging) tho. The way how some people make it sound, it's as if if you DONT take part in inktober, then you are not allowed to do any ink drawings relating to prompt lists within the month of October what-so-ever! Which is ridiculous. Nothing is stopping you from doing the exact same thing you have done for the last few October's, the only thing different is "inktober" wont be amongst your hashtags. I fully encourage people to continue to do the art they love to do, when they love to do it. Artist drama be damned.
I had a similar stream of feelings and reactions. I was close to posting and sharing a bunch of posts shooting down Jake Parker. But I took a step back because I want to understand more of the situation. Thanks for posting this video to give an objective viewpoint to add to the information.
I honestly don’t think we can condemn anyone until more information comes out. The only thing we do know is that Dunn has seriously damagaed Jakes career and book launch whether he has done something or not. I do think Dunn honestly does think Jake stole his book. I hope it’s not true, but we can’t really know for sure yet.
BS. There were hundreds of art books that look just like Alfonso’s years before so you might as well accuse him of plagiarizing. This is so ridiculous.
There was another example that Alphonso posted on his UA-cam channel (under “Community”) which compares these two consecutive section titles: “Seeing Value” and “Even Value”. He claims Jake ripped him off, but those exact section titles were published on the website of an art instructor named John Morfis. The particular page was published June 2014, over a year prior to the publication of Alphonso’s book. I already let John know about it. Here’s the page: helloartsy.com/value/
I saw that added example on Alphonso's page. The addition of John's page is interesting. I think Alphonso is genuinely worried about these similarities, but to your point, other artists have said similar things in a similar order. It's worth looking into, but not automatically condemning.
Studio Hannah Absolutely. John mentioned that he thought he had created his titles after adapting some ideas he’d seen in watercolor. I think this goes back to two points that you and some other UA-camrs have made: there are only so many orders/orgs to plan out fundamental teachings, and there are a finite number of accurate ways to convey an idea in any language. You know, in biology there’s this term “convergent evolution”, where a trait is developed by separate species not because of a shared gene, but because of a similar circumstance and environments. You also made a great point about the “creativity bank”. I think it’s impossible for artists to be 100% certain if they’ve never seen an idea done which has just occurred to them.
You know, when I first heard of this, I was on Alphonso's side and was absolutely outraged at Jake Parker. And although I'm still leaning towards Alphonso's claims, I have changed my mind a bit and am more open to a possible explanation of why the books seem eerily similar to each other. I do wonder why Alphonso never contacted Jake privately about this matter though (if he did so at all). I feel bad that I didn't analyze the situation carefully before making a firm stance on the issue, especially because the book hadn't been released yet and we don't know the extent of the similarities and I don't know if we ever will. But thanks for the video, I liked how you handled both sides of the situation :)
I think I feel exactly the same, I can't take a side, still...it does look suspicious but I don't feel like I have the right to conclude anything. it just makes me sad how easily most people jump into conclusions and how eager they are to ruin someone's career...no compassion at all. 😔
Exactly. And, I mean, if it's found that Jake is guilty then dang, I'll be one of the angriest and most betrayed of the crowd. But until we have more info I'm not personally comfortable making that call. Same with a lot of other "cancel" issues. People have been found innocent before, and all that stress and pain brought on by cancel culture can't be taken back.
Alphonso is delusional, he has no case against Jake, and the fact that people just chose to believe him and take his side is maddening. I am not a fan of Jake's by the way, I know nothing about him other than being aware of inktober. I saw Alphonso's video, and that is all. The books are nowhere similar enough to qualify as plagiarism.
With all of these conspiracies, although I don’t really like to pick on sides, but as of now, I am standing with Alphonso Dunn. Through Dunn’s video, it is totally a HEAVY EVIDENCE that all of the flow of information, the order, the samples are strangely similar. The only thing that’s different is the information about the challenge, a brief history of ink, and Jake’s challenge (through the flip through). Jake’s statement in social media saying that: I didn’t plagiarized anything - is NOT very convincing. If he wants the statement to be true, he has to show evidences to defend himself (which I hope he will do that for his own good and reputation). JP could have avoided this mess IF he writes his own method and teaches the same concept and method in his own way. I’ve seen his site, he has recommendations and teaching classes, so why wouldn’t he used that? Think about it, he already has the contents, but... he decided to copy entire book. As of now, all the blames are towards JP, and Deviantart decides to not hold the Inktober Awards due to this conspiracy. Don’t forget about that past incident where JP wanna trademark Inktober, after years of having it free roaming the internet. Slowly, the challenge that starts up as an artistic fun challenge turns into monetizing for self-needs.
Jake would be unwise to defend himself publicly at this point at the advice of his lawyers (there are a lot of weird law rules, probably smart to listen to them), so I can't fault him for that. That said, it's fair to be on Alphonso's side with this considering the current info that we have. I get it :) I made a video about my thoughts on the trademark issue from December in case you want to hear my thoughts on that. Thanks for watching!
I like both artists. I bought Alphonso book. The concepts are of course obvious. Alphonso is a professional. He knows difference. I take classes from an artist known as Kesh. He teaches the exact same concepts. The difference is he credits his sources and his approach is so uniquely his own there's no question that it's not original. Inasmuch as an original can be in this case.
I know who Kesh is! He's cool. He weighed in on this controversy as well ua-cam.com/video/HdCffP8BBg8/v-deo.html Unless there's a different Kesh. Kesh's everywhere! Thanks for watching.
I'm sure it's a JK Rowling-Harry Potter type situation. Parker for sure took Dunn's book as a base and stuffed it into a more dynamic, creative, attractive and commercial format. Especially something more digestible for the audiences. Jo Rowling made a cocktail of Larry Potter and the Muggles, Chronicles of Earthsea, Chronicles of Spiderwick, and "Books of Magic" by Neil Gaiman. Great materials, endearing to many, but none with the success that The Wizarding Universe finally achieved. It even has cheeky LOTR elements. Surely Parker, backed by his Legal Powerhose and the idea that everything would fall into that "those are the similarities of any art book", did not even worry about what would happen ... maybe he did not even actually make the book but did some illustrations and hired ghostwriters. Either way, I think it will all end with Dunn's efforts finishing like everyone that Warner Brothers silenced with fear or money in the case of Harry Potter.
I want to add also, that like the Harry Potter case, the Inktober community possibly survives Jake Parker himself, who like Jo Rowling bites his tail with his own stupidity. The legacy is there, and possibly as a concept it remains present regardless of what its author says or does ... whom is also not so recognized by anything other than Inktober itself (without demeriting his work, but let's accept that point).
I was persuaded by Mr Dunn's video that there's a case to answer, and claiming that it's just a matter of common knowledge and a bit of osmosis is going to sound pretty risible. You see this time and again in calligraphy books (my area) for the very good reason that there are rules and practices which are set in stone, but I honestly can't recall seeing such close parallels between any two publications as Alphonso demonstrated even in that field. What exactly has gone on here, and for that matter to what extent Mr Parker is responsible for the content of his own book, I wouldn't care to speculate - but it'll all have to be ventilated in court by the look of it. Strictly speaking I'm not especially interested in either gentleman's activities and shouldn't have a dog in this fight - but it does offend against the old sense of fair play, rather.
I so want to cover this issue because there are some points being slightly overlooked imo. I’ve bought Jakes books and been a payed subscriber to his school. Being so nice 100% of the time as an online persona has been a great pre-built safety defense mechanism against appearances of negative comments or reviews regardless of truth. No one is THAT nice but people in publishing have stated that if you want to be published then you better have a good clean rep online and they will research and dig. Comments like mine are sure to work against me. I’ll never have a chance with most publishers which fine bc I’ve always been a DIY punk-at-heart who has self-published three music records in the past and can do the same with my future books too. I’m ok with not making it in the bigtime. I’m not the type to be fake and I’m not afraid to admit past mistakes should they become so. That said, onward and upward straightup and through here we go! Jake is a great concept sketch artist and you’ve heard that before. He’s good at color and composition too and you’ve heard that as well. But what you’ve never heard is; “Dude OMG Jake man your brush pen inking skills are so awesome! Beautiful!” and that is because it’s nowhere near true. Inking is his weakest link. The guy is so damn nice that after years of gawd-awful inking no one comments on how obvious it is that he just hacks through it! Even I’m guilty of not answering or reviewing why I quit the online classes.... Too many tutorials with titles claiming to teach stuff like how to do fur, were filled with nonspecific fluff reminiscent of those dreaded three step drawing books publishers sell on impulse-buy racks which we all have encountered and loath. So to keep honest on Jakes git-er-done-quick inking skills it must be said that it is by his own deliberate choice in order to spend efforts elsewhere. As we all must do unless we wish to devote a lifetime perfecting all areas just to finish only a few projects while homeless and hungry. One of Jakes great simple exercises was learning to start and finish the same drawing under various time limits. 5min, 10min, 30min, etc. This is an exercise in learning to forgo details while keeping only what is necessary and can be managed in time to complete the drawing. Anyone learning to draw, take note, this exercise is a must. It doesn’t matter what your drawing skills are. That’s not the importance of the exercise. It’s to learn to finish those drawings. So that’s it. When I saw his book cover with the lettering and the vintage-modern decorative ornamentation, I said wow who did this cover?? The entire book is nothing like Jakes art style or teaching. IMO he just finally caved to the constant pressures of publishers and companies coming to him to exploit inktober. And again IMO he knows inking is not his thing which seems ironic considering he started inktober. But it’s not if you try and remember why he started it. It had nothing to do with learning proper inking or drawing fundamentals! It was the opposite of that! It was to join him in practicing using real ink and FINISHING a drawing! Those were the only rules and that’s why he urged everyone to try even if all they could draw was stick figures as long as you accomplish FINISHING it! Jake teaching how to ink though, is just crazy bc he is not an inker and that inktober was NEVER ABOUT RULES! Suddenly telling how to ink under the banner of inktober makes no sense as it goes against everything he worked to teach us. And in all those years no one has either stated how good his inking was nor marveled at it like one sees and does in a serious inker artist’s video eying the workmanship of beautiful brush strokes by a skilled hand cohabitating with the exquisite Windsor Newton Series Seven 1-3 brush... ahhh the lush brush worth everything you paid big money for... Sorry lost myself there for a sec... Anyhow, Jake’s whole teaching exercise philosophy has been on practicing to get more done and actually finish it. I can through his most reffered to videos and show that this finishing philosophy is present there. Start and finish something. I guess if he yelled it at us and got angry that we’ve seemed to forgotten, maybe he himself wouldn’t have forgotten and assumed it’d be a good idea to rebrand himself as something he has never been. Let this be a lesson to all you and me too, squeaky clean nice guys uploading years of videos yet never ever showing a second of anything but niceness, may not be actually be so nice! They might just be very meticulous in controlling their image. It’s an ugly business of political type! One other super nice guy on youtube long ago with an image as teaching music online comes to my mind and what happened when his long ignored forgotten daughter showed up in the comments of desperate last resort, understandably. Personally it really bugs me when people try to portray themselves so darn nice it’s inhuman! Later everybody! Remember try to stay kool, and should you screw up, try to make it right, that’s what counts most as we are all imperfect beings..... except Jake on youtube HAR HAR ;)
scoobyclub It’s very telling that the handful of hardened Jake-defenders choose to completely deny all points obvious and otherwise, just like Jake made the Trumpist decision to completely publicly deny even the obvious. Keep on’ shillin’ it!
The problem is all the examples from the titles to drawings to the outlines of chapters and so on look like they're directly derivative of Dunn's book. But I agree that we can't just condemn him immediately. That's why I look forward to his book being released where we can all judge for ourselves and make a more conclusive opinion. But so far it doesn't look good for Jakey boy.
Matt Yeah, it doesn’t. I hope that the allegations turn out false once the books are compared and that Alphonso and Jake can find some kind of peace afterward. But we can’t know yet :/ Thank you for watching!
What about the unusual tools list? Those were Dunn's personal preferences and the Inktober book basically had the same list! That's a pretty big coincidence if you ask me. I didn't learn that list in my art classes.
fanime1 I didn’t find them that unusual since I work with ink a lot and have used them all at some point, but I can see how they would seem new to most people. Thanks for watching!
"Making a reactionary conclusion based on a small bit of information is different than responding to an holistic collection of information that may reveal more than 'he good, he bad'." I think you've just summed up exactly why Alphonso was wrong to make his video in the first place.
