Artwork: "But I didn't ASK for critique."

[Saltwater Croc 115]

There are arguments and counterarguments.


"Don't post it to the internet if you don't want critique." 

  "But if someone doesn't want it, you're being an ass by giving it ANYWAY."

 

"Just because you don't want it doesn't disallow me from giving it anyway."    

       "But that doesn't mean you SHOULD."

 

"They won't get any better."        

 "And you won't be respected as much."

"Why share it then?"

"It's okay to not want critique. Maybe they're just showing it off!"

 

 

Both very real sides of the coin.  Where do you stand and why?  Me, I'm on the fence.  I've been at the receiving end of both arguments.
I'm curious to see what fellow content creators think of this. 
(And please, let's keep discussion civil and clean! We don't need to give the mods more heart attacks!)

(Cross posted)

Edited June 27, 2016 by Saltwater Croc
Removed Mod Color ~ Used green instead ~Riki

[Lord Vectra 414]

If they dont want critique, i wont giv it to them.

 

Idc for the reasons. What I'm not about to do is waste time giving critique when it'll fall on depth's ears (idk if I spell that right). It goes under the rule "cant help someone if they dont want it."

 

You must respect their decision. If you don't, that publisher will feel that their opinions dont matter. When they happens, it can open all kinds of feelings. Good or bad.

 

I dont critique if it is told that the publisher want no critique. Im not mad about it, publisher not mad about it, we both do what we do. If he decides later he want critique, I'll give him critique.

[Rezanta 373]

Well, I'm in the middle of both ends, much like you. However, when somebody posts something, and I find out through hidden methods on how they want to be better and they're afraid to flat out ask for critique, that's when I tend to. I've also given critique blatantly and at I'll times, so I've learned from the past of my mistakes to be nice just give a post saying I like it or pass on commenting on it.

 

I, among others, will definitely leave critique if the media is purposefully offensive or ill to the subject. (If unrelated, I'll simply ask what the subject is before saying anything)

[Rikifive 3,411]

@Croc I've removed mod color from your post. Green FTW! (=

---

I voted for 'No I won't. Their wishes should respected.' as I think it's the most accurate answer for me, though it still kinda depends a tiny little bit.

 

Generally I'm saying only good things about someone else's works ~ the bad ones (the critique in general) usually I'm keeping for myself, unless that person will ask for it (I mean ask for constructive feedback).

Even if I'll say bad stuff, then I'm trying to do that as gentle as possible and usually after positive things, to indicate, that I didn't come to make fun of anything.

I'm never randomly judging people's works, because I don't want to discourage them from doing what they're doing.

No matter how terrible something would be ~ ranting will not help anybody.

 

By the way, I love how people are judging something, while not being any better at this.

Or... Nah, enough said.

 

I hope this answers your question.

[Saltwater Croc 115]

I'm not really looking for advice, just discussion... Tis fun to see what you all think.
@Rikifive if anyone's gonna change my colors, I am!!!11  pink and orange FTW.



My personal stance is this. If you don't want critique, you really shouldn't post. PERIOD.   BUT!  If you ask for no critique, I'll honor that.... even though the reasonings might make people lose respect for you.  There are some people who would critique ANYWAY.   If the piece was offensive or directly calling me or someone else out, oh I'd destroy them.

But generally... if they make it clear FROM THE BEGINNING that they don't want crits, I won't do it.   But then that begs the question.... why post it anyway? That's what personal websites and blogs are for. Posting to a public forum opens you up to that, and as an artist you need thicker skin or you simply won't survive.

[Rikifive 3,411]

*gasp* Pink and orange are great col... Oh there's no pink and orange there.. OOOHHH!

JK!

 

---

 

But I want to post and make everybody adore my works! D:

JK!

I see where you're going with this and from some point of view you're right.

One of the reasons people are posting stuff without wanting critique is just to seek for motivation. Though I don't think I saw people stating 'Don't critique PLZ', at least recently. 

