Art Criticism and Analysis

What this page covers

This unit collects ways to look at an artwork, describe it and judge it. Most of the material is mind maps, with a smaller set of flashcard decks, a few quizzes, some notes and a slide set. All of it was made by GoConqr users, so the styles differ. That gives you several explanations of the same ideas.

Where to start

1. Elements and principles of art sets out the basics: theme, means, style, composition, format and color.
2. How to write about art walks through composition and content, foreground, background and mid-ground, and mood and meaning.
3. Still Life Analysis turns the ideas into questions about line, shape, tone, light source and color.
4. Art theory,visual analysis covers description, space, tone, texture and line, with tips on writing more rather than less.

Frames and vocabulary

Several resources deal with frames, such as the subjective frame, which looks at the artist's personal experiences, dreams, memories and feelings. The flashcard deck Art Term 3 helps with the cultural frame and words like heritage, narrative, figurative, installation, symbol and motif. The deck on Niki de Saint Phalle asks about her sculptures, the Nanas and her shooting paintings. The deck Term 2 Art Study looks at the architect Glenn Murcutt and the artist Howard Arkley.

Using quizzes and maps together

Read a mind map first, then close it and try a quiz such as Art Quiz to see what stuck. Go back to the map for anything you missed. Flashcards suit short terms and names. The notes titled Judging art show how other students chose a favorite piece and explained why, which is a useful model for your own written response.

Where this unit fits

Art Criticism and Analysis sits in the strand Responding to and Creating Art, within Visual arts. It leans toward the responding side: describing, interpreting and explaining what you see.

Pick one mind map that matches your current task, work through it, then make your own version to check you can explain it in your words.