When I first saw Dunn's video, I brought down the inking books I already own (in addition to his). They are Framed Ink by Marcos Mateu-Mestre, Vols 1 and 2 of Comic Book inking by Gary Martin and others, The DC guide to inking comics by Klaus Janson and The Technical Pen Techniques for Artists by Gary Simmons. And step by step I compared the listed books with Dun's and the screen caps of Parker's book. And in my opinion, aside from a few "common knowledge" things, the layout, design and order of things on the books I own are pretty much different. Meaning that although each book is teaching inking (or rendering) in 2D to simulate a 3D 'reality,' the order of things like shading, outlining, etc are all pretty different. So, Parker's book aside, each of the 6 books I own are Their Own Thing. However when I throw Parker's book in the mix, the balance changes to "one of these things are more like one other" than before. And that more alike thing is Dunn's book. I'm willing to agree with you that maybe Parker went over his creative bank credit limits (really love that metaphor, btw) and was a bit unconsciously cribbing from Dunn. I don't think it was intentional, but still... in a way it shows a lack of awareness of what has come before on Parker's part. So basically I agree with Harry Tesley. For full disclosure, I had no intention of buying Parker's book, even before this whole brouhaha started. I was a member of the VST tutorial site and quit paying for what I concider sub-par "instruction" -- while some of Parker's videos were okay, any not by him were just, again my opinion as a graphics art instructor myself, embarrassing or just too paint-by-numbers. So I entered in this fray with the idea that while Parker is to me, a okay teacher, and that Dunn's work (and the others I listed above) were very well done and thought out on the average. While Parker's instruction style seems to embody the old art instruction joke on how to draw "X" of having figure one be an oval (or other basic shape) and figure two having guide lines drawn and figure three being the final fully drawn or rendered illustration. Clearly having some steps omitted for reasons. So while I do appreciate Dunn's instruction more than Parker's, I tried to be fair and came to the same conclusions as you did in this video. Thought I'd just "show" my work and explain how I came to the conclusions I did.
I have Framed Ink and the DC Guide, but I'll have to check out those others! I think books that are meant to help out beginners in art, or in a specific medium, are more likely to have these introduction sections going through the fundamentals of art plus any specific techniques needed to understand the following pages. Framed Ink is really more about storyboarding and the DC Guide is about DC's methods for visual storytelling, so even though they are about ink, they aren't really about inking, so they assume you know how to draw and are telling you what to do with those skills. The others you mentioned sound by their titles like they might actually be ABOUT inking. I own more advanced, post-learning-drawing books now, which is why, for my video, I had to go to the bookstore to look at ones that were meant more for beginners. I feel like Both Alphonso and Jake's books are in that vein. "Maybe you know how to draw, maybe you don't, but we're here to teach you to ink and want to make sure you know the basics before we throw down some specifics." I admit that several of Alphonso's examples certainly looked suspect, but not all of them. In any case, we can't know until more info comes out! Aah! Thank you for watching and leaving such a thoughtful comment!
Thank you for your tasteful expression on this subject. I have subscribed because of the way you handled this. Again, very tastefully done. I do think that Jake plagiarized Alphonzo book to a very disturbing extent. Jake should go back and do his due diligence and rewrite his book before publication.
Thanks! I’ve seen a few people do frames recently and I like how contained it looks. I don’t know what it is, it feels right to me. I’m taking a course on After Effects so I want to be able to add very subtle animations to it at some point.
I kind of look at it like this... Alphonso saw the first image that looked like his. It didn’t matter that it was an image of techniques that are common...it reminded him of his book. So, he started digging and looking for more similarities. If you look hard enough, you’re going to find it. You’ll start piecing things together to make it fit what you’re looking for. Kind of in the same way a ghost hunter will hear random sounds on an EVP, and think it says something. Now, you heard nothing originally...but they tell you what they heard, and suddenly you hear it too. There wasn’t one thing in Alphonso’s video that made me go AHA! HE’S RIGHT! It was all things that I was like...maybe it’s similar, but I’ve heard that language used a million times about that topic. Or...of course he’s going to mention that in a book about drawing. There’s even the whole...well, obviously an art book is going to have illustrations of things with a description next to them...that isn’t stealing your layout. Yep...those images will look similar because it’s of an actual item you use or specific technique for shading, etc. I wholeheartedly understand that he worked so hard on his book, and he wants to protect that, but I think he jumped the gun.
That could be. It is easy to find things you're looking for. I feel like the people who are the MOST upset at Jake are the ones who already disliked him for the trademark issue or just "he always seemed weird to me" (which is the weakest reason to dislike someone haha). On the other hand, since I do like Jake I'm trying really hard to not be blinded by the positive that I'm looking for, too. Thank you for watching!
@@StudioHannah I agree with you. I’ve actually got zero bias in this as I don’t follow either one of them. Don’t know much about Jake unless someone mentions him in relation to Inktober. I just heard another artist I watch mention what was going on and started looking into it. The more I watch, the more I really don’t see the plagiarism and I’ve seen people saying they took Jake’s courses before Alphonso released his book and these were the same things he taught back then. So...I don’t know.
Is it only an issue when someone profits from it? Like I do drawings of known cartoon characters that are obviously not mine and not based off of others drawings just official artwork, is that ok?
Copying is a good way to learn, but when you take what you've copied and claim it as your own original work or try to sell it, then it is considered stealing. The polite and legally ok thing to do when copying other people's work is to credit the original artist and not try to make money off of what you made. If you are using the likenesses of characters and interpreting them in your own way, then it's the likenesses of the characters that are under copyright even if you drew them in new poses or new situations. The exception is when the work you do falls under "fair use" law, which is when you're using the images for commentary, satire, etc. That's how entertainment programs and a lot of UA-camrs can use short clips from movies or the likenesses of characters without getting sued. This is just a nutshell version but I hope that helps! If you want to read more about creative copyright law, I recommend the Graphic Artist's Guild Handbook of Pricing and Ethical Guidelines.
I've been going back and watching and rewatching videos on this subject,as well as Alphonso's video. I found your video,moloch and also 2 videos by a smaller comic creator Dave Hingley. As well as Ethan's video which I've seen before but never checked out Moloch's video he reccomended. I like that your video as well as the others I mentioned are well spoken and not choosing sides. A friend of mine reccomended your channel a few months ago so am checking your videos out.
@@StudioHannah You're welcome! I'm enjoying the videos I've seen so far. I have a show with a co host where we interview creatives,you were reccomended to me. So doing research and enjoying the vids!
The main issue with this whole mess is Dunn making the accusation of plagiarism without having an actual copy of Parkers book. Without being able to lay both books next to each other and compare them, Dunn only has conjecture and assumptions. Dunn's side-by-side comparisons are not actually side-by-sides. You're seeing a video edited by Dunn that just focuses on what he wants you to see and hear. For it to be an actual comparison, both books need to be physically next to each other. Opened to the exact pages that are supposedly copied and shown fully unedited. Then an honest and real comparison can be made. One accusation people keep repeating is that Parker copied the chapter titles and order. Which is completely false. How do I know? Because unlike everyone else making this claim, I actually have copies of both books. Here is a link showing both books next to each other opened to their table of contents. The naming and order of chapters are not even close. pin.it/5M2JAEj Another accusation is Parker copying the 2, 3 and 6 step value scale. Dunn uses other numbered value scales in his book also. On page 38 he has 2, 3, 6, and 9 step scale shown. Then on pages 70, 71, 72 and 73 he uses 4 step scales. So does Dunn lay claim to the 4 and 9 step scales as well? In the pinterest link both books are opened to their sections covering value scales. The page numbers, layout and illustrations are completely different. Parker's are done in his style and original not direct copies like the accusations claim.
Thanks for the recap. I've always admired both of them. The layout seems so similar though, I think Jake could have pour a little bit of creative juice into this book. Anyhow, I really wish for the happy ending :) P.s. Try to do video editing yourself...it's daunting at the beginning but later you'll be able to manage your own schedule. Love from Italy!
Jib makes Art Moloch is another YouYuber who did a breakdown of this, and he has some helpful visuals showing that the layout is, mostly, different. It’s easier to see that as a graphic designer. I do edit most of my videos myself :) My sister edits some others to help me out when I’m too busy, which is... a lot. I did edit this one. It’s slowly getting easier haha - thank you! And thanks for watching!
It's all is so confusing! I mean, at one hand, if you've ever seen a textbook of any kind, most of them are not all that unique. When I was a student, I had access to books, written by two different profs of mine, with like a lot of the same contents. Both were getting credits and profits just fine. And reasoning was you can change only so much, when it comes to science. So it's no wonder, they are similar. That being said, at the other, I don't see any reason, why they would be as similar, as people claim. I'm a copywriter. I can literally take a couple of generic articles my client wrote and make my own, unique one, based on the information I've learned. And even if I used just one source, you wouldn't be able to tell, which one, without looking at source list provided at the end or something. That's literally what I get paid for! You can do a lot with that skill - explain a complex scientific material with simple words, combine bits and pieces of information making it solid and informative, bring life to Wikipedia-like texts or, on the contrary, make a rant article more official and universal. So, that's literally possible for someone like me to take a random how-to book, open it, and write a different one without end result looking anything like a source (and still making sense!) And I'm self-taught, self-employed, and basically not the best out of the bunch. So... WHY in the world to copy someone's else book, even if you have to base something on it??? Especially, when you are a talented, accomplished specialist in the field yourself, who definitely have at least something to add either way. And if you are rich enough to hire someone from my field... That's impossible to write a very similar book, unless that's what you are going for! So... HOW and WHY???
Yeah, let's be uncomfortable together. Did not come across the whole thing at all, before accidentally stumbling upon this video. I have got a copy of Alphonso's book and I like the videos of both of them. The work of Jake Parker shines most, where he is inking in his very much unique style. I just watched the Dunn Video and yes, there is some fishiness to this whole thing. I would guess that part of the problem is that it's hard for artists, authors and UA-camrs and many other occupations to get a fair monetization for whatever effort they put into their work. There are so many inspiring people out there that do incredible work and most of them can't make a living out of that. Some other people get rich for wearing clothes or talk about the make up they use. For the future, we need to find more creative methods of payment for creatives in common.
So, I've mostly stepped back from this issue to see what information comes out because right now nobody KNOWS anything, we are all making guesses. What we CAN look at though, is patterns of behavior. While I don't think either of them showed malice, the multiple previous controversies around Jake do show carelessness. Now this is forgivable to an extent, but Jake doesn't seem to realize that he is now a Major Player and as such his actions carry so much more weight than smaller creators. I want to participate in inktober, but at this point I honestly don't want to get tangled up in a property whose owner has a history of actions that damage smaller creators regardless of whether or not those actions were intentional.
Understandable. I'm a bit Jake-biased, but even I'm considering not officially participating this year. It feels weird right now. You can still do an Inktober-like challenge and just not use the hashtag! That's what I'll likely do. I want to do something Halloween-themed :) I encourage you to still do a similar challenge, since you're interested in it, and it's really fun and valuable.
@@StudioHannah oh, yeah, that's the plan. I often use Doodlewash for watercolor prompts. I expect I'll use their list for October, it's always a nice community too. I'd encourage others who may feel the same as I do to check them out.
Awesome video! You're so funny and entertaining. Also, I really respect that you're not bashing either one of them. Graciousness and restraint are so rare nowadays. I think the evidence is too damning to chalk it up to it being coincidence and general art knowledge. It's in the words, formatting, and phrasing. I really think that this is probably just a case of bad ghostwriting. My theory is that Jake Parker hired a ghostwriter to write the teaching part of the book. I don't think he would purposefully plagiarize a book that he himself has advertised on instagram. I still think he's ultimately responsible. I hope Dunn does file a lawsuit, but if I'm right, Parker also has the right to sue the heck out of everyone involved in writing and publishing his book.
literally though if it was someone stealing from Jake Parker it would be a different story. strange world. I saw your video about the other situation a while back, I liked that video. I kinda wished Alphonso made the video after the release, but he wanted to stop the sale. I wouldnt have. I would have let people see the books first. But thats not his intention. He didnt like the idea that it was coming out.
That's a good point! When people are stealing Jake's Inktober logo, everyone thinks it's A-ok and in fact, they are entitled to it and Jake attempting to protect his creation is morally wrong. Those same people seem to be perfectly fine with Dunn claiming ownership of inking fundamentals and basic art book layouts. Strange world indeed!
I'm more interested in art and sharing knowledge than in profits and big egos. The fact that someone feels so hurt, because someone else may have spread the same information I had spread myself in the past feels strange to me. So maybe it's about the knowledge itself ... but Alphonso is sharing his knowledge for free on UA-cam. So maybe it's about layout and phrasing ... but to want to forbid the whole world to use communication technics is pretty imperialistic. I mean, Alphonso isn't the CEO of language. I can feel empathy for Alphonsos feelings. But I think this monopolization is inappropriate for a craft like drawing. The whole point for libraries for example is based on the idea that knowledge should be for everyone. That our society turned into something where companies trie to forbid the sharing of information is inherent bad, imho. Because of that I feel very reluctant to take any side here. I won't fight for something here when I am opposed to fighting itself. The world will not be a better place if Alphonso manages to forbid jakes book. And the world will not become a better place if jake sells twice as many books now. But the world will be worse if people start some kind of tribal war on social media. How about this: Everyone who wants to support Alphonso gives Alphonso a couple of dollars. That would be much better for everyone.
