I like it better that the chats are more populated and used more than any other part of the site. Better than having hoards of summertimes noobs on the bb's. Ok, but back to the topic. A lot of people actually do vote, and a lot of people have paintings that are voted for. It's a matter of who and how often people get the chance to vote on your paintings.
Who, because some people have different tastes in art.
How often, you won't even get 1 star votes if your painting isn't seen much.