What is a generic art style?

[kritsu60]

I know. I am like in a place where I am not even sure if I should trust them at this point because all I am getting is “not to be mean but” or “your story is not fully developed” and, “you don’t act like a 21 year old if you don’t have a good story.” Um....? Some Japanese artists started when they are 15 (or something like that. Ultimate Muscle artist being one of them) look at them now. In reality, it doesn’t matter what age you are. What matters is what we as artists produce. And if we are comfortable with what we make, then keep going!

[Kiweevil]

I'd like to see the art of the individual who called yours generic honestly

[inkycharland]

Yeah. It's always weird for me to "pick on" the manga style. I love manga. I really do. But it's just so overdone. I mostly worry that it's hurting young artists. I worry they get locked into it, and don't learn the fundamental of drawing. Or understand the fundamentals of visual storytelling.

I mean they can, but I feel like they end up working backwards and that can be really hard on a person.

[kritsu60]

So..... uh.... now, again, I don’t want to dis. But he/she isn’t who I thought they were when they told me the “truth.” Now, honestly he/she seemed to be a nice guy/girl. But as I talk to them... yeah... I don’t want to harm him/her, but it’s just kinda weird how they are acting like this now.

[gempompadour]

Exactly! We do our own thing and try to improve. It's your story and art, and if it feels like they're just picking on you and not actually trying to help just ignore them. You've won an award and are creating a comic, that's enough for now.

[Luminosophy]

The way I see it is that that individual will decide for themselves when and if they want to take it seriously. Those that do will be capable of seeking out resources and third party opinions on their own since we live in the age of the internet. I'm just more worried about the harm they do to themselves psychologically and emotionally when they get so caught up in wanting their social media numbers to reflect a hamster wheel grinding on a comfort zone.

I wish that that could be more of a focus when discussions regarding profitability come up rather than just "strategies to market". Buuut, that's a whole other tangent and I think I derailed enough lol.

[kritsu60]

Indeed! I learned that it is not healthy to take it all in. I should be able to have a say, but this person is kinda, how to put this, too full of him/herself? Idk their motive.

[Kiweevil]

See to me, without being mean but being an honest critic, their art really suffers from same face syndrome. It's a very common issue for developing artists who haven't explored their artistic capabilities for long enough. In my honest opinion, it is a bit unjust to call yours generic. But of course that is my opinion, because art is a very subjective thing. Everyone has room for improvement no matter how God-tier they appear to be. Don't let them drag you down, just focus on improving for your own happiness, not because someone gave you a rather unconstructive remark.

[kritsu60]

Right! Thank you! Yeah, it’s not only draining me, it’s kinda passion-killing. The friend also told me that I wasn’t “serious” about my characters and how I named them. Which I was totally confused again. But oh well. They don’t have to understand.

[gempompadour]

Are they like this with you all the time or just when it comes to drawing? Because if they are, you might want to either talk honestly with them or take a break from them for a while.

[kritsu60]

I mean, it seems it because when I share my creativity, they say “looks cool” or “I like it but...” no matter what I do. I mean, the games I play with them with character creation, this one person says “be serious man, tell me that you aren’t being serious with these characters” or something like that. Hell, I am working on a crossover story with my siblings and honestly I have been working on that a lot. So.... it’s no wonder why my story isn’t “well developed yet. Anyways, before I even share my crossover story, I am writing my (and my families) character’s backstory to get people to understand where they are coming from. It’s kinda an introduction. I don’t mean to be secretive. I am just doing my best not to spoil anything. I told them a little bit of my ambitions. But they went on and said, it seems like it’s not worked on well. When, I have told them this is what I have so far, without spilling the beans.

[gempompadour]

They're probably someone who sees flaws in everything. I know people like that. They're not mean intentionally but it does get grating when nothing is enough and they see no positives in anything. But it takes a toll on them as well, because the person they're the hardest on is themselves.

Maybe don't show your art to your friends for a while and work on your story in secret. That ensures you develop a base story the way you want it without your friends getting their fingers all over it while it's on its infancy.

[kritsu60]

True. Very true. I should be able to do what I want. It’s one thing to suggest. But it’s another to ridicule. Not to place harsh words at the table. But it doesn’t help me to draw. Or anybody.

[rajillustration]

Yeah it sounds like this guy is the type that thinks a critique means outright criticism. There's a difference, but a lot of really younger artists don't really see that.

Personally I had a teacher who once told me my art was generic and pedestrian--but that was a totally different situation, that was a teacher who was actively trying to help me reach my goals and find work in a very bloated industry, and someone who knew where my goals were, and how to reach them because he was already where I wanted to be. In my case I had to hit the books and really study anatomy and get more serious about my medium in order to change my style to better suit it's artistic purpose. He told me harsh critisism in that case because he had known me several years, and knew how I would take it, and knew how serious I was about being professional. He wouldn't just dunk that on a first year, youknow?

But in this case it sounds like they're just saying generic, not because they know what generic even "is" but because they don't like it and have no idea why. In the case of a teacher who can critique, they can give you advice to help you change that actually means something because they have professional experience. This person can't really give you any explanation, it sounds like, so we don't have any idea what they meant. They might not even know what they meant.

[kritsu60]

Darned.... yeah. That is possible. To be honest, he is younger than me and he is talking to me like he is my instructor. So...I don’t know.

[rajillustration]

Especially in the case of artists who are younger than you, they may be echoing the critiques that people have given them. Often people will critique on subjects they feel most vulnerable about in their own art.

Overall, I'd just let it drop. Both of you it sounds like are on a path toward being your best artist self, and it's a lifetime goal youknow? We're all on that path and are just figuring it out as we go. But if this keeps being an issue maybe ask them to lay off for a bit?

[JRHoch]

It's pretty clear that this person is a younger artist, still perfecting their craft. In general, get feedback from experts, not beginners.

[kritsu60]

Gotcha. Yeah, I don’t mind distancing myself from him at all because I don’t feel like he respects my stuff too much.

[kritsu60]

Indeed. It’s kinda icky honestly.

[spadedigsbutts]

I’m just curious, are the comments about being “generic” mainly from artists, or non Artists?