Just fyi your editing is muwah good! Ive made videos recently and Im so impressed with your editing/humor. Subscribed! (Sorry not on topic but it really stood out)
Ciro DaCosta Thank you!! I don’t feel that I’m that entertaining until someone else points it out and then I’m a little like *proud of self* for a bit. You have fueled my ego for the day. Many thanks 😆
Maybe it doesn't have to be in this format. Why not do art as you discuss social commentary. I love that stuff. One thing is certain, ppl have a narrative voice. Is that voice Jake's or Alphonso? I can tell my friends apart through email
KIMBERLY PORTER I’ll probably talk about things while doing art in the future, but this felt a bit too serious for that. Maybe for sillier things like Stuart Semple’s Bean Boy thing ehehe It would be easier to see how similar both books were by reading through and hearing that “voice” for sure.
This is the best video about the controversy I have seen for one reason in particular. You re-filmed your reaction after thinking about it for some time. I side with Alphonso on this.
Good thoughts, thanks! Planning my own analysis if I can ever get my hands on the book. On hold by the publisher I understand. But I appreciate your measured response. There is a bit of a typical social media angry mob effect happening it seems. I went through the same emotional rollercoaster as you. I still believe this is, at best, lazy research by Jake, his publisher or both. Was it ghost written? A lot of speculation it was. Seems like it. This doesn't seem creative enough to be Jake's direct writing work. I think he missed an opportunity to give us something uniquely him and his process. I saw enough to see this wasn't it. Completely agree on Alphonso's ability to explain these concepts well. Good stuff!
Thank you for watching! I also wish I could get my hands on both books and do a comparison myself. Of course, depending on how this ends, Jake's book may not end up published at all. We just have to wait and see.
Another youtuber pointed out that Jake doesnt illustrate/teach the style of art in his book, but Alphonso does...every video and in both books. Jakes work appears more animated/anime/digital with less detail and texture, but Alphonso specializes in details and texture. Jakes website is more about the business of art and not basic drawing skills yet his book illustrates basic drawing skills as Alphonso has demonstrated in nearly all his 100+ videos and 2 books. The issue is not the content but the presentation and explanation of it. Seems like old school plagiarism.
I am leaning towards ghost written as he had his own book coming out at the same time they announced this one. I am impartial there are always more than one side to a story, and I know that from first hand experience.
@@12barsoul ü0.üüpp a
The likely scenario is Jake Parker allowed a bunch of publishing company hacks and interns to bang out a book in his name, for his trademark, in order to meet an October 2020 deadline. They appropriated the style and content of Alphonso Dunn's already published tutorial to avoid the work it would have taken to create a well thought out volume highlighting Jake's own style. Jake and the company are paying the karmic and financial price for their disreputable behavior. I'll be drawing this season, but certainly not under Jake's trademark.
It's a really upsetting situation because whatever is the truth, most of the people posting on Twitter and Instagram don't know Jake or Alphonso and yet are making judgments on their characters, saying nasty things about them, forgetting they're normal people with feelings. And this is a complex situation that only Jake, Alphonso and the publishers are going to be able to sort out. What you said was really well thought out, Hannah, thank you.
Thank you for watching! :)
A lot of the hate is speculation... I’ll wait for the facts. In the meantime I’ll go improve my own art skills instead of worrying about it 😂
@@STICKYArt good attitude! I like that! 😁
Yes, it seems the internet has made their swift decision on the matter. I've already seen people doing away with Inktober in response and I mean, that's their right but I wish people would wait until more info comes out. I was one who at first boycotted the challenge too but now reflecting on what we have regarding this situation, I'm going to wait before I decide which author is in the right here. At least if I (or anyone really) is going to boycott someone/something, they should be 100% certain and with all the facts to back up their decision.
@@illegaltuna7755 With social media, it's so easy for people (myself included) to publish their first thoughts on things before truly thinking about them, and really if we do that, we're just adding to the negative noise, and not helping anyone. I genuinely think (and hope) that neither man has knowingly done wrong here, and hopefully the facts will come out and some peace will be found between both men and the art community as a whole.
I searched for pages of ink drawing books and I can tell yes you can find books that has similar wording that has similar structure, simular illustration, but I wasn't able to find a book where every single aspect matched on one page. And I was always able to find something new at another page.
While Jake Parker's book just the same content as Alphonso Dunn's work. Even if it wasn't conscious copy because he had acces to Dunn's book he should had put effort to change his book to make it less identical.
That's the thing that's still kind of getting to me :/
@@StudioHannah @Studio Hannah because i was curious about the Katy Perry Dark horse issue I watched a lot of video about Copyright in this year and they say accessibility has a huge role.
The jury found Katie Parry guilty because she said she never heard the original song and that wasn't true. Even though musicians say the two song are not similar musically.
Even if I give the benefit of the doubt that it was cryptomnesia or an cosmical accident. It is hard to belive There was no point where he was like oh wait, it is very similar to another book that is still on sale and I own and even posted a page of it should I do something to not harm Alphonso Dunn's business?
Okay maybe that didn't happen and he never realised it but then it is a level of incompetence that is harmful to independent authors.
@Mile Dávid This is exactly where I'm currently coming down on this as well. Well said! I've ordered the book to take a closer look. That is if it ever comes out. I understand the publisher has it on hold due to all this... at least for now.
The Mind of Watercolor , you can’t just compare books though. Jake has been teaching this stuff long before Alphonso’s book came out. It’s up for grabs either is plagiarizing, or BOTH are just using long recognized and effective tools to teach, something ALL teachers do. I believe creatives are being destroyed by cancel culture to the point no one is safe. And, I grieve that kind of world. We need our creatives. Like yourself.
@@rainastor4789 I hear you, but the mistake that I see many commenters make is that this is not purely about the techniques taught. It's the totality of how they are presented, organized, illustrated and verbiage used. When several of those points line up at once it's usually a copy whether intended or accidental. Even if you could say Jake was totally within his rights to copy those principles, what I saw was non-creative, "me-too" mediocrity. Not what I would expect from Jake. I'm not saying it's an open and shut case by any means. It will probably never see legal action. This also has NOTHING to do with cancel culture. It's about protecting IP. Copyright law is generally misunderstood in the extreme and that ignorance is what gets many people in trouble. Those laws are there to protect creators. Those who complain against them often have no idea of the hard work that goes into creating something unique only to have it copied. In such cases all of a sudden those laws make sense. Regardless of the law, ethically there is a possible case to make for shoddy, lazy research. There is a lot of rush to judgment on both sides though so, lets see the whole book!
I hope it all gets resolved, BUT many people go back to “he didn’t invent the techniques”, if I’m not mistaken, he never said he did. He is talking about the order and layout mostly, of the way the book is presented. Maybe Jake Parker got a book made for him and he just designed the cover... 🤷🏻♂️
I think there is a logical order to how you would teach drawing that could account for that, BUT you’re right, which is why I’m still hesitant about how I feel about all this.
I'm not simply trying to promote another video here... so if it's not appropriate I'll delete it. But MOLOCH has a video analysing the situation from someone with publishing and design experience and explained his take on the layout and design aspect of the comparison of both books ( at least what's been seen on both books so far).
@@shanghaitatoo I'll look into that, thanks!
If that's the case, Jake is still responsible. If someone else made the book and is going to publish it under the Jake Parker brand, then Jake is obligated to review and approve the content. Alphonso shows in his video that Jake is not ignorant of his work.
Thom Beech please go watch the Moloch video on this. I’m honestly concerned for Alphonso now. The charges are not that clear cut. And the fact that Jake is already being punished for this may come back on Alphonso. If it does, it could be very bad for him, financially and otherwise. 😬
I stand with Alphonso Dunn. Out of my many art books, I have 2 Pen and Ink type books, that both cover a lot of the same material as Alphonso with similar techniques, but they explain their methodology in a way that is all their own. And going through my other art books each artist yet again is describing the same thing but with vastly different language. It would be one thing for 1 or 3 of Jake’s lessons to share similarities with Alphonso’s, but for (what appears to be) 3/4 of his lessons to be lifted straight from Alphonso’s book and simplified, that’s plagiarism. And waiting for Chronicle books to give their opinion is like having cops investigating other cops for murder/ abuse of power charges. Chronicle books has a vested interest in publishing Jake’s book, so I’m not gonna hold my breath.
I think Alphonso said that his own publishers were looking into it, so I'm hoping that both publishers are doing independent investigations that won't be all one-sided. Thank you for watching!
It would be nice if a non biased party could do the investigation - someone not from either publishing company.
Artsy Cantabile - Someone needs to contact YT Legal Eagle
I bought Alphonso Dunn’s book last year, and if I had bought Jake Parker’s new book, I would have been SO disappointed that so much material were the same. And that says a lot about Parker’s book.
@Kim Hansen, that's fair. Most of the books that I own have first chapters that are so basic that I usually skip them and search for the unique teaching style in the rest of the book. Sometimes I find it, sometimes I don't.
I don't think we can say that "so" much material is the same, we've not actually seen much of Jake's book.
@@solarydays Dunn never said he invented crosshatching or the techniques. Just that the layout and lessons were similar, which he's right. Trust me. I'm an art student. I've purposely taken the same classes over with different teachers because I know that each teacher teaches differently. So even though it's the same class, I will learn something new (unless the teacher is really bad or something). Hell, my fiance is a teacher so he can probably explain this better than me. It's the same with books. I have multiple books about drawing, animation, and storyboarding because there's enough of a difference that I will learn something new from each. If there's too much similarities, it's plagarism, plain and simple.
@@solarydays it's not so much the concepts themselves, but the way they're being explained and the visual examples. Yes, the concepts are common, but the way they are being taught is what differentiates art books from each other. To my knowledge, Alphonso didn't say he invented cross hatching or any other techniques that were mentioned, rather the way the techniques were explained is what made the difference. Most people who are saying the layout is similar might mean that the order of the book as a whole instead of one page at a time, although they could simply be reinforcing opinions they agree with and have already seen. I see your point about the layout, since the order of teaching specific techniques would get confusing if it didn't follow the same sequence. However, from what I've seen, the 2 books are uncomfortably similar. Page wise, some points could be boiled down further than what Alphonso's book had, but keeping those "extra" points to explain further made his way of teaching unique. Now, I'm not saying Jake Parker copied or plagiarised Alphinso Dunn's book, buy if I were to write a book to teach people about something I care about, I'd double check the references and inspirations I used to make sure they're not too similar.
We know Parker owns Dunn’s book. It’s impossible to believe that Parker didn’t look at Dunn’s book as he was working on his. Why wouldn’t he look at Dunn’s book? He owns it. He’s making the exact same kind of book. And do you think he’d admit he owns Dunn’s book if there wasn’t proof? Do you think he’d admit to looking at it while making his?
I would be willing to guess that if Parker told the truth (which OBVIOUSLY he’s not going to), he’d admit that he used parts of Dunn’s book as a guide and felt that he changed things enough to make it his.
And I’m not sure that everyone can breathe a big sigh of relief that Parker’s publisher is reviewing the situation. I’d find it hard to believe that the books weren’t already printed. They’re not going to be concerned about any moral questions about plagiarism ($$$$$$). They’re going to be concerned if it’s bad enough that it’s really obvious and if there are any legal issues.
I think Alphonso’s publisher is also looking into it, or at least they really should be. Both publishers should be taking this seriously.
It’s fair to look at what other people have done before while you’re researching for your own creation. The point that would drive me to condemn Jake would be if he purposefully copied versus somehow accidentally ending up with something similar. We can’t know until more information comes out.
Studio Hannah I doubt “the public” is ever really going to know what really happened here. Unless people get to see the book Parker was going to release, we’re never going to know how similar it is to Dunn’s book. If Parker’s book is already printed, they could destroy them and Parker, with the help of the publisher, could redo enough to avoid similarities with Dunn’s book. The extent of the similarities would never be known. How much was changed would never be known. And Parker could go on claiming there was no plagiarism.
If Parker did plagiarize parts of Dunn’s book, he should be begging his publisher to allow him to make changes. It’s his best chance to salvage whatever is left of his reputation.
We don't know if Parker credits or references Dunn in his book, because it's not out yet... He very well may have. But Parker has been actively promoting Dunn's book, which would be a weird thing to do if he plagiarized it. I honestly think it never occurred to Parker that Dunn might see his book as a copy, since those things are talked about so widely in literally every inking book ever made...
The Digital Siren - “we don’t know if Parker credits or references dunn in his book” yeahhh that’s weak.... If Parker were to credit or “reference” Dunn... he would’ve (or should’ve) let Dunn *know* about it in the first place
@@Botandarun crediting of mentioning Dunn doden t make IT legal! So that's hot a way out if that's the case.
