I'm never gonna tell a fledgling artist I don't like their work (if they want a critique on something specific, that's a different thing) because I want them to trust their own instincts more than my take. Developing that eye, with their own tastes and intention, is more important than my feedback. - ThreadSky

trungles.com • 99 days ago

I'm never gonna tell a fledgling artist I don't like their work (if they want a critique on something specific, that's a different thing) because I want them to trust their own instincts more than my take. Developing that eye, with their own tastes and intention, is more important than my feedback.

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prairiehamster.bsky.social•99 days ago

I've definitely noticed my artist friend who I admire so much's technique of pointing out the bits she thought came out really well helps me actually know where to GO with what I'm doing. Also that boost when it was something I also felt I'd done better than previous attempts.

thwwipstickers.bsky.social•99 days ago

Best advice I ever got was from an art professor…the meanest nastiest mother fucker I’ve ever met…also the best art professor I’ve ever had.

He told me one day “ stop trying to be a good artist…nobody is a good artist , they’re just better artists than they were the day before “

thwwipstickers.bsky.social•99 days ago

It’s been nearly 20 years and that still sticks with me..I’m not trying to be good…I’m just trying to be better.

trungles.com•99 days ago

Yes!

scriptorsapiens.bsky.social•99 days ago

When I was in college doing critiques, I always made sure to lead off with something I liked (or everything I liked) before going into the critique.

cellsdividing.bsky.social•99 days ago

I wish my high school art teacher hadn’t been so negative about anime style art. He said artist drawing cartoons was a waste of their talent and skill. I’m 43 and even though I disagree it left me with an insecurity that still nags me all these years later.

helmll.bsky.social•99 days ago

it's mostly mid level artists on their path to try to sort out their own feelings about their own art-in-progress that have acute reactions to percieved deficiencies in other people's beginner art anyway. After a point you just fall in love with 'mistakes' as well, I find

trungles.com•99 days ago

I agree! I always find those mistakes charming. And I love when artists pick up on that charm and incorporate their accidents into their toolbox as intentional choices.

coreybrickley.bsky.social•99 days ago

Yeah I always tell students you can just ignore feedback if you don’t like it you’re the one with the vision, im just offering suggestions to help that vision based on how I solve problems and have seen others solve problems

pamwishbow.bsky.social•99 days ago

Learning who to take feedback from is also a learned skill!

trungles.com•99 days ago

Yes!!

vsorin66.bsky.social•99 days ago

It's a most intriguing thing to see the scope of an artist's growth, seeing how praise can motivate and being able to see how confidence helps their work blossom into the purest form of their desires.

It warms my heart seeing even established creators go through this growth as well. ☺️

trungles.com•99 days ago

Yeah, you never really stop figuring stuff out!

kikidoodle.bsky.social•99 days ago

Yup! This is why I've always focused on teaching a person to look for themselves rather than tell them they drew something wrong or that I don't like it. They need to develop their own eye which will be different from mine, and their foundations will improve over time through practice.

trungles.com•99 days ago

Also identifying the problem is one of the most important skills you can develop! And then at some point it becomes subjective, and I want artists who can confidently make a series of choices to solve for the problems they want to iron out.

kikidoodle.bsky.social•99 days ago

Yup! Additionally, I've been asked to teach students who are far more technically strong than me. If my entire method of teaching had been telling them ways *i'd* have painted the thing better, I'd be holding them back.
But offering new ways to look at things gives them options they choose from.

tarrlok.bsky.social•99 days ago

And knowing what you want to/can fix/improve and being able to change it are two very different things. A lot of people can point out flaws but not give actual guidance. Often those flaws are just subjective. It's like being told in kindergarten you absolutely have to color inside the lines.

trungles.com•99 days ago

I mean, in the case of kindergarteners, that’s about fine motor skill development as much as it is about learning your colors

tarrlok.bsky.social•99 days ago

Oh interesting, I never realised that and had been wondering about what struck me as a kid as arbitrary. Similar with the "you must push really hard on the color pencil, no amount of paper to be seen under it allowed" might also have been a case of "keeping kids busy for as long as possible"🤣

dcred.bsky.social•99 days ago

also, as a one-time fledgeling artist myself, I can also confirm that they probably dislike their own work plenty without external help

trungles.com•99 days ago

Plus it’s needlessly discouraging coming from a stranger. You’re not going to want to practice if it feels just awful to do it. Slows growth.

saccharinesylph.bsky.social•99 days ago

I do this with my students; I'm always floored by how their comic pacing/paneling instincts in particular are SO good so young, but they get tangled up on if it's "drawing good" or not. I gave all of mine pens the last zine class I had so they couldn't get hung up on erasing and perfection.

trungles.com•99 days ago

Fundamentals take time; if you keep practicing, you get comfortable with them eventually! Early stages is when I want you to find the fun in it, even when things look goofy to you (which just means you already have a notion of your tastes!)

stupidartpunk.bsky.social•99 days ago

This is really good advice. I always try to find the excitement in their work and highlight it. So many students think they need to grind hard and never have fun or something. And its like joy can also propel you forward. Lets have some fun!

trungles.com•99 days ago

People immediately misreading this as "you don't need critical feedback," and I will tell you for free that your reading comprehension both sucks and is not my problem.

xona230.bsky.social•99 days ago

No I want you to tell me what I'm lacking. If I can take criticism I'll just be living in my own echo chamber or stagnation. Growth comes with comfort pains. Rather clone the hill then settle for the bench.

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