What do you consider bad art?

[Mosspaw0909]

I'm asking because I don't know if I'm good or bad. Everyone says I'm good but everyone I know can't draw except my best friend who's obviously way better than me but we're also different styles completely. So what do you considered to be bad in art? I'll post an example of my artwork once I get back to my computer that has the pictures on it.

[LVUER]

Post your arts, everywhere. And be sure to make (and post) plenty of them. You can post them here, on Deviantart, on Pixiv, and plenty of other places. If you really have a good art, (most) people will say they are good. If they are bad, just be prepared for the harsh comments and critiques (but it's good for you so you know where you're wrong).

For me it's simple. Bad art is when it's not pleasing on the eye.

[Mosspaw0909]

I see that make sense! Anyway heres my most recent drawing. I think it turned out okay except that I forgot the beads in her hair. whoops! http://img823.imageshack.us/img823/3966/bx67.png
Based off the sogn crier by Hatsune Miku

[LVUER]

Even when not talking about style, you still need to work on the anatomy. Other than that, just keep practicing and draw a lot.

[arachni42]

I'm asking because I don't know if I'm good or bad.

Well, here's the thing: there's a continuum. There are always going to be people who are worse than you and people who are better than you. Whether you lie on the continuum is strongly related to how much you practice and study. (By study, I mean things like reading tutorials, looking at other art and how it's done, doing and receiving critique.) IMO it's not important if you "know" whether you are "good" or "bad" -- those are just labels that serve as a distraction. After all, if you're "good" does that mean you should be complacent and not try to improve? If you're "bad" does that mean you should give up and not practice? NO! In both cases, if your goal is to make art, then you should simply focus on getting better.

From what you linked, there is a lot you can improve on. I think the color choice is very interesting -- the contrast of the orange and blue is striking. The wall could use some texturing on it, though; right now it looks too smooth. There are various techniques for doing that. The shadows on the person/bunny need to be adjusted in a lot of places to reflect the source of light. The shadows should be on the far side, not symmetrical.

I also like that you are doing a pose here, and not just the character standing there. Anatomy needs work, of course. Find reference pictures to help you draw the pose. Anatomy is an important foundation, regardless of style. Even if your style is, say, to have an oversized head, you can learn what things make an oversized head work and what things make it not work. (For example, the shape of the head in your drawing needs to be refined, and the neck is much longer than it should be.)

Keep working on it and have fun!

[LateWhiteRabbit]

I'm asking because I don't know if I'm good or bad.

Well, here's the thing: there's a continuum. There are always going to be people who are worse than you and people who are better than you. Whether you lie on the continuum is strongly related to how much you practice and study. (By study, I mean things like reading tutorials, looking at other art and how it's done, doing and receiving critique.) IMO it's not important if you "know" whether you are "good" or "bad" -- those are just labels that serve as a distraction. After all, if you're "good" does that mean you should be complacent and not try to improve? If you're "bad" does that mean you should give up and not practice? NO! In both cases, if your goal is to make art, then you should simply focus on getting better.

Oh, very good. I couldn't have phrased that any better. Probably the best advice you'll ever get with art. Bravo, Arachni42. That's some great advice.

It's very true, too. There is always a better artist than you. You'll always have the insecurities when comparing your art to someone else's, and the only solution is just to focus on getting better, not on whether you have reached some "good" or "not good" distinction. I've told the story on the forums before of a Disney artist I know who felt insecure when comparing himself to other Disney artists. He is a Disney artist, but still feels he needs to do a lot better, because everyone else at the studio seems to be better than him in his eyes! I felt the same thing when I transitioned from college to my studio job. I was better than most people in my college classes, but had a mild bout of terror when I got my studio job and found a large number of my co-workers were better artists than me. All you can do is get better.

Here's some advice from Michelangelo too:

What one has most to work and struggle for in painting is to do the work with a great amount of labour and sweat in such a way that it may afterward appear, however much it was laboured upon, to have been done almost quickly and almost without any labour, and very easily, although it was not.

Every piece of art you make will likely be just as difficult as the last, but the end result will keep getting better.

[crossover]

i honestly don't like my own art either, especially digital drawing. i can't even cell-shade

[Destiny]

Crossover, you don't have to cellshade?
There are plenty of styles to color a picture. Some people make it very smooth, others use hard edges. There is more then one way.

@Mosspaw0909
Some might stone me for this, but it is how I teached myself proportions:
Maybe try to trace photographs? Or at least copy them?
You can learn most by trying to copy the real world, but since people usually move (except you practice on sleeping people or someone is willing to sit in one position for hours), you can start with photographs. Draw a lot and try many different positions. Maybe also close-ups of faces, hands, feet, torso, etc.
Get a feeling for how a body looks, how it works. The joints, the muscles, the whole device that a human body is.

But your art isn't exactly bad.
There is definitly worse, even though there is of course better (but there is usually always someone better, even for professionals with amazing pictures).
If your whole game is in that style and you try your best to make it look as good as you can, then it might still be seen as a game with fine art.
"The Dreaming" from Taleweaver also has (or had, no idea, if the new version is actually out) also graphics that most people would describe as "rather bad".
But you get used to them and since everything had that style, you started to accept it perfectly fine.

So don't worry that much.
If the story is good, the characters believeable, then graphics won't matter THAT much.
In the worst case, ask one of the artists here, if they help you with your game until you find yourself ready to do that job yourself

[Deshtat]

I don't think there is such thing as bad art... or is there? I don't know...

But maybe you're talking about bad technique, or bad paintings? Then, I guess it depends of what you intend to do... I think that one has to learn about proportions, perspective, and anatomy, before one can choose an art style.
I know it's an hard thing to do. Nobody likes to spend hours on some academic drawings, but it's the best way to improve. It can take years, though, so don't give up.

I don't know if I'm being helpful right now x)

[pineapplepocky]

I'm an illustrator, and one thing that makes art good/bad is how someone can understand and pick up the idea immediately.
Another one is how 'beautiful' something looks. People determine by how detailed something can be, how anatomically correct it can be, how much unique style is put in it, whatever.

To be honest, most people whom you're close or the internet will butter you up with good comments. Many people are afraid to give an honest harsh critique because they don't want to be flamed as 'the bad guy'. And btw, just showing one piece of your best work doesn't determine good art, sometimes showing a bunch of things brings the best of you out, as well as determining your weaknesses.

Always ask yourself 'why do you think it looks bad?' You should try to always find an answer. When you do, that means there's always room to improve. Many times people will only point out the good in a picture but not bad.

If you think there's nothing bad about your work, that doesn't mean you should stop practicing though.