Tickle Artists #74: Interview with TickleSpots

1) Do you want to tell us something about yourself and your art?

I’m Spots, from the UK. I’ve been making pictures for about 5 years. My stuff is focused mostly on tickling, but explores lots of other kinks too.

2) What techniques do you use to draw? Do you have a favorite artist that inspires you?

I make everything in Photoshop and Illustrator. Frankly my methods are a bit of a means to an end for getting the ideas in my head out in some visual way, which stops me going mad! I rely a lot on references to be able to produce what I do. I imagine this way of making things doesn’t appeal to everyone — it’s unashamedly self-indulgent, and if it happens to produce stuff that other people enjoy, that’s a coincidence I feel very pleased about.

I wouldn’t feel comfortable picking any one artist as a favorite — I’m blessed to call many talented people friends and find myself constantly inspired by what they do. I do have a soft spot for the stuff I looked at while growing up, back when the scene felt a lot smaller than it does now; artists that drew stuff that was kinky, unique and infused with a bit of humor and story.

3) How much was the passion for drawing born in you? And the one for the tickle?

My background is as a writer, rather than an artist. Drawing doesn’t really come naturally to me, but I get a lot of pleasure out of coming up with scenarios and stories with a lewd focus. I’d say it’s more of a need or an urge to make something, at this point!

Though it might not be obvious from my artwork, which focuses a lot on foot tickling, I actually had a thing for midriffs long before tickling or anything else — I blame this on the prevalence of cute cartoon girls wearing crop tops when I was growing up in the 2000s! My tastes have just evolved naturally over time and continue to do so to this day. A lot of things I wasn’t interested in back when I started drawing now give me a lot of inspiration.

4) What are the tickling scenarios that you prefer to draw?

Commissions aside, 99% of what you see in my gallery is the product of me waking up that day and being in the mood for something. These days I try and let my feeling lead the way. My tastes can fluctuate quite a bit, so one day I might want to draw something cruel and intense, whereas another it’ll be with a lee who’s having the time of their life.

5) What are the aspects of tickling that you intend to represent with your art? Example: the laughing, the wriggling, the relationship between tickler and ticklee?

The overall scene is king for me. There’s no one type of expression, bondage, or tool I prioritize, I want it to all play into the scenario as a whole. You can probably look at my gallery and figure out that I like fingers the best, though!

When working with characters from games, shows etc in particular, I always strive to create scenes that feel connected to the worlds that those characters are from. A sense of place is important for me and I’m less partial to art that focuses purely on the act and takes place in some kind of empty void.

6) Online there are countless photos and videos of tickling sessions. In your opinion, what do illustrations offer more than images of real life?

Many years back, the first time I had a tickling ‘session’ in real life, I was struck with a realization of the fact that the power of fantasy is often far stronger than reality. It can be a bit like having a crush — you’re in love with the idea of being with someone, but that idea can be quite different from the actual experience.

What I enjoy about the real act of tickling — something intimate and physical between two people — is actually quite different to what I enjoy about art, animation, stories etc, which appeal to the imagination. There’s the obvious point of being able to create a scene that simply wouldn’t be possible, with wacky characters, complex machines, magic, otherworldly creatures and most importantly, free from any kind of taboo!

7) In your opinion, what makes tickling so interesting for fans of this phenomenon?

We don’t choose our fetishes, at the end of the day. I think a lot of it is just down to chemicals in the brain. We’ve all got our own tastes within the niche of tickling, too, so every person would have a different answer. In my own case, the answer is very much: who knows! I’m just into this stuff. Maybe I was born this way? I feel that for someone to be at peace with what they feel attracted to, and able to embrace it, is a privileged position to be in. It’s something I would wish upon every fetishist.

8) What are your works of which you are most proud?

I feel proud to be making art at all, because when I started absentmindedly scribbling on paper 5 years ago, I never would’ve imagined it’d get to the point it’s at now.

If I had to pick out something specific, I’d say that my recent OC works, namely the comic ‘Change of Heart’, have been satisfying simply because it feels good to see a bigger project through to completion. I don’t necessarily think they’re the most appealing to a wide audience or anything like that, but it’s good to be able to create something entirely for yourself and feel that great sense of satisfaction. Everyone should scratch the itches in their brain!

9) Do you have any particular artistic goals for the future?

I’d like to try and be a bit more adventurous and come up with things that feel original. Ultimately, history always repeats itself, and we tend to build on what came before us rather than create something out of nothing. I think that’s fine, and also natural, but I’m certain there are new concepts waiting to be explored and risks to be taken if we look beyond our own community for inspiration. I’d like to get better at trying something different, and I also hope to see others do the same. I won’t lie though, I can’t help but love front-on perspective shots of girls in the stocks – alas, the brain chemicals have declared it so!

I love working with other artists and drawing their OCs. I hope to discover more cute characters to draw getting tickled senseless! I think that’s a pretty achievable goal.

10) Do you think AIs will end up enriching or impoverishing the art of tickling representations?

Simply put, I have yet to see an AI generated image that gives me the same feeling as a drawing. This isn’t a criticism per se, but an observation. That will probably change someday, I’m sure, and so be it. In some ways, I feel the taboo of fetish art may in fact protect it from the commercial impact of AI. I would be more worried for the career artist who illustrates articles in magazines or produces graphics for banner ads. Fetish art is largely self indulgent and will continue to exist in some way or another.

I understand the appeal of wanting an instant ‘hit’. For a lot of people, the results are more satisfying than the process. I won’t say I am exempt from this, either. But I think the possible danger AI poses specifically within our tiny microcosm of internet tickling fetishists is that in the future, someone discovering this part of themselves will choose the instant hit of creating an image with AI, over picking up a pencil and paper and making art. Making art is a struggle for most people, including myself, but through that struggle you can come to find a quiet joy in the process itself. That you yourself, your desires, thoughts and feelings are manifested in the end product, is what makes it worthwhile. I’d just hate to see someone deprive themselves of that joy.

AI is the topic of the moment, but the greatest threat to fetish art — and by extension, our sexual freedoms — are the agendas of wealthy lobbyists and their commercial interests, specifically payment providers, who are forcing websites and subscription services to suspend accounts posting sexual art. The reality is, years of complacency about where and how we share our art has left us vulnerable to the oppressive beliefs of a small few who seek to impose upon us. I can’t say I personally have any solutions to this problem, but I would hope that people realise that time wasted on anger-driven, ideological ‘us vs them’ debates distract us and divides us as we come under this very real attack on our freedom to express ourselves.

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