How to Make Art Critiques Fun and Engaging

Recently, we’ve been asked how we approach art critiques in our classrooms. If you’ve purchased one of our art curriculum units, you already know that we end every unit with a critique and self-evaluation. Why? Because discussing and reflecting on art is an important part of art education!

The National Core Arts Standards emphasize several important skills:

• Creating: Students generate and develop ideas through discussion.
• Responding: Students discuss artwork and learn to articulate their thoughts and feelings.
• Connecting: Students connect art to cultural and historical contexts to deepen their understanding.

Incorporating art discussions and reflection into our curriculum is essential, which is why we include critiques and self-evaluations at the end of every unit.

Now, if you’ve ever led a whole-class critique, you know it can sometimes make you want to pull your hair out! Students lose interest, participation dwindles, and suddenly, what should be a meaningful learning experience feels like pulling teeth. But it doesn’t have to be that way!

The Secret to Better Art Critiques? Change It Up!

Here’s what we do, plain and simple: We change up the format! We need to keep our students engaged. If we use the same boring critique format every time, we risk losing both our minds and our students’ interest. So, how exactly do we structure our critiques? We like to start with a classic: Feldman’s Model of Art Criticism.

What Is Feldman’s Model of Art Criticism?

Feldman’s Model provides a structured approach to analyzing and interpreting artwork. It consists of four steps:

1. Description: What do you see? Students objectively describe the artwork, including elements such as color, shape, line, and texture, without sharing personal opinions.
2. Analysis: How does the artwork work? Students examine how the elements of art and principles of design interact and contribute to the overall composition.
3. Interpretation: What do you think the artwork means? Students use visual evidence to suggest possible meanings, consider the artist’s intentions, and explore emotional responses.
4. Judgment: Is the artwork successful? Students evaluate the artwork and support their opinions with thoughtful reasoning and evidence.

We use this same model to guide our critiques, but we get creative with how students put it into practice!

Here are three examples of how we make art critiques more interactive and engaging.

1. Compare and Contrast: The Art Critique Venn Diagram

In this activity, students compare and contrast two artworks from their classmates’ Street Art Stencil Portfolios using Feldman’s Model. First, students display their artwork around the classroom. They walk around, observe the different pieces, and select two artworks to examine more closely. Using a Venn diagram, students describe, analyze, interpret, and evaluate each artwork. Then, they compare the two pieces, identifying similarities and differences in their subject matter, techniques, use of the elements of art, and overall meaning. This activity encourages students to look closely at their classmates’ work, think critically, and recognize that artists can approach similar ideas in very different ways.

2. Art Critique Scavenger Hunt

For our Magic Morphing project, we use an art critique scavenger hunt! Students upload a photograph of their finished artwork to a Google Slides presentation. However, you can easily adapt this activity for a traditional classroom by displaying students’ artwork around the room instead. The scavenger hunt follows Feldman’s Model while giving students a specific goal for each step.

For example:

• Description: Find an artwork featuring a furry animal. Describe what you see.
• Analysis: Find an artwork that uses a pattern. Explain how the pattern contributes to the artwork.
• Interpretation: Find an animal that is morphed with an everyday object. What do you think is going on?
• Judgment: Select an animal that is morphed with something that makes a noise. Make a judgment. 

Instead of simply asking students to look at artwork and answer questions, we turn the critique into an interactive challenge! The best part? We’re still teaching the same important critical-thinking skills, just in a different format.

3. Token Response Art Critique

Our final example is a variation of a token response critique. We do this one for our Linear Perspective Fantasyscape Unit. This version is digital, but you can easily adapt it for an in-person activity using physical tokens, such as paper cutouts or small classroom objects. To begin, students upload their finished artwork to a shared Google Slides presentation. Once everyone has added their work, students select a classmate’s artwork and place a “like” or “love” icon on it. Next, students complete a critique worksheet based on the artwork they selected. They describe what they see, analyze the use of art elements and design principles, and evaluate the artwork using specific evidence to support their opinions. The icons provide a simple way for students to respond to their classmates’ work, while the written reflection takes the activity beyond simply saying, “I like it!” It’s an easy way to encourage students to engage with one another’s artwork and practice thoughtful, constructive criticism.

Make Art Critiques Work for Your Classroom!

The big takeaway? You don’t have to reinvent the wheel to make art critiques more engaging. Start with a solid framework, such as Feldman’s Model, and find creative ways to help students practice those skills. Try a scavenger hunt, a Venn diagram, a token response, or another activity that gets students moving, thinking, and talking about art.

When we change up the format, students have more opportunities to participate, reflect, and learn from one another, and critiques become something to look forward to rather than another assignment to complete.

Want even more ideas? Check out our blog post on Why Game-based Lessons Are the Future  for additional ways to make learning interactive and fun.

And if you’re looking for ready-to-use art critique resources, check out our activities on in our store:

Visual Art Critique, Game-based, Fortune Teller, Middle & High School Art

Curator Challenge Art Critique, High School Art by Art Teacher Fusion

AP® Art & Design Mini-SI Critique Google Slides Template by Art Teacher Fusion

Elements of Art & Principles of Design Art Critique – Middle & High School Art

Visual Art Critique, Game-based, I Spy, Middle & High School Art

Digital Art Gallery with Commentary Critique Template for High School Art

Art Critique Google Slides Token Response Middle & High School Visual Arts

Art Criticism: How to talk about Art by Art Teacher Fusion | TPT

Thank you so much for reading! Have questions or your own favorite ways to conduct art critiques? Leave a comment below. We’d love to hear from you.