The Art of Critique

A How-To Guide

ARTIST MINDSET:  Be Curious!  Making art is like experimenting – you make a series of specific decisions to find something that works.  When something doesn’t work, know the experiment isn’t about you.  Our paintings are not us.  There will be mistakes and failures in our work.  Mistakes are not only unavoidable, they’re necessary!  Failures in a painting give us concrete objective information that tells us where we need to make different decisions next time.  If you want to grow, gather information from both your successes and failures.  Learn from your mistakes, like a scientist. (Think Thomas Edison!  It took him over 10,000 tries to invent the alkaline storage battery.)  Engaging in this intellectual curiosity can quell self-doubt! 

A CHECKLIST FOR CRITIQUE (not inclusive!)

Artist: Tell us about your artwork, what you are trying to do, and what input you’d like.  Remember, these are opinions, and you can take them or leave them!

Audience:  

Be kind (e.g. “If it were my painting, I might consider……”).  Treat other artists as you would treat a dear friend.

Be specific and give useful Information.  “This shadow is wrong” is unhelpful;  “This shadow needs to be opposite from the source of light” is helpful.

COMPOSITION

Is it balanced?

What type of composition is it?    Composition Help:  ‘Rule of Thirds’

·         What’s your ‘Star’, your focus?

·         How does the eye move into the painting to the focal point and other key areas?

·         Do you have areas where the eye can rest?

·         Are there areas that need more/less Contrast?

·         Are there areas that need more/less Detail?

·         Are there areas that need more/less Color?

·         Are there areas that need more/less Warmth?

Composition boo-boos to avoid: 

·         Dividing in Half

·         Triangles at the Corners and Edges (They point out of the picture!)

·         It doesn’t hang together (Needs Unity + Variety)

·         Too much sameness in shape, spacing, value (Needs Variety +Unity)

PERSPECTIVE:  It has to make sense.

·         Atmospheric Perspective – How to show Depth (See Art Tip.)

COLOR

·         Is this work essentially ‘warm’ or ‘cool’?

·         Does color scheme support the mood, meaning and focus of the work?

·         Effective use of neutrals and saturated colors?

VALUE (Dark/Light)

·         Which direction is the light coming from?

·         Are highlights and shadows consistent?

·         Check your values by squinting, looking through Red Cellophane, or use a Gray Scale Card

PRESENTATION:  What kind of matting and framing (if any) will set this off best?