Studio critique is a skill. Done well, it makes the work sharper and the team braver. Done poorly, it creates silence. Five rules we use in the Basement: 1. Describe what you see before what you feel. 2. Ask what the work is trying to do. 3. Separate the person from the artifact. 4. Offer one concrete next move. 5. Leave room for disagreement. Good critique is not softer. It is clearer.