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I think the main thing to remember when giving or receiving a critique is that it is not about the person giving the critique, or the person receiving the critique. It is SOLELY about the art in question.


I am writing this thread because I think it is important for people to understand the critique process to avoid possible fights and hurt feelings. I will be coming back and adding to it from time to time. If any of you feel that you have suggestions that could make it better, please post them and I might add them.

I hope people find it helpful.

--The most important thing when getting a critique is to be open to what is being said and not get your feelings hurt if you get a bad one. In most situations, hearing something awful about a piece that you put so much time into and so much of yourself into can be pretty crushing and that is understandable. However, listening openly to those bad critiques will make you so much better as an artist than the critiques which tell you only what is good about the piece.

--Remember that critiquing is not only about learning what is wrong with the piece, it is also largely about learning how to SEE what is wrong with the piece so as to understand how to avoid that type of problem in the future. Beyond fixing a piece, it is about growing as an artist.

--Insulting someone just because they dismissed your art is petty and immature. If you think that person needs to improve areas in their own art, then go to that person's sketchbook or critique thread and give them tips on how to do that. {PuppyKitten - syntax change}

--It is really important for artists to get over the need for every piece to be amazing and learn to be willing to throw out bad art. Artists will go through MANY iterations of a piece, frequently throwing out elements of pieces, or sometimes even whole pieces that they really like but are just not working.

--When going into a critique where you have specific points you want addressed, it isn't always the best thing to point them out right away. Telling people ahead of time of what you think might be an issue will definitely draw attention to those problems, but it might also distract the person giving the critique from addressing problems that you hadn't seen.

--DO NOT THINK ONE CRITIQUE WILL CUT IT! Many times artists will only tell what they feel are the most important and immediate problems when going over a piece. After those problems are addressed, then would be the time to move on to lesser problem areas. After you work the problem, upload an updated version and get more advice. There is a lot of work to get a nice, refined, successful piece.

--It's important to know what you're trying to do with this piece and weigh the critique you get appropriately. You wouldn't want to change something in your piece that detracts from the mood or theme just because someone said it needs to be changed. My mantra usually is:

Critically consider critique.

--Know what you want to make, be open to changing your image if it does not impede your vision. Things such as anatomy, form and lighting are general principles that will generally apply to every image. {Jason Rainville}

--Finally (for now) remember that critiquing a piece can take a lot of time, and the person giving it is volunteering their time to help you improve. Be open to what is said, even if you don't agree with it and be thankful for the time and effort given. Just because you don't agree with what is said doesn't mean you should be impolite or unthankful.

--Please, please, please remember what it was like to put your art up on the chopping block... especially the first few times.

--It is easy to change a piece. It is much harder to help fix it. Anyone can offer the advice, "If I were doing it, I would"... Well, you aren't doing it. Try to understand what the artist is going for instead of arbitrarily changing the style, message, etc. to what you like. Critiquing is helping an artist make their piece better, not making their piece yours. This is one of the hardest aspects of critiquing and one that always bothered me about how some people critique (especially with story critiques).

--When looking at a piece, do not assume that piece represents either the artist's actual level of skill or their style. This one is especially hard because if that one piece is all we see, we have no other frame of reference. Don't think “this person sucks” if they offer up an embarrassingly bad piece, just address the problems that you see. They could only be trying out a new style/program/technique. I know many a wonderful watercolor artist that sucks at oil painting.

--When giving a critique, if possible offer a paint-over / red-line. Many times it will get the message across much easier and clearer than a large explanation.