The SAQA-Artique Facebook group is open to all SAQA members. Members trust in each other to make honest comments about the issues that they wish to have critiqued. The critiques are all in the spirit of a shared interest in quilting as an art form and improvement of each person's talents.
Members are asked to post one of their works for critique at least every three months and also to comment on the work of others. Sometimes there will be 5-6 comments on a work; sometimes up to 15, with a back and forth dialog and Q&A; sometimes the artist will repost a picture after making some changes that were suggested. Participants are generally direct though kind with their remarks. All in all, everyone can benefit from seeing and analyzing the work of others and offering and reading comments relating to the work. Don't let the number of members worry you; there are only about one or two new posts a week.
Suggested guidelines for critiquing an artist's work fall into four categories: description, evaluation, interpretation and etiquette.
Description:
- What do you see? What are your first impressions of the work?
- What is the most or least important part of the work?
- What do you think the artist had in mind while producing the work?
Evaluation:
- How are materials and techniques appropriate/inappropriate to the idea?
- What are the specific strengths/weaknesses of the work? (These might be conceptual, technical, material, formal, or the interaction of any of these.)
- What things could be improved to make the work stronger or more powerful, and how might they be modified?
Interpretation:
- What is the emotional or psychological impact of the work?
- As a viewer, how does the work make you feel?
- What do you think the maker's intent was, and to what extent did s/he succeed?
- Based on the artist's statement accompanying the photos, how do you feel about whether s/he accomplished their goals?
Etiquette:
- Assume that we are all here for positive reasons; keep comments positive and constructive, not negative and destructive, and certainly never hurtful.
- Respect each other's efforts and work.
- Comment in ways that inform the artist about how the work might be improved or what it is within the piece that works very well. Liking someone's work is fine, but it does not inform them about what it is that you like/dislike nor why.
- Ask lots of questions about the work: "How do you intend to . . ." or "Have you considered . . ." or "What do you think the effect would be if . . ." Questions soften the critique.
- Be honest. If you feel some part of the design needs more attention, say so.
- Be tactful and kind. All comments will be moderated and any deemed unsupportive or hurtful will be rejected.
