These days, it seems everyone’s a critic. From movies to music to literature and art, this world today is not suffering from any lack of personal opinions.
But that doesn’t necessarily mean most of the critics know what they are talking about.
Just like you can’t form an educated opinion about music if you don’t play or listen to music yourself, so too is it challenging (impossible) to appreciate fine art if you don’t really immerse yourself in the art world.
In this timely post, a renowned art critic (with feathers) offers a short tutorial on how to properly appreciate and critique art.
Step 1: Stand right next to the art and give it a good, close look.
Here, you are particularly looking for overall “shininess,” “reflectability” and “coloration” (grey, white and green being the preferred colors).
Step 2: If the art doesn’t respond right away with a return greeting, it is perfectly fine to go ahead and glare at it.
This can sometimes help to spark a useful dialogue (not to mention a remembrance of basic manners).
Step 3: No art critique session is complete without evaluating the artist’s choice of materials for overall “crispiness” and “mouth feel.”
This also accomplishes another crucial purpose – verifying for yourself that the art is genuine!
Step 4: Be sure to leave your calling card in case the artist has any questions.
Real artists always want to get even better at what they do and critiques can help with this. You always want to give the artist a way to contact you if they have questions or want more of your expert guidance.
Calling card? Would that be a dab of poop on the floor below, just so the artist knows you’ve been there?
Absolutely! You clearly have a very astute grasp of art appreciation!;)