I’m in the same spot. I have been a big fan of Jake for years and he has helped me tremendously in my art. The evidence in Alphonsos video is pretty damning but at the same time the whole situation makes no sense to me. Like Jake has been producing and teaching for years and is very aware of his huge following. He has posted Dunn’s work from his book. What doesn’t make any sense is why he would do this and in any way think he could get away with it when he must be aware that Alphonso is aware of him and the art community is aware mostly of both of them. It seems it would’ve been inevitable that he’d get caught. So that only makes me wonder how is it possible that something like this could happen? Unless Jake is truly an idiot, there is no way in my mind that he would think he’d get away with just blatant copy. So I’m not saying it’s not possible but I certainly think there must be some info that we are missing that can explain all of this. For now I’m not jumping on any hate toward either artist because I think that is very unproductive and not fair to either artist.
Yes, I agree. Thank you for watching!
I read in another vid that its possible Jake had hired a team to help him make this book, and they perhaps used it as a reference, leading jake in the direction that this book was going
I dislike how his lawyers are handling inktober being copyright also.
It's simple, Alphonso clearly tried to claim that his book idea was stolen, yet books like that have existed before. It's really dumb and needs to stop.
@@JimmyScribbles You are misunderstanding why he was making that copyrighted. It's to stop people from using his intellectual property in their products, like making inktober branded things and selling them. Don't sit there and say that it's wrong because you as an artist would copyright your work as well and cry about it being used. AKA the AI art issue, so stop being a hypocrite.
Alphonso's video was pretty damning. yeah you can go find the concepts and techniques in a hundred different pen and ink books as far back as you can find them. But the manner in which Jake presents that information is straight up copied from Alphonso. What really galls me is that Jake is apparently thinks no one would notice. He shamelessly promotes "his" book on his IG and Twitter. This tells me that Jake thinks I'm stupid and/or blind.
Thom share the same view as you a lot of people are staying on the fence saying that Alphonso concepts are not his own but the difference is that Alphonso spent time in how he presents the information in his book he did a lot of trial and error and came up with a way to explain things that are digestible. That is the USP of Alphonso Dunn not that he is presenting something that already exist but teaching it in a way that a beginner can digest and put into effective practice.
Jake Parker and I respect him is a man of talent and a teacher and his work and inking Ideas are different in style. Jake talks about his children book and his illustration and draftsmanship is amazing so If Jake Parker is making a book then I would of course I would once again expect the core fundamentals to say the same ( nature of fundamentals duh) but an inktober book with jake parkers style and what I saw from Alphonso's flip through of Jake's book was that he really took Alphonso's book layout and patterns of explanation and exercises and is selling a book .
I look at Alphanso and I see his work in the book when I see Jake's it is a bit disappointing. I am waiting for a statement from Jake about this cause he will have to present his side so that his community and his fans know what is going on because with everything that we have not Looking so good for Jake and the is hard to say that because I am his follower too
“Making a reactionary conclusion based on a small bit of information is different from responding to a holistic collection of information that may reveal more than ‘he good, he bad.’”
Very well articulated, Hannah. I believe that it’s really none of our business (meaning everyone apart from Dunn, Parker, and their respective people involved) to draw conclusions based on the limited scope we have seen. It is up to Dunn and Parker will need to sort this out. I just wish that Dunn had directly contacted Parker before posting it on UA-cam (it’s best to communicate first and directly to the other person involved.)
Jessica Vanderpol Yep. It’s all out here for everyone to see now, though. I really hope there will be a good ending to this but I really don’t know :/ Thank you for watching!
I’ve seen a lot of people bringing up texture samples (and some other art fundamentals exercises) in an attempt to say “hey look Alphonso didn’t create this”, yet they unknowingly just prove alphonso’s point... The more pages of other art books I see the less differences I see between Jake and Alphonso’s wording, layout, listings, sequences, descriptions, etc. Hope this gets sorted out soon enough, I’ll still give Jake the benefit of the doubt because we haven’t seen the whole book yet, but not really digging participating on Inktober this year
The one thing that makes Jake Parker look pretty guilty to me is the fact that he tried to make this book or let someone else put it together and didn't bother to look up "ink drawing" in Amazon ONCE to check in. If Jake Parker did his research, he saw Alphonsos book and should have seen that the formatting etc are a little too similar. If he didn't do his research - how is JP even a professional artist!? Because that's the first thing you do if you come up with an idea for a book - research the topic.
If he hadn't researched the topic at all, any similarities really would have been a 100% accident, though, so I'm not completely sure how that scenario would make him look guilty.
I'm sure he did plenty of research, as well as relying on his own many years of expertise. We do know that he owns or has owned Alphonso's book, for what that's worth, and I know he owns other books on ink and other art topics. He's promoted ones that he likes to his followers before.
The question here is, did he purposefully take that research and use it in a non-transformative, plagiaristic way, or did he make his own book and end up with inadvertent similarities? And, if so, are those similarities at a high enough percentage to warrant being called plagiarism? Since we don't have both books to compare them in more detail, we can't know yet.
@@StudioHannah you're right, of course. But the fact THAT he shared Alphonsos Book before and owns a copy really means (at least in my opinion) that the research already has been done. That would mean it was either on purpose or he just wasn't aware - and at that point he should have done more research, would have found AD again and should have contacted him... You dont write a how-to book without research... And AD has evidence on figuring pretty specific stuff out. You dont come up with that on the fly. And if there's traces of these quite unique ideas in JPs book, credit would be due. And there can't be credit given if you don't contact the artists... One way or another, I am ready to wait on how this unravels. I'm still more suspicious of JP though, but that may be a deeper rootet personal bias. He's just not the kind of person I would trust, even before all of this happened...
JPs statement made me a little furious though, because it seems as if he's really just playing the victim - but how could he proof that he did not AD? That's a hard one. I'm curious and ready to give him the benefit of the doubt STILL. But that's also because of his popularity. And I always felt like JP is kinda relying too much on his community's trust to get out of stuff like this... Which may have lead to AD making public accusations in the first place
(I'm sorry if I worded my points badly, I'm not a native English speaker)
@@ChiliCatCreates You're doing just fine with the English, and thank you for participating in the conversation!
didnt notice her channel is tiny until she point it out, the quality is good I thought she would have more subs. Imma sub
Thank youuuuuu!!
"Character and generosity"
....
Trademarking the Inktober name and have lawyers threaten people who publish sketchbooks using the word Inktober.......
......
I have an older video talking about that situation if you want to see more of my opinion about that. Thanks for watching this one!
The logo is trademarked. Not the word. You can publish a book with Inktober in the title, but you can't use Jake Parker's logo.
@@joeblankenship377 no the word is trademarked.
@@ivan_says_hi no it's not.
inktober.com/trademarkinfo
Go checkout the webpage, it provides all the necessary terms of use for Inktober.
I felt like some images were similar, but I have, like you, seen the same concepts and similar images in various media. I have access to Udemy class that uses lines and strokes explanations (for digital and traditional work) that are similar to Alphonso's book. If Jake Park did plagiarize Alphonso, then shame on him, but from what I can tell, we can't assign blame or guilt to anyone yet.
Thanks for a great video.
And thank you for watching :)
8:17 This is an important point for so many current events these days. It’s sad, but true.
By the way, it is possible to accidentally plagiarize. I learned that the hard way in graduate school. In my defense, there were so few resources for my topic (which was a brand new topic for me), and I memorize information pretty well... I clearly credited my source, but I still made the layout of the information too similar. Thankfully, my professor and the school dean understood that what I had done was completely accidental. I did get a zero for that grade, but my other grades in the class were good enough to keep me at an A for my final grade in the class. I also had to redo the project for no credit, but at least I wasn’t expelled or anything. I was extremely upset about that. I am someone who is very much against cheating and stealing of any kind and I felt like I was a hypocrite. However, I did learn from that incident. I was extra careful with any other papers and projects I did during grad school. I never had that problem before or since that horrible situation.
Erin Last Name Redacted Yeah, I remember doing several designs in college where people were like “this reminds me of XYZ” and I realized how close my design was. I basically redesigned the Firefox logo without realizing it, for instance. This is why peer review is really helpful, because I’d miss something like that without other people’s input.
Thanks for watching!
This was a brave, balanced, mature and well done video. Thank-you for being an adult in the room. It's heartening to hear you say this, especially in the face of of all the bad and negativity currently out there. I'm subscribing. I can't wait to see more of your work in the future!
I agree. All of this. I feel like the writing on the concepts would be where you can draw clear lines of theft, in my opinion. We can't really know until we can see it all. It is definitely a tough one. Emotionally charged too... which I have to assume is partly due to our collective worlds being stressed. I'm not really invested in one or the other, but I do love the communities they share so I hope everyone can keep it together in that respect. Bright side is that I found your channel!
Regardless of what happens between Alphonso and Jake, I do hope that the online anger doesn't divide the arts community for too long. Thank you for watching!
I feel like art teachers all use incredibly similar examples, samples and styles in part because beginners learn the same tools because art begins with those tools. From there the styles, information and samples are incredibly different just in the small samples that we can see. I'm as torn on this as you are and only wish now that I'd waited for Jake's book and didn't already own Alphonso's book because I feel smudged (not in the new age way) by this whole thing. I'm glad to see you're also waiting to see what's next. :D
There is nothing flaky about waiting until you have all the facts to draw a conclusion. That's called being smart. Thank you for this video.
Yeah but we live in a society that attacks people for their political views and they get completely cancelled for no reason, so
Why didn’t Jake just recommend Alphonsos book, and refer to it, instead of putting out such a similar book and making money from it? Maybe Jake could put out another book on drawing covering other aspects, maybe aspects that are unique to his own style of working........hmmmm?
Really, he’s just put out a book that competes in the market......not too cool to do to a fellow artist, especially one who is an Inktober participant.
We know some of the pages have some similarities, but we haven't seen the vast majority of Jake's book. Until we do, we don't know what else he talked about and what unique things he had to say. Thanks for watching!
It doesn't mater if he plagiarized 2 or 200 pages, it's still plagiarism.
He actually did... On Instagram. It's actually how he got caught. Lol.
This is the 1st I'm hearing about this "controversy" and I rarely comment on peoples content , but I was so glad to see you didn't go with your 1st reaction video. I'm sure your dog is too 🤣.
You hit the nail on the head when you point out that these comparisons to elements in both books are of common knowledge. I was given a book on pottery techniques, which was produced in the 70s when I was in Uni and every other book I've picked up, bought or been given on the subject since has shown those techniques in a near identical way, I can go on Pinterest and find the same stuff for free. You'd be hard pressed to find a book or youtube video that explores these common techniques in a new and unique way. What's important and stands these books apart is the subject matter being explored, the way they interpretated it and the artwork they've produced, which at the heart of it, is the only reason why people buy more than one of this type of book.
Thank you for taking the time to reflect before posting & giving a balanced view on the issue and not making a hyperbolic reactionary video, which we see too often from other content providers.
Ps. don't worry about how often you post, personally I'd rather see the great work you produce and a video every so often, than be bombarded with content and see your art work and passion suffer for it, its about quality not quantity 😉
try also to Google "is the mathods are an object of copyright" . Thank You
Thank you for the thoughtful response, and for watching!
@@StudioHannah thank you. What me mostly shocked in this situation, how easy people start to punish and accusing some one.
How much people from 200k viewers has check definition of "plagiarism" or Fair Use doctrine in Copyright law? Before attack. But it's just a 2(two) or 3(three) pages of text.
Awful situation.
“You insult me, you insult my dog” 😂
yup I hit that follow button after that
Shelby BlissFix If you find that funny, you should check out UA-camr Ethan Becker ;)
I'm kind of like you on this. I felt the same in that I've personally seen so many similar books over the years and done almost these exact exercises in my middle and high school art classes. It doesn't seem to me like Jake Parker plagiarized Alphonso Dunn's book, however they are similar and I can also understand where the suspicion comes from. I am seeing a lot of artists on instagram falling into that "cancel culture" mindset and making announcements that nobody should support or take part in inktober anymore. That doesn't sit right with me. I don't love Jake Parker (although I appreciate all the content he's put out) but I do love inktober and I don't want to leave it behind.
So in a nutshell, I am leaning towards not plagiarism but am totally open to multiple perspectives on this and if anyone was genuinely wronged in this situation of course I hope that it all gets sorted out in the best way possible.
P.S. You are NOT the worst art youtuber ever, I claim that status and you cannot steal it!! lol, jk but not really.
It’s all about the information available, and the info not available. I don’t like cancel culture though. People hip in bandwagons so fast. Thank you for watching!!
