C'est moi : thethreehares: sephiramy: thethreehares: ...

thethreehares:

sephiramy:

thethreehares:

phantosanucca:

It’s been one of those months. Around every corner, there’s some jackass incapable of taking constructive criticism. And I don’t mean “You suck!”. I mean when you’re trying to point out something to benefit an artist, and they feel like you threatened to cause another 9/11 or something. I’m talking about a higher-than-usual turnout of people reacting to their flaws like a bunch of spoiled crybabies.

People still realize that criticism is supposed to HELP, right? And that if you’re careful and respectful, it’s more beneficial than some useless “OMG KAWAII :3” comment that means nothing? Sure, maybe not everyone is looking for C+C, and that’s their right. And it’s important not to go too far when giving criticism.

But if you’re incapable of handling honesty or insight, then am I really the bad guy to point out that you’re about as worthless as the people who write erotic Fresh Prince fan-fiction?

Are we so frail and insecure as a species, that we take anything less than fellatio to be an insult? And no, this isn’t referring to artists who just like the way their stuff looks and make that clear. I’m not talking about the dipshits who think they have to defend an artist from imperfections. This is about overreaction so pathetic it’s theatrical.

Pointing out that a boob isn’t shaped like a dodecahedron isn’t the same as me shooting your dog, raping your kids, eating your parents and then shitting them onto a religious icon of your choosing. It means you drew a weird-looking boob. I didn’t call you fat. I didn’t question the size of your dick. Get over yourself, theoretical example person!

I used to think maybe that’s what happens when someone becomes popular. Maybe having hundreds of people saying you’re a super-golden special snowflake no matter what you do makes honestly judging your work impossible.

…Except I’ve talked to (relatively) famous people who don’t let that turn them into shitheads, and there are people without a lot of success or infamy who act like they’re gods of their domain.

People say I need to stop being so down about what I do. I guess it’s not really anyone’s choice how they feel, since feelings are reactionary. But I think I’d rather be willing to learn and grow than to lose my shit over anyone who dares claim I’m not perfect.

END OF LINE

~A.H.

People need to realize that criticism does not equal ‘personal attack.’ :I

Good, honest criticism is a gift. Fresh eyes are important.

Good, honest criticism is a gift! If something looks or reads wrong to one person, chances are it will look or read as wrong to someone else, too. I would say that a majority of the time, a critique will be issued on account of a technical error, something that really should be fixed or attended to, if not on the current piece, at least in the future on additional pieces.

HOOOWEEVEERRRRRRrrrr rr rrrrr…

I do also think, ONCE in a while, you will receive critique based on content or aesthetic choices, and this is where it gets tricky. There is no conceivable way under the sun that everyone ever will like your work. For every person who thinks your work is great, there might be one or two (or eight) that just don’t like it. At all.

Anyway, to try and stay relevant to the point here, yes, I think it’s important to be able to take critique well and to be willing to improve based on outside feedback. I also think it’s important to be able to differentiate between when you are getting technical advice, and when you are getting advice based on tastes. Both are useful, but only technical advice tends to be accurate to you, the artist, 100% of the time. THE KEY (and what I think the OP is getting at) is to tame your ego and know that you aren’t perfect, and while you can always get better, you’ll never please everyone.

Oh man, definitely! :D Relevance is super important when it comes to critique. If someone is telling you to change some sort of inherent quality of your work rather than suggest ways to make that quality better, you might open your eyes to new possibilities, but you shouldn’t bend over backwards just to please them/change who you are. As you said, you can’t please everyone.

I’ve had people tell me that I draw characters that are too ‘ugly’, to draw ‘prettier’ things… but, that’s not relevant! Tell me how to draw ugly things better, not not to draw them. It’s up to both parties to be sane and logical :) (which works in theory, haha.)

C'est moi

2012-02-28