Community Guidelines
Effective 1 June 2026 · Rant about the work, never the person.
The one rule, and everything it contains
Every policy on this page is an expansion of one sentence: Rant about the work, never the person. That's it. The rest of this document explains what that means in practice — what you can say, what you can't, and what happens if the line is crossed.
What you can do
Say the painting is terrible. Explain why the conceptual gesture is hollow. Argue that the critical consensus is wrong. Give one star to the most expensive artwork ever sold and defend it word by word. Disagree with someone's rant in the comments — with evidence, with reasoning, with passion. Strong opinions are the point. An ArtRants community where everyone gives four stars and writes "quite interesting" is a failed community. Honesty is the product.
What you cannot do
Attack the person, not the work. "This reviewer has no taste" is a violation. "This painting has no taste" is a rant. Post content that is illegal under UK law: incitement to racial or religious hatred; content that sexualises anyone under 18; content designed to harass a specific individual; threats of violence. Spam: posting the same content repeatedly, posting unrelated promotional content, or operating a bot account. Impersonate: claiming to be an artist, critic or other person you are not, in a way designed to deceive. Deliberately misrepresent a work: posting false information about an artwork's provenance, attribution or sale price to manipulate ratings or discussions.
The grey areas
Satire and hyperbole are fine. "This is the worst thing made by human hands" is a strong rant, not a policy violation. Criticising an artist's public conduct as it relates to their work is permitted — if Banksy's market behaviour is your argument against Banksy's street art, that's a legitimate rant. Discussing an artist's personal life unrelated to the work is not. Discussing controversial works — works that deal with violence, sexuality or trauma as their subject — is permitted and often important. Reproducing illegal content under the guise of discussing it is not. If in doubt, ask: am I describing the work, or attacking a person? If the answer is clear, post or don't. If it's genuinely unclear, err on the side of restraint.
Reporting
Every rant, comment and profile carries a report button. Reports go to the moderation queue. We do not show who made the report to the person being reported. Moderation targets: 24 hours for standard reports; priority for anything potentially illegal. We will tell you the outcome of your report (content removed, warning issued, dismissed) but not the details of any action taken against another account. Misusing the report system — mass-reporting someone's content because you disagree with their opinions — is itself a violation of these guidelines.
What happens when the line is crossed
For a first, minor breach: content removed, no further action. For a pattern of minor breaches: content removed, warning issued. For a serious single breach: account suspended pending review, up to 30 days. For illegal content: immediate permanent ban; report to relevant authorities where required by law. For harassment campaigns: permanent ban. Founding member status is not a shield. The rules apply equally to everyone, including the first 500. Appeals: if you believe a moderation decision was wrong, email moderation@rantsnetwork.com with your username and your case. We review appeals within 14 days.
The Nemesis
The Nemesis feature pairs members with similar taste and opposite opinions. It is opt-in, mutual, and designed to be warm rather than adversarial. Your Nemesis does not know who you are unless you choose to reveal yourself. The "Respect" button is the only available interaction. Using information from the Nemesis feature to identify, target or harass another member is a permanent ban offence.
Commerce
Artists selling through ArtRants shops are responsible for accurate listings: correct edition numbers, honest descriptions of condition, realistic shipping estimates. Buyers may not leave retaliatory ratings on a shop because of a dispute — disputes should be raised with us at legal@rantsnetwork.com. We do not permit the sale of: forgeries or works falsely attributed; works the seller does not have the right to sell; works that depict illegal content.
A note on art criticism
Art criticism has always been adversarial. Ruskin destroyed Whistler's reputation in print; Whistler sued him. Greenberg dismissed Pollock's rivals with withering certainty. The critics were often wrong. The arguments were real, and they mattered. We are not trying to make a nice place. We are trying to make an honest one. Honest means the community can say the Emperor has no clothes. It also means the community cannot make the Emperor feel physically threatened for wearing them. The line is not always obvious. We will try to draw it well.