Five Benefits of Art Critique

Join me at the Naperville Art League on Saturday, October 24 10-11:30 for a positive, constructive experience of art critique. Register at (630) 355-2530.

Have you ever considered having your art critiqued by an experienced art practitioner, teacher, or art historian? Does the idea make you recoil into the fetal position? As artists, exposing ourselves to this kind of scrutiny can feel potentially violating. But critiques benefit artists in many ways. Here are five reasons why:

1. Understand your goals in making art. Most artists work intuitively with subconscious choices and decisions. An experienced guide can help you uncover what lies beneath the surface of your art through thoughtful questions.

2. Learn how to describe your work using the language of art. Many artists are unaware of how to analyze their own work using appropriate art terminology. Critiques model how to be fluent in the language of art which supports artists in communicating about their work more effectively.

3. Get a handle on your work’s strengths and weaknesses.This could be the aspect that makes you want to avoid critiques. But to grow as an artist, processing constructive criticism is an important attribute. Knowing where to focus your energies to improve gives direction to your art endeavors.

4. Experience your art from the viewer’s perspective. Not everyone will see your art as you do. Once we put it out in the public realm, viewers bring their own interpretations to the work. Critiques can inform us how our work is received by others and frees us of the need to control responses.

5. Honor your artistic self. A good critique can strengthen your confidence and overcome the nagging voices all artists have that say you aren’t “good enough.” It can also teach you that the random opinions of others aren’t all that important, as long as you stay on the path to artistic growth. And that’s exactly where a good critique session will land you!

Denise Laurin is a figurative artist, art historian and presenter. She taught art and art history on the college level for twenty years. www.deniselaurinvisualart.com and www.youtube.com/@Deniselaurin