How to Handle an Art/Design Critique

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So, because I have nothing else to do at the moment, how do you handle a critique?  At some point in the future, everyone will receive a critique on their artwork.  The good news is that people who can take a critique well are the ones who make success happen.  From my experience, I learned there are a few ways to prepare yourself for criticism.

I met a student artist on DeviantArt and she lives in Columbia.  I'm sure she's a great person and all, but a few times, I critiqued her anime art.  The first time I did, I discovered she has a stone-wall personality.  From my impressions, this artist thought highly of herself.  I have to give it to her that she does have some good illustrations, but none of them are actually professional-quality.  After I sent her a critique, she became very defensive!  She said something along the lines of, "I'm sorry...  Are you criticizing my art?"  Well, yeah, but I'm trying to pull you up, not down.  And then another time, "Your comments make me so angry!  Why can't you just PM me a critique?"  Once I found her weak spot, I no longer respected her, so I did it a few more times (not to mention, I learned to be respectful, even if the artist doesn't know how to absorb critiques).  After all, it wasn't like I'd change her audience's perspective.  There's a chance that had she taken my critique well, she would be a better artist today and we would be friends.  That was a bad example of handling a critique.

There is no denying that before I was a teen, I was just as oppositional as this student artist.  Then in my earlier days of pursuing graphic design as a career, I practiced taking in a critique in a positive manner.  I became very good at it.  So how did I do it?

The main part of absorbing a critique is to expect the worst, but hope for the best!  I've learned that no matter how good anyone is, someone will like your designs and someone will hate it.  Sometimes, no matter how good your images are, whether they have good layout, hierarchy, color palette, juxtapositioning, cartoon or realistic anatomy, details, etc., this one person does not like your entire gallery.  Depressing?  It's life.  It even happens to amazing professional artists!  Even if you're creating a whole portfolio project, keep in mind that harsh feedback is coming.  If you're thinking, "This image is so awesome!  Everyone's going to love my design," you'll be as defensive as the student in Columbia.  Right now, someone might be thinking, "Man, I don't like this article!  It SUCKS!  Oh gosh; don't get me started on the journal skin!"  I'll think about it.  At the same time, I already know at least one viewer will find it useful.  Always be prepared for the worst critiques, but hope for the best feedback.

If you listen to constructive criticism (key-word: Constructive), you'll gain something out of it.  Most people criticize to help push the graphic designer beyond their limits.  Before I read a critique, I think, "This is another opportunity to improve something."  Now that I read this person's critique, I don't have to guess in the dark.  In my spare-time, I made a design for a magazine page.  I'll be honest:  My color palette was terrible!  Another artist told me what was wrong and how it could be fixed.  I actually felt more confident about my image because I knew how to make the design more compelling.  I wasn't thinking, "This person's judging me.  She's trying to pull me down and change what my audience thinks about me."  My design improved because I listened to the critic.

What if the critic was unfairly criticizing your work?  So what?  I occasionally come across different opinions and frequently, I disagree with them.  I remember being a kid and always arguing that Nintendo's gaming consoles are better than Playstation and Xbox.  No matter how much my old friends told me Playstation and Xbox are the best, I just could not see their point of view.  It's best to ignore these unfair critics.  In fact, someone in your audience may be telling the critic that he flat-out disagrees no matter how much of a jerk the critic is.

Dealing with fair and unfair criticism takes practice.  Reading about advice doesn't mean you'll suddenly be good at handling harsh feedback.  When i was younger, I didn't understand why it helped to be silent towards criticism.  I thought that was a form of weakness when in reality, it's a strength.  When I finally decided to pay attention to criticism, I had to work on listening and not being defensive.  If I mastered this skill, so can you!

So, this is what I learned about handling an art/design critique from my personal experience.  Everyone will receive a critic at some point in life.  Again, it's better to expect the worst critiques, but hope for the best feedback.  Don't think too highly of your design.  Not everyone's going to like your artwork.  If you can master these skills, you will make success happen.

If you want, check out these links for tips on how to handle a critique:

www.lifehack.org/articles/comm…

www.positivelypresent.com/2013…

emptyeasel.com/2007/06/10/how-…

Have a response?  Comment below.



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Albro1's avatar
I think it is worth noting that good artists can learn SOMETHING from EVERYTHING.

Even from the people who hate your best work.  Unless the reason for their hate is a personal strife with you instead of your work, chances are there is a REASON they dislike your work.

They may not always clearly express the reason, but it isn't their job to.  Just as artists have to learn to figure out what clients want when they are working (Let's be honest, most clients haven't the slightest clue what they are talking about and often don't even know what they REALLY want) - it is up to the artist to read between the confusing and misconstrued wording and the negative outlook and try to see what the person is REALLY targeting.  And there lies the place that you can work to improve. :)