The Positive/Negative Impacts of Pinterest

As a fellow artist, I'm curious what the board's members think regarding the impact of Pinterest on their craft and creativity.

Pinterest provides anyone a springboard for ideas on anything from home crafts, to photography, to recipes, etc...

Is this a form of "plagiarism" at its fundamental core? Does the repetition of the same ideas and concepts effectively reduce creativity, thereby providing the opposite goal their website perpetuates?

Or is it a good start for something greater than we had expected in the first place?

Interesting thread idea! I've not taken much of a look at Pinterest (or Etsy) but personally I think it is a good idea. Any artist who can make a buck is pretty much living the dream. So it is providing a really great service. But I would not worry about it breaking apart creative thought/ideas. At art school, they feed you art! (not only that, who can afford to spend 10's thousands on art school anymore?) You breath books, galleries, museums etc. all in the search of your muse and a platform to launch off from.
Those nuggets of art plant seeds for your next idea. So I think not only will Pinterest not destroy creativity - it will indeed keep a new generation of artists fed with fresh ideas. So I wouldn't worry

I use Pinterest a lot. I love looking at what others pin and often go to the site the picture came from, so it is a good way to have your stuff spread over the internet for a lot of people to see. I also use it for ideas. I don't copy others work, but use it for imspiration, again going to the original site for more information on the pictures that interest me.

It's great to see an upbeat spin on this! I took more of the devil's advocate position in my post, but I tend to side with the idea that Pinterest is more of a springboard for creativity...Other local artists in my community see it as just the opposite though. I think that has more to do with their insecurities as professionals though - There comes a point where you just don't give a damn what others think or do, and only focus on what makes you happy.

a reply to: EnronOutrunHomerun

Iam a complete Pinterest addict...actually just left there for here. I pin daily,and I find amazing ideas and inspiration there. Have you noticed some artists have their own boards for others to follow,or they allow users to pin their work from another site. This gives artists a wider audience and better chance of having their work seen and appreciated. Yes,it also can leave an artist vulnerable to having works stolen. Only the individual can choose if it is worth the risk.