Yeah, the internet has adopted the mindset “Guilty until proven innocent” it makes me sick
I loved it when you said, 'I am still waiting to see more? Both Jake and Alphonso have been loved and adored by the art community for years, and they both have been very generous with their teachings in art. They work very differently and the community seems to have decided that jake and his team have stolen from Alphonso's hard work. If this is the case, Jake needs to be responsible and contact Alphonso and make a collaboration with him so we again can have peace in the art community. We want both to stay! But it all depends on Jake and Alphonso! So we are still waiting to hear more from them!
Exactly! :)
When I ventured into this mess about our two beloved artists clashing together ⚡🔥😢 I saw your video and I fell in love. Thumbs up and subscribed 🤗
@@StudioHannah Yes, exactly! I am holding my breath in a painful suspension ;)
So, I am not in "this" Art Community at all but as a 3D Artist since 1998, I think its a little bit..mimimi. Why. See, when I want to learn something on a particular topic for game design, I tend to watch 10-15 videos/tutorials or written things covering the same topic over and over, because every artist who explains the topic is doing it similar - but each have several additions on their own while the content sometimes is 80% the same. And some people love others work, use this as a base in their tutorials and so on. When is something really just copy and paste for getting some money out of it. One third, one half, two third? Lets move to C++, Java and Co. There, its even more difficult to say when everybody is taking the Wumpus problem as an example for basic AI programming and that Wumpus from one book is looking nearly 1:1 like the one in the other book.. what now? Overall, Peter Han was right with his statement that he would have contacted Jake in private first and not taking the cancel-culture-smelling-social-media-war-zone route. Well.. good press for Mister Dunn though - free advertisement. And thank you Hannah for posting the Recap, interesting topic.
I stand right now with the facts. I'm sitting with a lean to Parker, but I find your explanation the closest to where I sit on the speculative topic. I think Parker unconsciously pulled stuff from what he'd seen in other books...but I also think Dunn might not understand the consequences of making a public "call out" video the way that he did (especially without taking a moment to step back and think before posting an emotionally charged video). I hope the YT art community can walk the line rather than taking a HARD-side when we just don't know enough to do anything but speculate.
I’m like you. Not enough information. This is sad, because it’s so polarizing. We’re supposed to have a reprieve from these trying times when we’re occupying the art world. I’ve got an open mind about this, and nobody wins.
He took drawings form the book. Literally.
I am sure hat more than 75% percent of people just watched alphonso's video and BLAMING JAKE PARKER RANDOMLY without seeng other half of pictur that what the other artist has to say and those are the people who are most likely haven't gone through both books.
It would have been hard to go through both books since Jake's wasn't yet released at the time of these videos coming out, and now it's no longer being published because of this accusation. It's a shame. I was still able to get my hands on one, and I do think they're different enough for Alphonso not to have worried. I likely won't be making a video about the comparisons because it feels kind of scummy for some reason, and I trust my gut feelings. It's interesting having both books side-by-side on the shelf, though.
@@StudioHannah well some people still received the book. Someone shared a few pages comparing the two books (Alphonso's one and the one from Jake), which you can see here:
pin(dot)it/4p2Dc4j
By these pages, you can see that both the layout and the drawings are very different.
Alphonso also lied about the concepts being made by him.
There's tons and tons of ink related books released before Dunn's book that talk about the exact same thing in a similar way. For example, Rendering in Pen and Ink by Arthur L Gulptill.
So if Jake plagiarized, Alphonso also did the same thing.
Another detail is that Jake Parker at least mentioned his inspirations for his book...and Alphonso Dunn was one of those people:
i.pinimg.com/originals/7f/a9/e7/7fa9e77127155c7a5c8aee3bdb69db58.jpg
@@daftcruz here is a small list of books that cover some or all of the same things that are in Dunn's book. They have similar or same verbiage , chapter order, and illustration examples.
Drawing with pen and ink by Arthur L. Guptil published 1930
How to draw in Pen and Ink by Susan Meyer and Martim Avillez published in 1985
Pen and pencil techniques by Harry Bergman published 1989
Drawing pencil techniques by David Lewis published 1984
The Art and Technique of pen drawing
by G. Montague Ellwood published in 1927, reissued 2003
Drawing in pen and ink by Claudia Nice published in 1997
Creative pen and ink techniques by Ian Sidaway published in 2001
Pen and Ink Techniques by Paulette Fedard published in 1992.
Complete book of drawing and painting by Mike Chaplin published 2004.
Dynamic bible by Peter Han 2016
"What has been will be again,
what has been done will be done again;
there is nothing new under the sun."
This is absolutely true of artists, and has been the case for hundreds of thousands of years. We all stand on the shoulders of those who have come before.
Now the rub, and for some this is going to be like coarse sand paper on skin. There is nothing new under the sun makes plagiarism a much harder thing than it would be with an academic subject like chemistry... Mr. Dunn is a fantastic artist. I have become an appreciator of his work. That being said, I have not seen anything in Jake's work or Mr. Dunn's work that I did not already receive in high school. Thank you Mrs. Thompson. One uses spheres. One uses cubes. Heaven help us all if I create a how do draw book with pyramids are they going to come after me as well?... I am feeling as though some of us have spent too much time inside. Let's all go take a walk.
I've just started getting into pen and ink drawing and have been getting into Alphono's videos because he's quite highly regarded. I've got his book coming from Amazon so looking forward to reading. I've seen some of Jake Parker's stuff and he also seems like an excellent teacher.
I've only been really drawing for about a year now so a lot less experienced than most people here, don't have many art books and a lot less knowledge on plagiarism and intellectual property so I've really got no opinion on all this other than it's extremely fascinating. I am a bit shocked that Alphonso did a UA-cam video attacking Jake for the plagiarism. Wouldn't it have just been better to leave to the solicitors?
I have an issue with the formatting looking super similar. No one owns a teaching concept, but how it is presented on a page looks too close to me. Doesn't mean it's straight up plagiarism, but it almost makes it not worth buying if I could get the same layout already done by someone else.
True. Then I guess it would be up to the content itself, and what proportion of it was different/worth owning. If 10 pages were, say, nearly exactly the same, but 90 pages were totally different, I would consider the added content still worth it. If the books were 80% the same, then it probably wouldn't be.
Anytime someone creates a book or even just an product of any sorts, they should do thorough research to avoid plagiarism... That's the main reason why school drills this in our heads.
heyimgreen We have to make our best efforts for sure, but it would be pretty hard to thoroughly check every art book that existed. At the end of the day it is still fallible humans doing the checking, so there is a wide margin for error. The best way to avoid plagiarism would be just to not plagiarize. Thank you for watching!
What you shared about your emotional journey with this is familiar to me too. I think that's why people have reacted the way they have. Alphonso told the story well and we were right there feeling his feelings.
But watching the flip through a second time with the sound off, I was surprised how few examples there really were and how different the page layouts were and how much of Jake's book is flipped past and how Alphonso is scrolling up and down his book to find the comparisons. The idea that the books are in the same order or have the same layout is really not standing up.
There are phrases that are the same or similar and there are a few illustrations with a similar idea. But we know Jake owns and likes and recommends Alphonso's book, so he could have either subconsciously drawn on that, or he might have consciously been inspired by it and given Alphonso credit.
I don't think the evidence is strong enough to shout Plagerism to a 600k+ audience. This is someone's livelihood and Alphonso hasn't even seen the whole book or gone down the usual channels for a copyright claim. Instead his supporters have potentially damaged the book sales, delayed or prevented publication.
If this turns out that Jake has done nothing wrong then Alphonso has made a huge mistake and is open to claims of defamation from Jake, and loss of earnings from him and the publisher etc. It's a complete mess.
I can understand putting up the video in anger, but not leaving it up with that title and thumbnail once he's seen the reaction of his fans. He's financially benefiting from people buying his book and cancelling Jake's.
You'd want to be absolutely certain that you were right before leaving that to stand - and he hasn't even seen the rest of the book. I'd want legal advice about the potential infringement and any defamation I might be liable for acting so rashly.
He was obviously hurting in the video. But this will be gutting for Jake too.
My only real issue with Jake trademarking Inktober was the lack of communication with the people who would be affected by it. Same thing here. Alphonso really should have communicated directly with Jake or through lawyers since Jake and he are the ones involved. Good communication skills can fix a lot of problems before they really start.
I like your video. I feel the same way. Minus the initial anger at Jake. When I was watching alphonsos video I was thinking, “wow, I need that book” and then I was thinking, “wait did he just claim to invent gradations, and light sourcing and practicing on cubes and spheres?” It almost seems like he learned all of it on his own. And if he did, that’s pretty impressive, but he needs to come out of the bubble and realize he has discovered things that have been discovered long ago by lots of other people. The mad part came when I started to see the virtual pitchfork mob that just went, beauty and the beast style, after Jake. Not cool. This is something that should be handled professionally and cautiously. If Jake is in the wrong, let the publishers pull his book and the lawyers have him issue a public apology. If Alphonso is wrong, there could have been a relationship started there that would have been beneficial to the whole art community, but now he’ll just be guilty of slander and potentially other things too. There’s no way to mop up this mess now. The cancel culture of the internet is just horrifying.
Cancel culture really is a beast. Thank you for watching!
You people are something else. You want to believe so hard that Jake is not a snake. Alphonso went into so much detail explaining why he thinks his book was plagiarized and your conclusion is that he's claiming he invented gradations on cubes and circles? Come on, man!
The layout of the book and the structure of chapters is blatantly copied, of course the concepts are comon knowledge, but Parker presented them in the same order and manner.
@@morza7154 I recommend you watch Moloch's video on the subject. He breaks down the layout of the books and the order/structure, and under scrutiny and a non-emotional analysis they actually seem to be incredibly different: ua-cam.com/video/GDNsHVDHfnk/v-deo.html&lc
D N it is not blind loyalty. There is really not much of a case here. If you watch Molochs video about it, he explains it very well. Most people don’t know what they’re talking about in regards to layouts and things. And moloch is not much of a fan of Jake Parker. I’m honestly pretty worried about Alphonso, because if the case gets dropped, this could backfire on him in a huge way. There might be case for financial loss and defamation of character. He could be in a pretty crappy situation fairly soon just because of how quickly his fans took to social media to tear Jake limb from limb over this. 😬 I think if people want to support Alphonso, they need to buy his books - which look excellent! And then hang tight till things are verified.
Tbh the similarities are probly because art basics are learned from masters. Unless they have there own techniques to teach it’s all borrowed info...
When you said, "You insult me, you insult my dog.." , it kinda reminds me of Mushu's "Dishonor on your family, dishonor on your cow!" 😂😂😂 Anyway, I love your levelheaded perspective about this situation. I very much understand that you are upset not just on the controversy, but how the hell did this controversy even exist in the first place. *Joins you in your uncomfortable seat*
Hahaha, that bit was referencing what Ethan Becker does in a lot of his art videos. He's a really sarcastic, funny, and talented art UA-camr, you should look him up! *it ok we can uncomfort together*
What convinced me was around minute 10/11 in Alphonsos video. I don't think any other explanation than blind copying could lead to such a mistake.
With the "Five Applications" section?
@@StudioHannah yes exactly. Unless this is a common abstraction (I own multiple older drawing books, and they don't have it), this points to someone scanning over the page and excerpting the most striking sections.
J. T. That was actually one of the points that I found to be weaker, actually. Both books have a good breakdown of simple ways to dissect what you’re drawing, but nothing I hadn’t seen before. I actually thought Jakes visual examples were an improvement for people who might be less familiar with the terminology.
The two spots that actually made me do a double take on the similarities were the choice of textures used that I showed in my video, and one spread with similar headings. That’s enough to make me go “huh,” but that’s about it.
@@StudioHannah interesting how different people can see this... I found the things Alphonso himself and others pointed out very straightforward and was quick to agree it looks like a copy, but many others seem to believe the opposite just as easily. Maybe we're led by our own bias more than we know.
Parker and Dunn are both taking about the 5 main skills or basics to drawing. They are just applying them to drawing with ink. If you google "the 5 main skills of drawing". Different artists use slightly different terms but all have the same meaning. Some call it the 5 foundation skills of observation as well
Layout and techniques are one thing, but the language and teaching style are what would make this plagiarism or not to me. Ive gone through numerous art classes, no teacher is the same.
I would say that I initially took Alphonso’s side, and I cancelled my SVS subscription for the time being. The reason is that if Alphonso is right, I don’t want to support Jake. If Alphonso is mistaken or Jake is right, I can apologize for it and rejoin SVS. At present I’m doing my best to not support/condemn either of them any more than I have so far. :/
Korudo That seems like a good way to stay neutral. I don’t think you’d need to apologize for it though :) It’s your decision where your own money goes and if you aren’t comfortable with spending it somewhere then no explanation is needed. Thanks for watching!!
