Dear mysterious, wonderful A.Ds, any tips on how to develop critical thinking about your own art? I'm finding it increasingly difficult to judge my own work- to see the faults in it, or sometimes to see any good bits! It's affecting my ability to get better at art (and it's not so great for my confidence.) I haven't found or been able to create a decent online replacement for the studio environment at uni, where you can discuss work with your peers and give and receive thoughtful crit on art.
As you’ve discovered intuitively (and good for you!), it’s almost impossible to grow in a vacuum.
Part of being able to see your own art is straight-up eye training. Put aside time to look at OTHER PEOPLE’S art. If you know who your goal clients are, take a look at pieces that are already being utilized by that client. Look at it as though you’re an art director. What is its goal? Who is its audience? Why does it work? Be specific! Lighting? Composition? Palette? What’s the visual hierarchy, where does your eye go first, then second, etc? How’s the perspective? Anatomy? See if you can reverse engineer the artist’s planning and thought processes in your analysis. What’s the strongest thing about the piece? What’s the weakest? How would you change it to make it stronger?
Do that, and do it MANY TIMES. Set aside a little bit of time every day to cruise the internet looking at the works of artists who are CURRENTLY painting (masters studies have their place, but this is not a masters study), and hone your critical eye. This’ll do two things: As before stated, it’ll train your eye and your art brain to think about these things when you look at art, and it’ll also make you aware of what other working artists are doing.
Turning your critical eye on your own work also takes a bit of willpower. It’s so easy to get emotional and defensive, remembering how hard you worked on something or remembering how far behind you feel. Put your ego lovingly in a box and reassure it that it’s done nothing wrong and you’ll be right back (it might be paranoid from past maltreatment and/or overindulgence). Then take a look at your work and fall back on your knowledge of FUNDAMENTALS and your GOALS. Use the same critical process you’ve been honing as you look at other people’s art. Be honest with yourself. Try as hard as you can not to fall into the trap of indulging in “I suck I’ll never get it” or “This is the greatest” (remind your ego firmly that it’s having stay-in-its-box time because you’re working.). This isn’t about sweeping general statements right now. Now it is time to be clinical. What are the parts that work, what doesn’t, and why?
To supplement that, see if any of your artist friends want to form an online crit group through social media, video chat, text, a group email, or whatever other method works best for your group!
It takes time. Developing your critical eye and being able to focus it inward is a skill like any other, so be patient with yourself and be methodical about practicing!
-Agent Critique
