There are good ways and bad ways to give criticism. I thought I'd talk about them.
Even though most people know how to give proper criticism, some people in particular
are approaching it in much the wrong way, for both artists and critiques. Here we
go.

How to properly GIVE criticism:
1. First of all, don't try to be degrading. You're trying to give criticism to
ENCOURAGE the artist you're criticizing, to make them better. It won't help them
improve if you turn them off of art.

2. Make sure you actually TELL them how to improve. If you tell them what's wrong
with their art and don't tell them how to improve, you're merely wearing down the
artist and they may not wish to keep making their art public.

3. Be specific. If you tell them to improve based on broad observations, either they
won't be able to improve what you tried to specify, or they change their art too much
and may make it harder for them later on. If you tell them specifics, like "The
colours chosen for the clothes don't complement each other very well, try another
colour combo.", then people will know exactly what to improve next time, in this
case, the colour choice.

4. Try to make sure you have an actual idea of what you're talking about before you
try and talk about it like you're an expert. The artists will be able to tell.

5. Don't act like a know-it-all. Even if you do know a lot about art, study it, ect
ect, it still irks artist, especially starting artists, when you talk like an expert
about things they may not even know about yet.
*This rule especially applies to those who don't post art themselves but only
critique it.

6. Be polite. Seriously. I know, in our oh-so-primitive minds, manners are all but
forgotten, but people really appreciate it when a critique isn't a jab in the side
with the words and phrasing used.


How to properly RECIEVE criticism:
1. Don't take constructive criticism as an attack on your work. If the criticism is
done with the above rules in mind, they're merely trying to help you improve, and if
they're good at what they do, you should heed their advice.

2. Don't think you're only going to get good comments. Criticism is definitely a part
of improving as an artist, and if you block it out in favor of nothing but praise,
you'll never learn anything new.

3. Don't assume your art is always perfect, especially if you're starting out. There
will always be things that you can improve, even for experienced artists.

4. Be polite. Yeah, you too, artists. If someone posts a critique of your work, thank
them for it, even if you don't think you'll use the critique in your next work.
Sometimes, it's just personal preferences people comment about, and if you like the
way to do something when one other person on the whole entire planet doesn't, thank
them for their imput, but politely tell them that you don't think the piece needs to
be improved on in that fashion.

Moral of the day: Politeness and sense is your friend when it comes to criticism.
Seriously! People love it when you're polite.