Why do a lot of artists hate their own work?

[keac]

I am currently a member and elected webmaster in an art club. On that day, we are gonna try drawing Cara Delevigne. And my seatmate shown me her chibi drawings and anime characters, and after that, I asked her to ink the drawing and she did. After doing the inking, she said, "It's awful isn't it?"

Another story is also a clubmate, he called himself a "failure" artist, even though I see his sketches very fascinating, I told him "No, you're not!", then he replyed, " Nah!"

And I also see other artists I encounter that really hate their own work even if I see it good.

I myself hate my work as well, my parents and siblings look forward to my drawings, but I'm too shy to show it to them since I hate it so much... Well of course, I drew a realistic drawing for once, then my mum said, "Wow! You're good at this!" Then I replyed, "No mum, it looks kinda weird."

[carloswebcomic]

Well, in my case it's mostly because what I have in mind looks a hell of a lot better than what I put on paper.

Don't forget that comics are throwaway art, you're not going to have many people staring at it for hours nitpicking every little detail. As long as it looks passable, people would think it's fine.

As an artist though, you spend a LOT of time looking at the same image and can pick out every little mistake that YOU and only YOU know it's there.

[Stellamari]

I've read somewhere that what an artist can visualize in their head will be years ahead of what their hand can actually draw. Like, you can draw what you visualize 10 years ago but you can only draw what you visualize now in 10 years time if you continue practicing. So to an artist, their work sometimes may not be as good as they anticipated.

[carloswebcomic]

Like, you can draw what you visualize 10 years ago but you can only draw what you visualize now in 10 years time if you continue practicing. So to an artist, their work sometimes may not be as good as they anticipated.

Does this work with other things? So if I visualise myself banging Jessica Alba, will I be banging her in 10 years time?

[jonufele]

This post was flagged by the community and is temporarily hidden.

[sophiekaldinski]

There is a discrepancy between what you see, how the brain is processing this and how well your hand is able to reproduce this on paper. The times where your hand is catching up to your eye are very frustrating because everything you do will look bad for you. Also that´s one of the reasons why you might notice mistakes only some time afterwards, if that makes sense.
That´s something super true for me as well, because I feel the times when I actually am getting better at drawing are the worst. A bit like having a steep climb while cycling.
The time I understood, that this was the reason I would never be completely satisfied with my art I got very calm, because it somehow helps me to focus more on the fun I´m having creating comics.

[teoferrazzi]

because your idea as it sits in your imagination will always be superior to the actual work. there's no way around it.

[zoonland]

The majority of artists are unsatisfied because what they have in mind is not easy, sometimes impossible, to translate on paper (sigh ).
Some says that they're failures or do bad works even if they know they aren't, because they like to hear other people saying "No, you're wrong, your art is amazing" and receive good opinions, compliments.

[Stellamari]

I don't know, try asking me again in 10 years time.

[AnnaLandin]

In my case, it's because I can see the flaws. I can see where it ended up looking different from what I originally wanted to draw. Other people don't know what my original idea looked like in my head, so they don't see the flaws the same way I do.

That said, I don't hate my own work - I just look at it can go "well, this could be better!".

[carloswebcomic]

Noooooooooo! I don't want to visualise you in there too!

[gateofselidor]

When you look at somebody else's art, you can see the pretty overall picture, and if you're artistically minded yourself, some of the technique. When you look at your own art, you can see the process that went into making it. All the areas you struggled, the places you cut corners or messed up and just left it, all the hours that went into making it, all the bits you could have done better with. So even if you're pretty satisfied with a piece, you'll probably still have mixed feelings about it.

[Doubtcent]

What I understand most is that YOU are your worst critic. Because you do have to make it, because you put it down on paper, you know your limits as an artist. So if what you draw isn't satisfying, which it never will, you will hate it in some way. But that then leads to the urge to improve, which is a very good thing.

If any of us considered our art perfect, there would be no need to keep practicing or creating. There would be no art to make.

[kazukitakamura126]

I believe artist think their art is bad sometimes because they are look and think about the most so they can spot flaws and misexecutions in their work. I can admit I have these moments too, but I have to remember if I am not good how come I can draw the human adult with almost perfect anatomy?

[insomniascrawl]

Personally I usually think my stuff looks terrible and for a lot of reasons actually. Partially because I'm still trying to get my digital stuff to look half as 'okay' as my traditional stuff, partially because I generally want to be better since I feel like things don't turn out the same way on the page as it does in my head...

But in general, I think everybody wants to be better at the craft no matter how good they are, whether they're just starting out, or whether they have amazing stuff, and maybe the better people get, the more they notice what could be better and the higher the expectations of their own skills become. It's not really a bad thing, since in a sense it pushes an artist to get better, but it is a crummy feeling to slave away at a piece of art, finish it and then while everyone else is saying how good it looks, you think 'it could be better' or 'the eye is not quite right'. It's a little frustrating at times, but it's a great driving force to keep at art and see more improvement I think.

[Kayke]

I'm one of those weird artists who is usually pretty proud of my work, hahaha. When I first finish it, I'll be really happy with it and want to show it off... and then a few months down the line I'll kind of be like "ugh, gross"... but even then I can recognize that it's still good work?

I think the self criticism comes from the fact that you spend SO LONG looking at your own work that you can see everything that's not perfect about it. But someone else is only going to look at it for a minute or two, not the hours you spent staring at it, so chances are they won't notice all the flaws the artist does.

[KSlinger]

From personal experience, hate like that is largely rooted in disappointment. You spend your life watching and admiring other artists and begin setting standards for yourself without even realising it. Then, equipped with what's possible, you begin imagining pieces you might create for yourself, only it isn't your style you're imagining, it's someone else's. You spend hours trying to put those thrilling scenes onto paper, and time and time again it doesn't look right. Nothing goes to plan. Soon every piece you make is a reminder that you just aren't there yet, and you begin to hide your work from other people in case they misjudge your mediocrity for complacency. Or worse, they mistake your lack of shame for pride. You start to draw only in secret, and when a piece is accidentally discovered you brush off compliments because you simply don't agree. Or your afraid their only humouring you. You insult your work and kick it around because you don't feel is deserves any praise. It's the deformed child of your dreams and reality, and you'd rather lock it away in the basement where no one will ever find it. It's not hate, though. It's disappointment yourself, at least in my experience.

[colinwmd]

I'm fairly new to comics and on a steep learning curve so the vast majority of my stuff I can see problems with. I don't hate it though, and it's good to see the improvements over the months.

I think the important thing for me is that my latest comic has less problems than earlier ones. And if I keep that up I'll get closer and closer to producing something I'm really happy with.

[GFalconDX]

I've had this problem before, but I learned that instead of just hating on your own work, but see where and how you can improve it.

[keii4ii]

Guys, don't blame your hand unless you have a condition that makes it difficult/impossible to move your hand in a precise fashion. The problem is your brain.

The 'crystal clear' imagery in your head is not actually crystal clear. The clarity is only perceived, felt, but is not real. If you could really see it in your mind as clearly as you can see an actual picture, you should be able to trace your own imagination on a blank sheet of paper. BUT YOU CAN'T!

Anyone can get a "clear" vision of, say, a cute rabbit rolling in the grass. But just because you can "see" it in your mind, doesn't mean you actually know what a rabbit even looks like. I don't, even though I physically see those fluffballs in my yard every night in warmer months. Long ears and fluffy tail, sure, but head structure? Body proportions? Nope! The clarity is not real.