Someday I would want to do a deep dive into why cosmere fans (writ large, not about any artist in particular) are so bad at making Shallan and Adolin especially as anything but white, and yet (again, on average) everyone has agreed to make Jasnah darker-skinned and Renarin East Asian.
I mean, I'm pretty sure it has to do with unconscious bias. Racism and colourism permeates society so it's kind of hard to avoid. I invite you to take a moment to consider.
It's easy to see how a character that's been de-masculated by Alethi society because of his epilepsy, and is quiet and shy, is getting drawn as Asian. And not just Asian but short and exceedingly slim, in soft uwu styles. Compare to art of his brother and father, which tends to skew white. Canonically, Renarin is leeky. So yeah, slim, not as tall as the tallest men on Roshar, but it makes me 😒 when he is drawn so tiny and soft. It draws on stereotypes of East Asian men as small and feminized; these depictions don't even reflect his character. In canon, Renarin is trying everything he can to be masculine while staying true to who he is. He's training and studying. He's putting his life on the line in battle. He has Shardplate! And yet I have never seen one piece of art of him in battle or in his Shardplate. So yes, he has epicanthic folds, but he is not tiny or feminine (if you're going for canon Renarin. And even if you're not please consider what stereotypes you may be drawing from when you are feminizing him).
Meanwhile Jasnah (outwardly cold, aloof, Strong Woman who is incredibly emotional underneath) is often drawn with medium brown skin. I'm not saying this is wrong! I'm just saying that the people who are generous with making a tan-skinned character brown are not (on average) drawing her brother, mother, or father that brown. It makes me ask why is it so easy to characterize Jasnah in particular as brown-skinned? Is it because there's a stereotype of brown-skinned women being Strong and Cold and Mysterious and Exotic?
Which brings us to Shallan. She's a favourite character for white female fans to project on to. She's even described in canon as having red hair and pale skin which every white person seems to read as "Irish". However, no one in canon comments on her Shin eyes--that's because she has epicanthic folds like everyone else. Further, light-skinned Asians and Wasians and Arabs and Pacific Islanders also exist. We can do better as a fandom imagining her.
And finally Adolin. The sheer volume of fans who read "handsome" and translate that to "White" is honestly astounding. Find men of colour handsome or die by my sword. 😤⚔️
One of the best ways to avoid these individual character pitfalls (especially regarding the Kholins) is to take some time to imagine the whole family. Variations in skin tone are absolutely normal and expected in a family, but thinking about the family as a whole can help bring to the surface certain assumptions you might not consider otherwise. Who inherited which skin tone, and why is it important to you that a character has a certain skin tone? Turn it over for a bit. Try out different shades and facial features. Think about who spends more time in the sun. Look into colourism and learn about stereotypes. Choose these features intentionally.
andulkaphoto
vaporwave
2087
romaincrisis
gracieabrams
