Oh, you're an "artist"?

[Balcan]

How pretentious do you have to be to label yourself as an "artist"? I see a lot of talentless "art" around forums. And people compliment it. They praise it with offering anything that could be constructive.

I'm not going to lie and tell you your unimpressive anime fan art is good just to feed your ego. That's not going to help you improve, nor does it do much for my credibility as a critic. If you compliment people for bad output, they will only give you bad output.

Not directed towards anyone in particular, just a general observation.

[Akuyi]

I actually think it's the other way round. If there are people who cherish what you do, you feel more motivated. And I don't think there is an artist who will not improve as long as they keep drawing. Good guidance might make you improve faster, but I think some encouragement is still better than no feedback at all (or just harsh one).

And art is subjective. I wouldn't call a black square on white canvas art, other people hang it up in a museum.

[Diana]

I don’t think it is pretentious to label yourself as an artist. Its similar to a nutritionist, or a hobbyist. There are no qualifications or limits to being an artist. If you make art, you're an artist!

I agree, there is a lot of art that isn't very good, especially with the internet. However, calling it talentless is very harsh. A lot of people who post are on Deviantart and sites like that are just getting into drawing, sculpting and other medium. Everyone has to start somewhere. Sure they might not be spectacular at it, but they put their time and energy and passion into creating something. Thats not something to make fun of.

I don't believe in lieing, claiming some piece of art is the greatest thing ever, or anything like that. That is not helpful to anyone. I think it is much better to find something in a piece of art that is good or on the way to being good and comment about that. The whole piece might not be good, but the eyes they drew are! Or their colour palette they chose is very pleasant! Even with great artists, theres always something to improve. Its okay to leave critiques and comments, but they should never ever be directed at the artist themself or intended to crush or inhibit them. I get very tired of seeing (and hearing, actually) "this art sucks!" or "this looks like it was drawn by a 15 year old" or other non specific, not helpful, rude comments. I like getting critiques, but only if they are helpful- instead of "this colouring sucks", something like "This piece could benefit from higher contrast between the objects and their shadows.". Something with a suggestion and a resolution, or at least pointing them in the right direction. And even then, its up to the person to take your advice or not!

[Balcan]

I'm not about tearing people down or discouraging them. Not at all. You won't hear me give a critique without expounding on what can be bettered. I personally wouldn't categorize someone who has spent a great deal of time honing their skill with experience and perspective with some amateur sketching a Chibi or whatever.

And people say "asshole, if you don't have anything nice to say, don't say anything". But if you're used to having everyone sugarcoat things for you, then you're in store for a harsh reality because you won't always hear the things you want.

[MonkeyGirl18]

It really depends on their skill level. What may seem bad to you, could mean good to the person who drew it. If it was their best thing they drew and you saw how much they developed in their drawing, comparing to their older drawings, yeah, people would compliment them and say that it is good.

I like people "sugarcoating" their feedback to make me feel better about my drawing because it motivates me and makes me want to draw more, and when I draw more, the better I become. It's not the critiques that necessarily make the person a better artist, it's the person actually practicing. And if saying that their artwork is good to get them motivated to draw more, then so be it.

My drawing isn't the best, but when I compare them to my old drawings, I can tell how much better I have gotten.

Also, some people who comment may not be good artists themselves and when they see it, they think it's amazing.

[Lemon Cheesecake]

I haven't had much experience on other online sites, I generally am more of a lurker I guess, which makes me more appreciative of the courage it takes for some people to post their art work, especially when they know they may have a long way to go in honing their skill. I guess that is why I like the WIP, work in rogress, ones because you see how they develop.
As mentioned above, I think finding something the artist did well or is doing well and complimenting them on that is a positive reinforcement that they are on the right track but I do agree also if you make a comment on how they can improve put it in as a positive constructive comment and not just a nasty or negative criticism. I like to be critiqued but I don't like to be crushed! I am all for suggestions but not dictating.

I would like to see a constructive thread where people could post their art and then ask...how would I go about shading... or how do I manage proportions, etc on what they are struggling with in their art. Or suggestions where to find sites, like with the Chibi art, for those who want to do art but aren't very skillful and yet want to "fill in" the color or draw clothes etc on the bases.

[Hocus Pocus]

If people want to call themselves artists I don't mind even if they are drawing stick figures with huge boobs. lol I went to school for art and I don't like calling myself an artist because I feel like I'm always learning.

[DemonSeed]

What Hocus said. I have a tablet. I can do more then simple arts. But... I don't want to call my self an artist. And my mom is actually a painter, sooo... Anything that isn't digital, I think she can do better and so on... I am always learning :3

But I do agree with you on the sugar coating. I will tell people "I do like how far you have come" or that they "did line art very well" since I had seen their other pieces. But I am not going to pay for something that isn't to my liking to make them feel better.

[Watery Star]

I think it's polite to point out something positive about the picture before giving constructive criticism. And just because someone draws in a certain style, chibi/anime/cartoon, shouldn't be looked down on. There's artwork done very well in those styles. Sure you'll see beginner art of those but what do you expect from a beginner? If they practice and take the critiques to heart then they'll improve and might even turn out to produce professional artwork.
Now I know that there will always be those that will be blunt and rude. Sharing art does take courage. I think it's the people that leave nice comments that will hopefully outweigh the bad. It's the critiques that really help the artist and if they can't handle critiques then they do need to toughen up and learn that it's just to help them.
Not everyone has the ability to draw well so for those that can't they can be amazed by things you or I aren't impressed by. Anything better than a stick figure is good to them.

[ciel]

i don't disagree with you, but i think we should examine the goal of the creator in sharing their work in the first place. taking a look at the windlyn art forum may be helpful; there is a "critique" forum on windlyn, but currently only 1 topic compared to the 39 in the "show off" forum (located at hobbies > art).

i think a lot of what you see may simply be an expression of the human desire to share and be recognized. i'll agree that the flowery responses may not be the most practical or beneficial towards the goal of improvement, but i don't think it's necessarily bad to simply desire recognition or affection either. and as others have said, it can be encouraging.

i think critique can be very helpful in the right setting. when i comment on things, i try to find what i think was done well and explain why i think it was done well ("helpful"). i'll avoid pointing out what i don't think was done well unless they specifically request critique (the "right setting").

[ShiroGEM]

If people want to call themselves an artist, i'm totally OK with it. What irks me is when people call themselves professional artists but don't accept critiques or put themselves on a high horse. Of course if someone is a hobbyist, they're just drawing for fun. They might not need to see themselves wanting to improve, which in this case I would leave out criticism because they probably don't want it. There's always going to be bad criticism and I don't think professionals would want them either. I mean, what's the point of saying something like, "My 5 year old daughter could draw that."? All someone can get from it is that they're saying the piece is bad but what makes it bad? It all depends on the person.

[galled]

To me what differentiates an artist is whether they have an intent for their work (as opposed to randomly throwing something together and calling it "art"). If an intent is obvious I can internally "critique" whether they were successful or not. If I can't find an intent immediately, I'll usually try and think about the circumstances that existed during creation to see if the piece is somehow reflective of that. If I can't find that, I'll think if the piece moves me in some way. Barring any of that I just move on...