That's a normal thing ~and pretty 'automatic', that seeing critique about your works is kinda demotivating, because it's kinda like pointing out people's mistakes. There needs to be a good approach to this. Some people just love to come and bombard you with critique and throw tomatoes at you~ so I'm not surprised, that some artists may have enough of this.

 

But that's true, that posting works into public is nothing else than asking for opinions.

I think they actually want some critique, but just don't want 'hate'.

[Tsarmina 2,612]

I think it only makes sense to respect the artist's wishes if they don't want critique. I mean, even if you see a lot of flaws in their work, it doesn't mean they didn't put time and effort into creating it, right? If they just want to show what they've, say, spent hours working on so people can also enjoy looking at it, then I feel it would be pretty mean to start assailing them with corrections and notes.

 

At the same time, a lot of people don't directly ask for critique but will accept it anyway, since it's technically a good thing (and is pretty necessary to become a better artist). It's hard to have thick skin sometimes as some people can be more blunt than others when it comes to critique, so I try to balance the "critical" part with the "complimentary" part.  

[Saltwater Croc 115]

Yeah. If someone doesn't ask for it, I myself will respect their wishes. Although in almost all cases that SCREAMS "immature". In another forum in a similar topic, someone argued with "Why would you put it up in a public forum if you don't want feedback? It makes no sense. There's tumblr for that. Don't be a special snowflake and grow a thick skin."

Edited June 27, 2016 by Saltwater Croc

[+ Takeo212 1,079]

I admit, instinctively, I normally jump straight to giving a critque on someones artwork (or any other media) but if someone specifically states that they don't have any, I would respect that of course.

 

I spent a good few years on DeviantART and I was always open to criticism - how else does one get better? - but not all critiscism was nice. I even gave fair critique to a few friends - one of which was really grateful - and she clearly improved. Alot. She used bases and MS paint, now she uses tablet with SAI and her work is amazing now - though of course not 100% perfect, but still.

 

 

I give my criticism out of habit and personal whim - since I appreciate it personally - though not everyone states they don't want it so it can be "mean" at times.

Also, on that note, not everyone who wants criticism can "handle" it. I've had people who ask for feedback, but once given, they get annoyed and think your out to degrade and insult them and their work :/ 

 

Short version. I normally give criticism to anyone who posts art/screenies on here, but if they state they only want to show it off, I wouldn't post any then in respect to the artists wishes

[Tarq 746]

Yeah, I think if I were to post it would be critique. What else would I write about?

 

If the artist doesn't like the feedback then they aren't obligated to follow it, and its also very possible that they are trying to do something that the person providing critique doesn't understand. But they can't really make that clear until someone provides some feedback and the artist clarifies that. Otherwise, some people are just gonna think (not say) "that sucks" and move on; neither side benefits.

 

I don't think I could 'respect the artist's wishes' if they 'just want to show off'; I generally don't like show-offs so why would I show them additional respect? I think the only clause I could respect in this regard is if they also don't want others to say positive things either; they literally want nothing said, no upvotes or likes, no anything.

 

I also kind of disagree with some of the above posts that feedback shouldn't be negative; that's the bit of the work that could and should improve. The deliverance of feedback shouldn't necessarily be cruel but I know from experience that I've benefitted more from having people point out the bad parts of my own work and say how they could be better; "Dats ***** brah" should not be mistaken for negative criticism (even though it very slightly is, since hearing that repeatedly does say something in itself).

 

 

^This applies to the standard user. If I'm in any way familiar with a user and they appear more sensitive or fragile to me then, naturally, I'd approach them differently (perhaps having discussion via pm rather than openly). If they are of such a constitution though then I wouldn't recommend posting things online in the first place.

[Saltwater Croc 115]

@Tarq, when people say negative, I'm pretty sure they're implying INSULTING and not in any way constructive. As you said... "This sucks!" or "That is stupid!" and such.