I just want to say that none of us here are judges and no one made us the ruler of art society and who are we to say that one is right and the other is wrong or atleast you will withhold your judgement until all the information is available. think of it as your self if your were being pressured by a group of people who are not qualified enough to make the decision and just giving their judgement after seeing only one side of picture
I don’t have time to read comments so I apologize if this has already been said. Jake has been teaching a long time. Much of his material I assume has been part of his teaching for years. Jake Parker would not plagiarize work in a community where it would be noticed. I just don’t think this is as simple as people assume. He’s deep and seems helpful and honest. I’ve also enjoyed Alphonso’s material. I just hate cancel culture. I read a comment saying “Jake Parker is done.” Really? I call bs. Cancel culture is removing valuable creatives from the world. Who will be next? Who will be left? What a tired boring world everyone is striving for.
Rain A’Stor I’ve seen some pretty wild conjecture about Jake that have nothing to even do with this issue. When people want to be mad they want to search for any reasons at all to be mad, even if it means actually making things up. It’s insane. Thanks for watching!
Yeah I know. His career has really taken a hit from this whether he did something wrong or not
phoenix yip exactly. It’s an ache. He’s been teaching for years. Much longer than Alphonso’s book has been out. We don’t know who copied whom. These are techniques that have been around a hundred years or more. Who really “owns” them? They are both great artists and teachers but the techniques are not new or revolutionary. There is a growing voice in the world that takes joy from destruction and pain instead of creativity and community. If we let that voice win.... picture the world that will be left. Nothing but concrete and pools of blood. I’m not a fan of that. Every time an artist goes away we all lose.
@@rainastor4789 yeah, it seems the culture with the internet these days is “Guilty until proven innocent” and we still will hate you
I own Mr. Dunn's 2 pen and ink book and spent quite a substantial time copying his hatching and texture demos (and also did take notes about practical advices from his paragraphs. I also took Jake Parker's pen & ink class on SVS (site shared with Will Terry) and most of the shading and texture hatching techniques he now shares with Alfonso (in the new Inktober book) were NEVER discussed in the video lesson of his class!!!! (as of last year when I had the SVS subscription), unless he learned them after reading Mr. Dunn's book. And most shameful to m , Jake seemed to have also borrowed Alfonso's words and syntax about how to vary and improve hatching techniques. I hope they both talk it out: we love them both as fans and students. Thank you for your time.
I think the thing that strikes me is Jake parker has unique style and the book doesn't show that..... how much of it references inktober? From what I understand very little... it's about inking yes but that title i would expect more about how to apply it to inktober or why inktober all year round?
That is a good point about the style. I did see, I think in the flip-through that Jake did, that he talks about the prompts and more specifically Inktober stuff. I wish I had both books in question side-by-side so I could compare them but we only have so much to go on.
This is exactly the right response to a situation like this. We always need to wait for all the facts. How can anyone even make a definitive decision without even hearing a response to the accusations? Let's wait and see.
Excellent video! What ever became of this? Any new information ever come out?
There were a ton of similarities between the books (based on Dunn's video) however, it was difficult to tell how exactly the information was laid out and displayed in the books. From what I could tell, there was a lot of jumping around to random pages in an attempt to share similarities, but it was difficult to see how similarly the information was conveyed with all the jumping around. I also really would be curious to see if there was a "further study" or "references" page in Jake Parker's book. (basically: did he cite?)
There are 2 bits about this whole thing that sit poorly with me:
1) Jake Parker's response...aka: "my lawyers advised me not to say anything" is such a disheartening response.
and
2) Alphonso Dunn's video. This is such a huge allegation to make, especially before the book is even published. Releasing a video publicly, right at the time that Jake's book was starting to take pre-orders, helped boost his own book's sales while also seriously damaging Jake's career. (2020/2021 inktobers were a shadow of the former years, due to many people boycotting.) Since the book was never released, it all just comes down to "he said this but he said that..."
I really wish he would have waited till the book came out, and if it was plagiarized, published the most damning video he could, instead. Then we could have all seen for ourselves, unfortunately, now we're all just left wondering.
The only updates I ever heard were that Jake’s book got pulled from sales because the publishers weren’t willing to deal with the allegations. Whether that means they believed it was plagiarism or whether they were just not up for spending the time and funds figuring it out, I don’t know. I did accidentally get my copy of Jake’s book from an early shipment Amazon made, and I have Alphonso’s book as well. A cursory flip through them made me believe the allegations were unfair as there’s a lot more content that’s different than that’s similar, but I haven’t bothered doing a deep dive. I don’t know that I’d make a video about it even if I did since I’m not trying the a drama channel and I don’t want either men involved to have to rehash this again, but who knows? Maybe it’ll be relevant.
Alphonso was actually referenced and his books were recommended in Jake’s book. It’s sad that Jake obviously had respect for Alphonso and that Alphonso didn’t go to him first in all this :/ Just a disheartening situation all around.
Thanks for watching btw!! I appreciate it!!
Dunn’s video was made 2 weeks ago. Parker’s publisher was informed almost immediately. They have Parker’s book and could have gotten Dunn’s book immediately. If this was a clear cut case of no plagiarism, it wouldn’t take long to determine it. They have both of the damn books. They’ve said nothing. Their silence is deafening.
Thanks for a nice balanced video. I work in television, often with copyright and trademark issues and I wouldn't want to form an opinion until I had both books side by side. We can only wait and see how this will all fall out.
"We can all be uncomfortable together". yep :(
Here, have some hot tea and a blanket. They help.
But, didn't Leonardo di Vinci and the Greeks draw all this first? Who plagairized who?
I love your intro! also thanks for talking about the inktober controversy it's crazy that people want to push it under the rug
Similarities? Sure. Plagiarism? Doubtful. Instead of jumping to conclusions, I'll just wait and see what Jake Parker has to say, beyond what he already said on Instagram. Meanwhile, I don't understand why people are accusing him of trying to make money off other people's artwork. He trademarked the Inktober logo that he designed. He clearly says on his website that you can use the word Inktober, just not the logo.
I've seen a lot of people misunderstanding what a trademark even does, and I feel like it's because a lot of people are just kind of young and/or haven't studied copyright law. Can't blame people too much for that, but I do wish they'd do some more research before making claims.
I am just confused I was seeing that there was controversy around inktober but I had no idea about this.. thank you for explaining in a fairly neutral way. I hope this situation gets solved quickly..
So do I. Thank you for watching!
Great video!
I’m not currently on either side right now, and seeing the very heated emotional responses on either side of the argument is causing me anxiety.
I watched Alfonsos video, but I’m not convinced that he’s right. I believe he believes he’s right, but without seeing the actual book, know one can know for sure.
One point in particular, about the pens drawn and described, is a feature I’ve seen in almost every art book aimed at beginners. An example of this is in Frank Logan’s book Pen and Ink Techniques, which I believe was published over a decade ago.
As for the actual order in which the ideas are laid out, we don’t know that, because Alfonsos video shows him scrolling back and forth a great deal.
So I’m waiting until I have more information before I can actually make my verdict. I’m not prepared to pick up a pitchfork and end either persons lively hood based on the current evidence presented.
sweetshelly739 I agree. Until the end of this, try to step away from the fire being thrown online and take some deep breaths when it gets to you. It’s poking at my anxiety, too! But ultimately we can’t control the situation, only how we react to it. Thank you for watching!
These are all basic techniques taught in drawing 1... like in the first week. Neither of them invented these. They both look like good books but some of the terms in Alphonso’s book isn’t the terms that are used in college.
Yeah. I understand Alphonso’s concern about how similarly worded the books are, but there are only so many ways that you can say common art terms, and so many books include them to help the newbs who may be reading them. The difference between a good and meh teacher is being able to explain those concepts WELL, but the concepts themselves are pretty universal.
@@StudioHannah I think, before starting mass bullying of Jake, Alphonso was should taking to lowsuits. Google "are a methods an object of copyright".
bad situation.
in my sketchbook I found a 9 eggs from Alphonso's "9 way to hatching" , but I definitely know, that those 9 eggs and hatching I did from old book about pencil drawing. And I don't remember an author, sorry.
This hand in Your video, I saw that before, for sure. Some kind of "Michelangelo" style and "studying" old masters, may be also was in pencil.
Those cubes and lights on planes - I think it already should be in 'public domain', this drawing and explanation are old like world. May be it was in book for architects, but years ago.
Alphonso did a good job to collect it in one book, but...
For me, when Alphonso said "Jake says feathering, but I say varying the line weight, that's the same thing! " it really raised a red flag.these are two different phrases describing the same technique, so you can't argue the words used here are the same. But if you're gonna base the accusation on this sort of thing, then how could the accusation of " the similarities are in the wording, not that anyone is accusing the stealing of techniques" stand? This kind of red flag really leads me to question that maybe Alphonso is dismissing or simply not seeing alot of the differences in the books because he was very set on looking for similarities, and any differences he sees just becomes similarities in disguise.
P. I had the exact thought at that too. That’s the moment when Alphonso really started to sound like he thought he invented all this stuff.
I saw the clip of you in the shades and holding your dog and I couldn't subscribe fast enough. Great video 💜💜💜💜
I'm confused why some people are feeling hung up about potentially not taking part in Inktober? In my ignorance, I assumed we can still draw and ink for 30 days during the month of October without slapping the inktober label on it? Is it not the same practice with almost the same benefits without the popular branding?
Good thoughts. I think some people just want to totally separate themselves from anything to do with Jake at this point. Some people are still "doing Inktober" but under a different name. I've seen #artober going around. Thank you for watching! (Also headcanon you are the real Ahsoka Tano, nobody can convince me otherwise, sorry about all that stuff with the Jedi, that sucks).
@Octavio Marín that is exactly what I'm saying (and encouraging) tho. The way how some people make it sound, it's as if if you DONT take part in inktober, then you are not allowed to do any ink drawings relating to prompt lists within the month of October what-so-ever! Which is ridiculous. Nothing is stopping you from doing the exact same thing you have done for the last few October's, the only thing different is "inktober" wont be amongst your hashtags. I fully encourage people to continue to do the art they love to do, when they love to do it.
Artist drama be damned.
I had a similar stream of feelings and reactions. I was close to posting and sharing a bunch of posts shooting down Jake Parker. But I took a step back because I want to understand more of the situation. Thanks for posting this video to give an objective viewpoint to add to the information.
Thank you for watching!
It's for the courts to decide - not youtube - not the viewers. Speculation on everyone's part and bottom line, both parties will lose.
I just love the way you explain these controversies!
Thanks :) I did my best!
I honestly don’t think we can condemn anyone until more information comes out. The only thing we do know is that Dunn has seriously damagaed Jakes career and book launch whether he has done something or not. I do think Dunn honestly does think Jake stole his book. I hope it’s not true, but we can’t really know for sure yet.
Yep. Thanks for watching!
BS. There were hundreds of art books that look just like Alfonso’s years before so you might as well accuse him of plagiarizing. This is so ridiculous.
There was another example that Alphonso posted on his UA-cam channel (under “Community”) which compares these two consecutive section titles: “Seeing Value” and “Even Value”. He claims Jake ripped him off, but those exact section titles were published on the website of an art instructor named John Morfis. The particular page was published June 2014, over a year prior to the publication of Alphonso’s book. I already let John know about it.
Here’s the page: helloartsy.com/value/
I saw that added example on Alphonso's page. The addition of John's page is interesting. I think Alphonso is genuinely worried about these similarities, but to your point, other artists have said similar things in a similar order. It's worth looking into, but not automatically condemning.
Studio Hannah Absolutely. John mentioned that he thought he had created his titles after adapting some ideas he’d seen in watercolor. I think this goes back to two points that you and some other UA-camrs have made: there are only so many orders/orgs to plan out fundamental teachings, and there are a finite number of accurate ways to convey an idea in any language. You know, in biology there’s this term “convergent evolution”, where a trait is developed by separate species not because of a shared gene, but because of a similar circumstance and environments. You also made a great point about the “creativity bank”. I think it’s impossible for artists to be 100% certain if they’ve never seen an idea done which has just occurred to them.
Thanks, this is 1/5th of the length of Dunn's video
You know, when I first heard of this, I was on Alphonso's side and was absolutely outraged at Jake Parker. And although I'm still leaning towards Alphonso's claims, I have changed my mind a bit and am more open to a possible explanation of why the books seem eerily similar to each other. I do wonder why Alphonso never contacted Jake privately about this matter though (if he did so at all). I feel bad that I didn't analyze the situation carefully before making a firm stance on the issue, especially because the book hadn't been released yet and we don't know the extent of the similarities and I don't know if we ever will. But thanks for the video, I liked how you handled both sides of the situation :)
Thank you for watching!
