Amy Leung Reflection

Being a Rungh Wikipedia Scholar has been a great opportunity, and being part of the Art + Feminism community has been very fulfilling. Not only did I develop strong research skills, but I also gained knowledge about a female BIPOC artist from Canada, a group largely underrepresented in art and media. While this has been a purposeful experience, I also faced several challenges, particularly in adhering to Wikipedia’s expectations.

Firstly, Wikipedia claims to be a neutral platform that presents objective information on specific topics. I found this difficult because I was writing about an artist whom I personally believe deserves praise and whose work warrants thorough analysis. I also questioned whether a page I produced for Wikipedia could ever entirely be “objective,” as the information I chose to include is inherently shaped by my own biases and decisions, as well as Wikipedia’s requirements.

Secondly, I struggled to meet Wikipedia’s requirements regarding reliable sources. Since these artists are already underrepresented on the internet, it is difficult to find third-party, non-affiliated “trusted” sources, as defined by Wikipedia. Sometimes there may be information available, but it is published by the artist themselves, making it unusable under Wikipedia’s standards. For example, my artist had a very interesting interview with a small YouTube about her tattoo art journey. Although the interview contained valuable information directly from the artist, it would not be considered a reliable source by Wikipedia. Another example is the artist’s CV or social media accounts. Additionally, many of the news articles covering my artist came from smaller, local newspapers, which may not fully align with Wikipedia’s reliability standards.

Overall, these aspects of the experience made it challenging to produce an article about my artist that I felt was thorough, substantial, and fully representative of who they are. However, it was still a great opportunity, and I believe the obstacles I faced highlight I faced highlight important issues that should be addressed by Wikipedia – especially since many people rely and consider Wikipedia as a source of supposedly “objective” information.