Such feedback, at least for me, will fall on deaf ears and a cold shoulder. He or she will have wasted their time.

I do NOT believe in "If you can't say something NICE, then don't say anything at all." (However, I DO believe in holding one's tongue to prevent conflict or hurt)
On the other hand... "If you can't say anything CONSTRUCTIVE, then don't say anything at all." is a big philosophy in my life.

[Thaletos 96]

I voted for the "Yes I will" option.

 

It's true that if the artist clearly states that they don't want/stand any feedback/critics, then I'll possibly leave them alone. However, how can you get better if you don't accept critics? It's not like you must follow everyone's opinion nor that all feedback given is useful/constructive, but it will help you to get another view for your work, wich will help you to improve it (and helpful criticism exists too). I find that posting your work just to collect praises and likes it's... kinda sad, unless, of course, it's truly a flawless work of art, but that's something extremly difficult to achieve (specially if you can't stand a few critics on your work).

[Saltwater Croc 115]

I voted for the "Yes I will" option.

 

It's true that if the artist clearly states that they don't want/stand any feedback/critics, then I'll possibly leave them alone. However, how can you get better if you don't accept critics? It's not like you must follow everyone's opinion nor that all feedback given is useful/constructive, but it will help you to get another view for your work, wich will help you to improve it (and helpful criticism exists too). I find that posting your work just to collect praises and likes it's... kinda sad, unless, of course, it's truly a flawless work of art, but that's something extremly difficult to achieve (specially if you can't stand a few critics on your work).

Nobody is truly flawless.  Even the best of the best have things to learn. The true best of the best never STOP learning and always welcome constrictive critique.  lr.

[Amysaurus 734]

From a personal standpoint, I enjoy giving and receiving critiques for artwork. I love having a different perspective on how I can improve, and, in turn, I love providing that different perspective for others. Of course, not everyone is open to that kind of thing. 

 

Like with anything else, some people just aren't okay with receiving feedback on their artwork. For some artists, it's enough of a struggle to put their art out there for others to see, so any comment that isn't something positive becomes terrifying. For others, simply finishing a piece is exhausting, so the idea of going back to change something can make them irritable. And there are countless other reasons just like these.

 

Another thing to keep in mind is that some artists who respond harshly to a comment were actually looking for something else. For example, some people can hear "That looks great!" and find a good source of encouragement, while others will find it shallow and unhelpful. The former generally are looking for positive reinforcement, whereas the latter are probably looking for some suggestions on how to improve. 

 

 

Overall, if an artist is specifically asking that you don't critique their work, then you should respect that. Most of us are our own worst critics anyway, so there's a good chance that they'll figure out what you were going to suggest at some point.

 

If you don't know if someone wants a critique or not, my suggestion is to use the compliment sandwich (begin with a compliment, follow with your criticism(s), then end with a compliment). >>> (Ex. - "I really love how you did the outlines! I think you could work on your color scheme a bit more - it seems a little too dark. It's a solid piece overall, though.")

[+ Asharonapaul 276]

I love critiques, but I don't always receive them. If it's viewable to anyone, expect feedback, because lack of good feedback means they don't want to hurt your feelings, and I don't mean positive feedback, I mean feedback that really can help you improve with your art. And to be honest, I feel insulted when someone simply says, "Good Work" or "Looks Good", maybe it's because they don't know anything about the type of art it is, but most the time it feels like they aren't really interested in what is created.

 

But I mean, that's how it goes. You see art in a museum or hear music at a show, you critique it by dancing or not, by singing along or booing or leaving, or by talking about the artist's use of composition and tone and temperature of color. The internet is basically a virtual venue where people go to be consumers and interact. Imagine if video game developers like Capcom asked their customers to not provide feedback or critiques on their games, we would still have 2d platformers with that company, because they would not know if what they made needed to improve (bad example, because of market speculation and demand v supply principles< whatever).

and not everyone can afford to take classes to improve a hobby, so the consumer feedback loop is rather useful tool.