I think I feel exactly the same, I can't take a side, still...it does look suspicious but I don't feel like I have the right to conclude anything. it just makes me sad how easily most people jump into conclusions and how eager they are to ruin someone's career...no compassion at all. 😔
Exactly. And, I mean, if it's found that Jake is guilty then dang, I'll be one of the angriest and most betrayed of the crowd. But until we have more info I'm not personally comfortable making that call. Same with a lot of other "cancel" issues. People have been found innocent before, and all that stress and pain brought on by cancel culture can't be taken back.
Probably his publisher’s design and editing team did it. Period. End of story. From experience.
Dunn should've consulted a lawyer first to see if he had a legit legal case instead of ranting on UA-cam
Alphonso is delusional, he has no case against Jake, and the fact that people just chose to believe him and take his side is maddening.
I am not a fan of Jake's by the way, I know nothing about him other than being aware of inktober. I saw Alphonso's video, and that is all. The books are nowhere similar enough to qualify as plagiarism.
Okay I don’t know about this situation. This year has been.... there’s no pacific word for it right now 😅😩😔
With all of these conspiracies, although I don’t really like to pick on sides, but as of now, I am standing with Alphonso Dunn. Through Dunn’s video, it is totally a HEAVY EVIDENCE that all of the flow of information, the order, the samples are strangely similar. The only thing that’s different is the information about the challenge, a brief history of ink, and Jake’s challenge (through the flip through). Jake’s statement in social media saying that: I didn’t plagiarized anything - is NOT very convincing. If he wants the statement to be true, he has to show evidences to defend himself (which I hope he will do that for his own good and reputation). JP could have avoided this mess IF he writes his own method and teaches the same concept and method in his own way. I’ve seen his site, he has recommendations and teaching classes, so why wouldn’t he used that? Think about it, he already has the contents, but... he decided to copy entire book.
As of now, all the blames are towards JP, and Deviantart decides to not hold the Inktober Awards due to this conspiracy. Don’t forget about that past incident where JP wanna trademark Inktober, after years of having it free roaming the internet. Slowly, the challenge that starts up as an artistic fun challenge turns into monetizing for self-needs.
Jake would be unwise to defend himself publicly at this point at the advice of his lawyers (there are a lot of weird law rules, probably smart to listen to them), so I can't fault him for that. That said, it's fair to be on Alphonso's side with this considering the current info that we have. I get it :)
I made a video about my thoughts on the trademark issue from December in case you want to hear my thoughts on that. Thanks for watching!
I like both artists. I bought Alphonso book. The concepts are of course obvious. Alphonso is a professional. He knows difference. I take classes from an artist known as Kesh. He teaches the exact same concepts. The difference is he credits his sources and his approach is so uniquely his own there's no question that it's not original. Inasmuch as an original can be in this case.
I know who Kesh is! He's cool. He weighed in on this controversy as well ua-cam.com/video/HdCffP8BBg8/v-deo.html Unless there's a different Kesh. Kesh's everywhere!
Thanks for watching.
I'm sure it's a JK Rowling-Harry Potter type situation. Parker for sure took Dunn's book as a base and stuffed it into a more dynamic, creative, attractive and commercial format. Especially something more digestible for the audiences.
Jo Rowling made a cocktail of Larry Potter and the Muggles, Chronicles of Earthsea, Chronicles of Spiderwick, and "Books of Magic" by Neil Gaiman. Great materials, endearing to many, but none with the success that The Wizarding Universe finally achieved.
It even has cheeky LOTR elements.
Surely Parker, backed by his Legal Powerhose and the idea that everything would fall into that "those are the similarities of any art book", did not even worry about what would happen ... maybe he did not even actually make the book but did some illustrations and hired ghostwriters. Either way, I think it will all end with Dunn's efforts finishing like everyone that Warner Brothers silenced with fear or money in the case of Harry Potter.
I want to add also, that like the Harry Potter case, the Inktober community possibly survives Jake Parker himself, who like Jo Rowling bites his tail with his own stupidity. The legacy is there, and possibly as a concept it remains present regardless of what its author says or does ... whom is also not so recognized by anything other than Inktober itself (without demeriting his work, but let's accept that point).
Interesting perspective! Thanks for sharing, and watching!
I was persuaded by Mr Dunn's video that there's a case to answer, and claiming that it's just a matter of common knowledge and a bit of osmosis is going to sound pretty risible. You see this time and again in calligraphy books (my area) for the very good reason that there are rules and practices which are set in stone, but I honestly can't recall seeing such close parallels between any two publications as Alphonso demonstrated even in that field. What exactly has gone on here, and for that matter to what extent Mr Parker is responsible for the content of his own book, I wouldn't care to speculate - but it'll all have to be ventilated in court by the look of it. Strictly speaking I'm not especially interested in either gentleman's activities and shouldn't have a dog in this fight - but it does offend against the old sense of fair play, rather.
Indeed. Thanks for watching!
I so want to cover this issue because there are some points being slightly overlooked imo. I’ve bought Jakes books and been a payed subscriber to his school.
Being so nice 100% of the time as an online persona has been a great pre-built safety defense mechanism against appearances of negative comments or reviews regardless of truth.
No one is THAT nice but people in publishing have stated that if you want to be published then you better have a good clean rep online and they will research and dig.
Comments like mine are sure to work against me. I’ll never have a chance with most publishers which fine bc I’ve always been a DIY punk-at-heart who has self-published three music records in the past and can do the same with my future books too. I’m ok with not making it in the bigtime. I’m not the type to be fake and I’m not afraid to admit past mistakes should they become so. That said, onward and upward straightup and through here we go!
Jake is a great concept sketch artist and you’ve heard that before. He’s good at color and composition too and you’ve heard that as well. But what you’ve never heard is; “Dude OMG Jake man your brush pen inking skills are so awesome! Beautiful!” and that is because it’s nowhere near true. Inking is his weakest link. The guy is so damn nice that after years of gawd-awful inking no one comments on how obvious it is that he just hacks through it! Even I’m guilty of not answering or reviewing why I quit the online classes.... Too many tutorials with titles claiming to teach stuff like how to do fur, were filled with nonspecific fluff reminiscent of those dreaded three step drawing books publishers sell on impulse-buy racks which we all have encountered and loath. So to keep honest on Jakes git-er-done-quick inking skills it must be said that it is by his own deliberate choice in order to spend efforts elsewhere. As we all must do unless we wish to devote a lifetime perfecting all areas just to finish only a few projects while homeless and hungry.
One of Jakes great simple exercises was learning to start and finish the same drawing under various time limits. 5min, 10min, 30min, etc. This is an exercise in learning to forgo details while keeping only what is necessary and can be managed in time to complete the drawing. Anyone learning to draw, take note, this exercise is a must. It doesn’t matter what your drawing skills are. That’s not the importance of the exercise. It’s to learn to finish those drawings.
So that’s it. When I saw his book cover with the lettering and the vintage-modern decorative ornamentation, I said wow who did this cover?? The entire book is nothing like Jakes art style or teaching. IMO he just finally caved to the constant pressures of publishers and companies coming to him to exploit inktober. And again IMO he knows inking is not his thing which seems ironic considering he started inktober. But it’s not if you try and remember why he started it. It had nothing to do with learning proper inking or drawing fundamentals! It was the opposite of that! It was to join him in practicing using real ink and FINISHING a drawing! Those were the only rules and that’s why he urged everyone to try even if all they could draw was stick figures as long as you accomplish FINISHING it!
Jake teaching how to ink though, is just crazy bc he is not an inker and that inktober was NEVER ABOUT RULES! Suddenly telling how to ink under the banner of inktober makes no sense as it goes against everything he worked to teach us. And in all those years no one has either stated how good his inking was nor marveled at it like one sees and does in a serious inker artist’s video eying the workmanship of beautiful brush strokes by a skilled hand cohabitating with the exquisite Windsor Newton Series Seven 1-3 brush... ahhh the lush brush worth everything you paid big money for...
Sorry lost myself there for a sec... Anyhow, Jake’s whole teaching exercise philosophy has been on practicing to get more done and actually finish it. I can through his most reffered to videos and show that this finishing philosophy is present there. Start and finish something. I guess if he yelled it at us and got angry that we’ve seemed to forgotten, maybe he himself wouldn’t have forgotten and assumed it’d be a good idea to rebrand himself as something he has never been.
Let this be a lesson to all you and me too, squeaky clean nice guys uploading years of videos yet never ever showing a second of anything but niceness, may not be actually be so nice! They might just be very meticulous in controlling their image. It’s an ugly business of political type! One other super nice guy on youtube long ago with an image as teaching music online comes to my mind and what happened when his long ignored forgotten daughter showed up in the comments of desperate last resort, understandably. Personally it really bugs me when people try to portray themselves so darn nice it’s inhuman! Later everybody! Remember try to stay kool, and should you screw up, try to make it right, that’s what counts most as we are all imperfect beings..... except Jake on youtube HAR HAR ;)
scoobyclub It’s very telling that the handful of hardened Jake-defenders choose to completely deny all points obvious and otherwise, just like Jake made the Trumpist decision to completely publicly deny even the obvious. Keep on’ shillin’ it!
The problem is all the examples from the titles to drawings to the outlines of chapters and so on look like they're directly derivative of Dunn's book. But I agree that we can't just condemn him immediately. That's why I look forward to his book being released where we can all judge for ourselves and make a more conclusive opinion. But so far it doesn't look good for Jakey boy.
Matt Yeah, it doesn’t. I hope that the allegations turn out false once the books are compared and that Alphonso and Jake can find some kind of peace afterward. But we can’t know yet :/ Thank you for watching!
May i know what happen now? i mean does Jake address the issue or anything?
He's put out a short statement (the link is in the description) but I think his lawyer has advised him to not really say much.
What about the unusual tools list? Those were Dunn's personal preferences and the Inktober book basically had the same list! That's a pretty big coincidence if you ask me. I didn't learn that list in my art classes.
fanime1 I didn’t find them that unusual since I work with ink a lot and have used them all at some point, but I can see how they would seem new to most people. Thanks for watching!
Hey hannah are you going to upload on a regular basis or not?
Ahahaha, that is a question right there! A good one. What a question! A questiony question......
@@StudioHannah😂 an unexpectedly good way to avoid a question😂such an unexpectedly good way to avoid a question
I'm one of the people waiting on a verdict until more information arises, nice to know I'm not the only one.
"Making a reactionary conclusion based on a small bit of information is different than responding to an holistic collection of information that may reveal more than 'he good, he bad'." I think you've just summed up exactly why Alphonso was wrong to make his video in the first place.
Yeah :/ Thank you for watching!
When I first saw Dunn's video, I brought down the inking books I already own (in addition to his). They are Framed Ink by Marcos Mateu-Mestre, Vols 1 and 2 of Comic Book inking by Gary Martin and others, The DC guide to inking comics by Klaus Janson and The Technical Pen Techniques for Artists by Gary Simmons.
And step by step I compared the listed books with Dun's and the screen caps of Parker's book. And in my opinion, aside from a few "common knowledge" things, the layout, design and order of things on the books I own are pretty much different. Meaning that although each book is teaching inking (or rendering) in 2D to simulate a 3D 'reality,' the order of things like shading, outlining, etc are all pretty different. So, Parker's book aside, each of the 6 books I own are Their Own Thing. However when I throw Parker's book in the mix, the balance changes to "one of these things are more like one other" than before. And that more alike thing is Dunn's book. I'm willing to agree with you that maybe Parker went over his creative bank credit limits (really love that metaphor, btw) and was a bit unconsciously cribbing from Dunn. I don't think it was intentional, but still... in a way it shows a lack of awareness of what has come before on Parker's part. So basically I agree with Harry Tesley.
For full disclosure, I had no intention of buying Parker's book, even before this whole brouhaha started. I was a member of the VST tutorial site and quit paying for what I concider sub-par "instruction" -- while some of Parker's videos were okay, any not by him were just, again my opinion as a graphics art instructor myself, embarrassing or just too paint-by-numbers. So I entered in this fray with the idea that while Parker is to me, a okay teacher, and that Dunn's work (and the others I listed above) were very well done and thought out on the average. While Parker's instruction style seems to embody the old art instruction joke on how to draw "X" of having figure one be an oval (or other basic shape) and figure two having guide lines drawn and figure three being the final fully drawn or rendered illustration. Clearly having some steps omitted for reasons. So while I do appreciate Dunn's instruction more than Parker's, I tried to be fair and came to the same conclusions as you did in this video. Thought I'd just "show" my work and explain how I came to the conclusions I did.
I have Framed Ink and the DC Guide, but I'll have to check out those others! I think books that are meant to help out beginners in art, or in a specific medium, are more likely to have these introduction sections going through the fundamentals of art plus any specific techniques needed to understand the following pages. Framed Ink is really more about storyboarding and the DC Guide is about DC's methods for visual storytelling, so even though they are about ink, they aren't really about inking, so they assume you know how to draw and are telling you what to do with those skills. The others you mentioned sound by their titles like they might actually be ABOUT inking.
