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College art programs certainly have a reputation for being extremely classist. If your art doesn't match what the wealthy 1% thinks is art, your art is "bad". Which they'll defend with a non-answer or a load of pedantic, intellectual BS. That said, my experience with that is entirely secondhand.

Did the prof tell you that was the goal up front? Because otherwise how does that teach anyone anything!? 🫠

Ugh hate this kind of teaching. It was esp annoying when the rude teacher took all the credit for good student work and used them as trophies, proof that his methods worked. The students who came out of that "better" would've done so without that "help." Their work was great in other classes too.

I don't even know what lesson this is supposed to be teaching

I reached university level in the early/mid 2010s but preparing for an architecture course I had heard all the stories of lecturers smashing models even if it was good to harden you up to bad criticism. Came as a mild shock when I reached university they stopped doing that.

Though I still remember my first architecture critique where the course leader shouted my group out for the drafted design (something I spent two days straight drawing) looking much more well-designed than the final result. (we had to design a wearable structure)

(2005-08) I avoided being a target, but in one class I had, a student had their assignment ripped up by the instructor in front of everyone. There was a lot of "this sucks redo it". Some of the instructors would practically bully students that were not very good artists

I don't like how they destroy students work as part of "the lesson" and think it's not just instilling anxiety and stress rather than empowering students. It would suck to even want to look at whether your figures were still there :/

I think the rationale back then was ‘the real world is rough so we have to get you used to it’. Idk if it was like that in earlier times, but by the 00s, bosses & clients never hurled stuff across the room 🤷🏻‍♀️

Also experienced this kind of teaching, though indirectly (saw it happen in the room across the hall.) I never got my work publicly destroyed, but I definitely got some brutal verbal critiques and more brutal grades. I was the sort who had always done well academically and had a chip on my shoulder-

So it may have actually been a net gain for my personality to learn that not only was I not the best, I wouldn’t ever be. I stuck it out and learned a lot. A LOT of people quit though, and it definitely messed a lot more people up.

I will say I have consistently been appreciated by art directors for taking critique well and responding quickly, but I can’t help but feel there might be nicer ways to learn that skill.

What in the world 😨

Prof was a national award winner so he could more or less do as he pleased. It's just part of that 'tough love' shit that gen of profs seemed to like to do (really I think they were just jerks that finally got some power).

The entitlement and ego...ugh, learning under any teacher like that would be a nightmare

I left after 1 year. I felt like this is BS & I wasn’t learning what I wanted. Instead of getting thick skin, what I learned was that some people in this industry are difficult, & you either work with that, or walk away when it gets too much. Thankfully my actual clients have never been as bad.

the same "college will be so much worse" bullshit we were getting in highschool.

I never studied art in a formal setting, but that reminds me of my friend's story, Prof. inspecting his illustration made to pass the course: "This, in principle, is fine as it is, but you don't have the right mindset to pass this course yet, so bring me another next month."

I would have told that prof where to go (Hell would have been my first choice). I'm SO glad I went to college for biology and NOT for art or design!