I think this is a fundamentally bad idea. And I think that for this exact reason:
You should not confuse equality with fairness. Equality does not necessarily result in fairness, and fairness is not necessarily the result of equality.
First things first: I understand why a new format, which is more based on creativity and individual expression, was chosen over a format that is more based on creativity and execution: to prevent people that are very experienced in a specific medium from winning each year. And I'm fine with that, I truly am. However, to completely abolish skill based competitions is just as, if not more, unfair as/than permanently keeping them.
Every single artist (by which I mean someone who practices an art, be it visual, literary, musical or otherwise) on these forums, and in extension, the planet, is an artist because they
choose to be. That is to say they invest time and resources to develop that skill, as opposed to just being born with a talent. Rendering that experience null and void for everyone might seem fair at first, but it has multiple caveats:
- Artist rely on that dedication they've put into their field: they are going to make a drawing if drawing is what they are best at, and they are going to write a song if songwriting is what they are best at. If the highest quality work they can produce is by using a certain skill, then they will do so, on the one hand because they feel it's the best way to express themselves and/or their idea, on the other hand because they are expected to (we didn't expect our foremost visual artist to submit anything else than a drawing, did we?). So if execution doesn't matter, experienced artist are at a disadvantage because they are forced to go for a medium that is going to rank low on originality, while how well they do in that medium is moot.
- Conversely, it provides an advantage to niche skills, which give you an originality bonus if you happen to be proficient in one. If you would have to choose between favouring niche skills and favouring traditional skills (which more people practice), then the latter would, from a purely mathematical point of view, be more fair. It wouldn't be a 100% fair, but definitely more fair.
- Creativity and expression are themselves skills: they can be trained and developed. So in any way you slice it, a contest like this, whether last year's or this year's format, is going to have a component of skill.
Contest, per definition, can't be fair: it's always going to favour some group of people over another. But if you want to make future contests as fair as possible, then you would have to alternate: one year a skill based competition, the other year an expression based one. Which is the suggestion that I will leave you with.
But that's for next time. For now, allow me to congratulate all the winners! I won't pretend not to be disappointed, but nevertheless, it was an honour to have sparred alongside you!