I own more advanced, post-learning-drawing books now, which is why, for my video, I had to go to the bookstore to look at ones that were meant more for beginners. I feel like Both Alphonso and Jake's books are in that vein. "Maybe you know how to draw, maybe you don't, but we're here to teach you to ink and want to make sure you know the basics before we throw down some specifics."
I admit that several of Alphonso's examples certainly looked suspect, but not all of them. In any case, we can't know until more info comes out! Aah! Thank you for watching and leaving such a thoughtful comment!
Thank you for your tasteful expression on this subject. I have subscribed because of the way you handled this. Again, very tastefully done. I do think that Jake plagiarized Alphonzo book to a very disturbing extent.
Jake should go back and do his due diligence and rewrite his book before publication.
Thank you for watching and subscribing! I appreciate it!
I like your makeup and also the addition of the framing around the video! Looks cool 👍🏻
Thanks! I’ve seen a few people do frames recently and I like how contained it looks. I don’t know what it is, it feels right to me. I’m taking a course on After Effects so I want to be able to add very subtle animations to it at some point.
I kind of look at it like this... Alphonso saw the first image that looked like his. It didn’t matter that it was an image of techniques that are common...it reminded him of his book. So, he started digging and looking for more similarities. If you look hard enough, you’re going to find it. You’ll start piecing things together to make it fit what you’re looking for.
Kind of in the same way a ghost hunter will hear random sounds on an EVP, and think it says something. Now, you heard nothing originally...but they tell you what they heard, and suddenly you hear it too.
There wasn’t one thing in Alphonso’s video that made me go AHA! HE’S RIGHT! It was all things that I was like...maybe it’s similar, but I’ve heard that language used a million times about that topic. Or...of course he’s going to mention that in a book about drawing. There’s even the whole...well, obviously an art book is going to have illustrations of things with a description next to them...that isn’t stealing your layout. Yep...those images will look similar because it’s of an actual item you use or specific technique for shading, etc.
I wholeheartedly understand that he worked so hard on his book, and he wants to protect that, but I think he jumped the gun.
That could be. It is easy to find things you're looking for. I feel like the people who are the MOST upset at Jake are the ones who already disliked him for the trademark issue or just "he always seemed weird to me" (which is the weakest reason to dislike someone haha). On the other hand, since I do like Jake I'm trying really hard to not be blinded by the positive that I'm looking for, too. Thank you for watching!
@@StudioHannah I agree with you. I’ve actually got zero bias in this as I don’t follow either one of them. Don’t know much about Jake unless someone mentions him in relation to Inktober.
I just heard another artist I watch mention what was going on and started looking into it. The more I watch, the more I really don’t see the plagiarism and I’ve seen people saying they took Jake’s courses before Alphonso released his book and these were the same things he taught back then. So...I don’t know.
Is it only an issue when someone profits from it? Like I do drawings of known cartoon characters that are obviously not mine and not based off of others drawings just official artwork, is that ok?
Copying is a good way to learn, but when you take what you've copied and claim it as your own original work or try to sell it, then it is considered stealing. The polite and legally ok thing to do when copying other people's work is to credit the original artist and not try to make money off of what you made. If you are using the likenesses of characters and interpreting them in your own way, then it's the likenesses of the characters that are under copyright even if you drew them in new poses or new situations. The exception is when the work you do falls under "fair use" law, which is when you're using the images for commentary, satire, etc. That's how entertainment programs and a lot of UA-camrs can use short clips from movies or the likenesses of characters without getting sued. This is just a nutshell version but I hope that helps! If you want to read more about creative copyright law, I recommend the Graphic Artist's Guild Handbook of Pricing and Ethical Guidelines.
I've been going back and watching and rewatching videos on this subject,as well as Alphonso's video. I found your video,moloch and also 2 videos by a smaller comic creator Dave Hingley.
As well as Ethan's video which I've seen before but never checked out Moloch's video he reccomended.
I like that your video as well as the others I mentioned are well spoken and not choosing sides.
A friend of mine reccomended your channel a few months ago so am checking your videos out.
Thank you for checking out my channel!! :D
@@StudioHannah You're welcome! I'm enjoying the videos I've seen so far.
I have a show with a co host where we interview creatives,you were reccomended to me. So doing research and enjoying the vids!
The main issue with this whole mess is Dunn making the accusation of plagiarism without having an actual copy of Parkers book. Without being able to lay both books next to each other and compare them, Dunn only has conjecture and assumptions.
Dunn's side-by-side comparisons are not actually side-by-sides. You're seeing a video edited by Dunn that just focuses on what he wants you to see and hear. For it to be an actual comparison, both books need to be physically next to each other. Opened to the exact pages that are supposedly copied and shown fully unedited. Then an honest and real comparison can be made.
One accusation people keep repeating is that Parker copied the chapter titles and order. Which is completely false. How do I know? Because unlike everyone else making this claim, I actually have copies of both books. Here is a link showing both books next to each other opened to their table of contents. The naming and order of chapters are not even close.
pin.it/5M2JAEj
Another accusation is Parker copying the 2, 3 and 6 step value scale. Dunn uses other numbered value scales in his book also. On page 38 he has 2, 3, 6, and 9 step scale shown. Then on pages 70, 71, 72 and 73 he uses 4 step scales. So does Dunn lay claim to the 4 and 9 step scales as well?
In the pinterest link both books are opened to their sections covering value scales. The page numbers, layout and illustrations are completely different. Parker's are done in his style and original not direct copies like the accusations claim.
Was kinda waiting for this
Thanks for the recap. I've always admired both of them. The layout seems so similar though, I think Jake could have pour a little bit of creative juice into this book. Anyhow, I really wish for the happy ending :) P.s. Try to do video editing yourself...it's daunting at the beginning but later you'll be able to manage your own schedule. Love from Italy!
Jib makes Art Moloch is another YouYuber who did a breakdown of this, and he has some helpful visuals showing that the layout is, mostly, different. It’s easier to see that as a graphic designer.
I do edit most of my videos myself :) My sister edits some others to help me out when I’m too busy, which is... a lot. I did edit this one. It’s slowly getting easier haha - thank you!
And thanks for watching!
@@StudioHannah Thanks for the reply..I'll definitely check him out. Keep up! Cheers!
It's all is so confusing! I mean, at one hand, if you've ever seen a textbook of any kind, most of them are not all that unique. When I was a student, I had access to books, written by two different profs of mine, with like a lot of the same contents. Both were getting credits and profits just fine. And reasoning was you can change only so much, when it comes to science. So it's no wonder, they are similar.
That being said, at the other, I don't see any reason, why they would be as similar, as people claim. I'm a copywriter. I can literally take a couple of generic articles my client wrote and make my own, unique one, based on the information I've learned. And even if I used just one source, you wouldn't be able to tell, which one, without looking at source list provided at the end or something. That's literally what I get paid for! You can do a lot with that skill - explain a complex scientific material with simple words, combine bits and pieces of information making it solid and informative, bring life to Wikipedia-like texts or, on the contrary, make a rant article more official and universal. So, that's literally possible for someone like me to take a random how-to book, open it, and write a different one without end result looking anything like a source (and still making sense!) And I'm self-taught, self-employed, and basically not the best out of the bunch. So... WHY in the world to copy someone's else book, even if you have to base something on it??? Especially, when you are a talented, accomplished specialist in the field yourself, who definitely have at least something to add either way. And if you are rich enough to hire someone from my field... That's impossible to write a very similar book, unless that's what you are going for! So... HOW and WHY???
Yeah, let's be uncomfortable together. Did not come across the whole thing at all, before accidentally stumbling upon this video. I have got a copy of Alphonso's book and I like the videos of both of them. The work of Jake Parker shines most, where he is inking in his very much unique style.
I just watched the Dunn Video and yes, there is some fishiness to this whole thing.
I would guess that part of the problem is that it's hard for artists, authors and UA-camrs and many other occupations to get a fair monetization for whatever effort they put into their work. There are so many inspiring people out there that do incredible work and most of them can't make a living out of that. Some other people get rich for wearing clothes or talk about the make up they use.
For the future, we need to find more creative methods of payment for creatives in common.
So, I've mostly stepped back from this issue to see what information comes out because right now nobody KNOWS anything, we are all making guesses.
What we CAN look at though, is patterns of behavior. While I don't think either of them showed malice, the multiple previous controversies around Jake do show carelessness. Now this is forgivable to an extent, but Jake doesn't seem to realize that he is now a Major Player and as such his actions carry so much more weight than smaller creators.
I want to participate in inktober, but at this point I honestly don't want to get tangled up in a property whose owner has a history of actions that damage smaller creators regardless of whether or not those actions were intentional.
Understandable. I'm a bit Jake-biased, but even I'm considering not officially participating this year. It feels weird right now. You can still do an Inktober-like challenge and just not use the hashtag! That's what I'll likely do. I want to do something Halloween-themed :) I encourage you to still do a similar challenge, since you're interested in it, and it's really fun and valuable.
@@StudioHannah oh, yeah, that's the plan. I often use Doodlewash for watercolor prompts. I expect I'll use their list for October, it's always a nice community too. I'd encourage others who may feel the same as I do to check them out.
Awesome video! You're so funny and entertaining. Also, I really respect that you're not bashing either one of them. Graciousness and restraint are so rare nowadays.
I think the evidence is too damning to chalk it up to it being coincidence and general art knowledge. It's in the words, formatting, and phrasing.
I really think that this is probably just a case of bad ghostwriting. My theory is that Jake Parker hired a ghostwriter to write the teaching part of the book. I don't think he would purposefully plagiarize a book that he himself has advertised on instagram. I still think he's ultimately responsible. I hope Dunn does file a lawsuit, but if I'm right, Parker also has the right to sue the heck out of everyone involved in writing and publishing his book.
FirebrandFox It’s all such a mess!! Oof! Thanks for watching and commenting, I appreciate it! :D
Thank you for restoring my faith in common sense....
100% agree!
The decision what to believe is on us...and it tells a lot about our mindset
Thank YOU for watching :)
literally though if it was someone stealing from Jake Parker it would be a different story. strange world. I saw your video about the other situation a while back, I liked that video. I kinda wished Alphonso made the video after the release, but he wanted to stop the sale. I wouldnt have. I would have let people see the books first. But thats not his intention. He didnt like the idea that it was coming out.
That's a good point! When people are stealing Jake's Inktober logo, everyone thinks it's A-ok and in fact, they are entitled to it and Jake attempting to protect his creation is morally wrong. Those same people seem to be perfectly fine with Dunn claiming ownership of inking fundamentals and basic art book layouts. Strange world indeed!
@@Botandarun He never claimed ownership of concepts or fundamentals.
You can't own ideas and he sure didn't patent anything.
I'm more interested in art and sharing knowledge than in profits and big egos. The fact that someone feels so hurt, because someone else may have spread the same information I had spread myself in the past feels strange to me. So maybe it's about the knowledge itself ... but Alphonso is sharing his knowledge for free on UA-cam. So maybe it's about layout and phrasing ... but to want to forbid the whole world to use communication technics is pretty imperialistic. I mean, Alphonso isn't the CEO of language.
I can feel empathy for Alphonsos feelings. But I think this monopolization is inappropriate for a craft like drawing. The whole point for libraries for example is based on the idea that knowledge should be for everyone. That our society turned into something where companies trie to forbid the sharing of information is inherent bad, imho. Because of that I feel very reluctant to take any side here. I won't fight for something here when I am opposed to fighting itself.
The world will not be a better place if Alphonso manages to forbid jakes book. And the world will not become a better place if jake sells twice as many books now. But the world will be worse if people start some kind of tribal war on social media. How about this: Everyone who wants to support Alphonso gives Alphonso a couple of dollars. That would be much better for everyone.
Just fyi your editing is muwah good! Ive made videos recently and Im so impressed with your editing/humor. Subscribed! (Sorry not on topic but it really stood out)
Ciro DaCosta Thank you!! I don’t feel that I’m that entertaining until someone else points it out and then I’m a little like *proud of self* for a bit. You have fueled my ego for the day. Many thanks 😆
Maybe it doesn't have to be in this format. Why not do art as you discuss social commentary. I love that stuff. One thing is certain, ppl have a narrative voice. Is that voice Jake's or Alphonso? I can tell my friends apart through email
KIMBERLY PORTER I’ll probably talk about things while doing art in the future, but this felt a bit too serious for that. Maybe for sillier things like Stuart Semple’s Bean Boy thing ehehe
It would be easier to see how similar both books were by reading through and hearing that “voice” for sure.
This is the best video about the controversy I have seen for one reason in particular. You re-filmed your reaction after thinking about it for some time. I side with Alphonso on this.
DAF'D Thank you! I’m trying to be better about responding rather than reacting :)