Thankyou so much for the critique and draw over. It was really helpful. I was kind of in the dark about what was not working. I just knew it didnt feel strong enough. It is so helpful to have someone point out what is working and what not 
@Moana-Maureen that's awesome. I feel in the dark too, I don't know what I need to be focusing on. I guess that's the benefit of in person school.
@Moana-Maureen I've been having this conversation with my wife about my work. It is hard to know what I need to improve on when there is no direction. I just try to implement at least one piece of advice they give on someone else's critique that I think might apply to my work. Try and see whats working for others. Sometimes I feel like the rules for the prompt are pretty strict and sometimes they are pretty liberal about what they want. Hard for me to tell.
@Matthew-Oberdier yeah, its tough sometimes when you dont have that direct feedback.
@SheerArt Thats what I try to do too. About the rules for the prompt, to me it seems they always make individual choices. If they like the overal look of the piece they might be inclined to let some things slip through that dont fit the prompt. on the whole I also find it hard to tell though. It would be so great if we could get critique on a regular basis but that would be tough to manage I guess.
@Moana-Maureen IDK, this prompt was pretty open ended. A "situation" is about as non-specific as you can get. I think a more descriptive prompt might have produced the kind of results they were looking for as far as story elements.
@K-Flagg Yes! We will get it uploaded soon!
I was working while this was on but had it on in the background so looking forward to rewatching it and seeing the bits I missed. Wow, it looked like such an insightful session, I really love the draw-overs it really makes things so clear. I would love it if we could have one of these full critique style sessions occasionally as I love watching critiques like this. Congrats @Melissa-Bailey-0 and @ruth 
Website: lizardillo.co.uk
IG: instagram.com/lizardillo
@lizardillo thanks so much!
And I feel the same — love the more relaxed feel of a critique session where they take more time with pieces and do draw-overs. You’re right, sometimes it is helpful to see a visual of what they’re critiquing … guess that’s cuz we’re artists and visual people. 
@Matthew-Oberdier In the work world, you will not always have very specific directions. I work for a tabletop game company for some years now, and sometimes the directions are something like this - we need X, and it has to be amazing. Try to beat that when it comes to non-specific. LOL I'm the one who has to come up with what is needed. 
@TaniaGomesArt I like the concept of this. I'm to green to just be given complete creativity if I was given a job lol. Is it a sink or swim situations when they ask you to do a project? I would be stressed out, but you could really build up some chops.
@TaniaGomesArt same! While I don't work in the tabletop game industry, I've had the same experience with clients (mostly illustrating children's books for very small publishers or self-publishers). In fact, sometimes when they have a really specific brief, I've found it harder because they have a definite idea of what they want to see but may not be communicating it clearly.
The Critique Arena prompts are very similar to what I've experienced in real life as a freelance illustrator. This is good practice ... and we get feedback from professional illustrators with a ton of real-world experience!
illustrator - author - smiley person
mbaileyart.com
instagram.com/mbaileyart/
@Melissa-Bailey-0 that's interesting. I would expect that illustrators get some creative license on scenes , but not be asked to write key plot points.
@SheerArt Is just the way our team works I guess. In the beginning I got a bit stressed out yeah, but you get used to the responsability, to actually need to solve the problem and come up with good solutions. It's a thing of actual work, you have to do it well no matter how many times you change it, and you learn a ton with it. Right now I really like this - full creative freedom (that's the dream right), and I don't remember the last time I needed to do big changes on a work for them.
@Melissa-Bailey-0 Yeah, very specific guide lines can definitely be very limiting. Sometimes is a pain to do something when the brief is so strict that limits our ideas a lot. And even a bigger one when the client is not communicating the idea well and it becomes a lot of back and forward until we are able to understand what they want.
@Matthew-Oberdier Well, I see it a bit like this. If they are hiring a professional of a specific field (being design or illustration), the objective is that the pro solves the "problems" of that field, not that the pro is just a technician that only does what they ask. My bosses are great and they have better aesthetic notion than a lot of other clients, but in the end, they are not designers, so they leave the design stuff to me, while they can dedicate to their part, which is creating the games. I'm assuming in the illustration field things may work more or less the same in general.
@Matthew-Oberdier just like in any other job, every client is different. In one 3PP podcast, the guys talked about how the bigger the publishing house, the more creative freedom they got. While I haven't worked with any big publishers yet (or even mid-level), it's been my experience that the very small publishers I've worked with have given way more creative license than some self-publishing clients I've had.
That's not to say that all self-publishers are control freaks. They're not. But one of the reasons many choose to self-publish is that they want more control over the process. That translates over to working with an illustrator. Some self-publishers have been specific in their illustration notes -- they basically wanted an illustrator to be their hands to paint the picture they envisioned in their head. It can be a frustrating situation for both parties.
But like I said, that's not everyone. I've had awesome experiences working with self-publishers, too. One of my current projects now is working with a self-publishing author for the second time. They've been great -- we keep communication clear and honest, talk about the scenes and characters, and then they basically say "go do your thing." So yeah, some self-publishers are very happy to give illustrators creative license.
@ruth Love the perspective! Great job!
BTW, the recording from last week's Critique Arena is now in the subscription!
Director of Sunshine and Rainbows
lisa@svslearn.com
@LisaF awesome!Thank you!
@ruth Congratulations to Lentl! I just got to watch the recording of the critique session and I was happy to see the cute pig was one of the winners 
@lizardillo @Lisa @Oana Thanks so much! I'm over the moon 
And so is Lentl. 
I was working while this was on but had it on in the background so looking forward to rewatching it and seeing the bits I missed. Wow, it looked like such an insightful session, I really love the draw-overs it really makes things so clear. I would love it if we could have one of these full critique style sessions occasionally as I love watching critiques like this. Congrats @Melissa-Bailey-0 and @ruth
