quizzes 1-4 study guide

Niagara Falls was a popular subject for North American artists in the second half of the nineteenth century because it symbolized:

-America's territorial expansion -the presence of God in nature -grandeur -the beauty and power of nature

Duration, tempo, intensity, scope, setting, and chronology are

-basic attributes of time -terms that describe time -central tenets of time-based art -attributes of film

Which of the following can be considered part of visual culture?

-comic books -roadside billboards -oil paintings -TV commercials

When conducting a formal analysis of a work of art, one should probably consider the artist's use of:

-emphasis -color -texture -scale

Which of the following can create a pattern?

-fish scales -the warp and weft of woven cloth -stacks of cans -dried, cracked mud

When using a series of squares that are exactly the same shape, implied depth can be achieved by ________.

-relative size -alternating value -overlapping -relative position

When conducting a formal analysis of a work of art, you would probably want to consider the artist's use of:

-scale -texture -color -emphasis

Shazia Sikander and her miniature paintings

-the process is ritualistic and methodical -she received training in Pakistan -windows and doors suggest the outside world and spirituality -10-20 layers of paint are needed to build up color

Artists draw for many reasons, including:

-to resolve design issues in preparatory sketches -to define their ideas -to plan for larger projects -to record their visual observations

We have discovered paintings at Pech Merle in France that have been made by artists dating back ________ years.

25,000

Even though Jeff Koons did not make the sculpture Rabbit with his own hands, it is considered his work because ________.

he designed it

If vertical lines communicate strength, horizontals calm, and diagonals action, then a vacation resort might want to choose a logo consisting of ________ lines in order to show peaceful repose.

horizontal

Iconographic Analysis

identifies and interprets the symbolic meaning of signs and symbols used within an artwork

True or false: artists used oil paint on cave walls thousands of years ago.

false

Rachel Whiteread is a British sculptor who fills empty spaces with concrete. For her work House, created in 1993, Whiteread made a concrete cast using an entire house as her mold. What assumptions might a viewer make about mass in the context of Whiteread's work? How does it help us to understand the difference between mass and volume?

A viewer of Whiteread's work could assume that a good majority of the meaning/depth to her works lies within the mass. It was no random choice that her artistic process included the use of concrete- that in itself has meaning. Using concrete helps to highlight the difference between mass and volume because it shows the difference between the weight of an object as opposed to the amount of space it occupies.

The highly polished surface of Anish Kapoor's sculpture Cloud Gate means that the viewer and the city of ________ become a part of the work, in its reflection.

Chicago

The earliest existing printed artworks on paper were created in this culture.

China

Graffiti artist Banksy has created many works in public places without permission, but he has also become popular with the public. How do you think these different settings affect the way that viewers react to his artworks? What is it about spray paint that makes its artists thrive on creating works in unexpected places and away from traditional art venues?

Different settings add an element of surprise, spontaneousness, and uniqueness to Banksy's works. Furthermore, one major element of spray paint that makes its artists thrive on creating works in unexpected places and away from traditional art values is the element of non-conformity/rebellion. Vandalism is illegal and thus street artists risk arrest or even jail time solely for creating their public works for people to enjoy- this draws extra attention to the works because they demand to be seen and heard, in other words they assert that they have an important message to convey.

This Spanish artist created artworks in both print and paint that depict horrific events that happened during the French occupation of Spain between 1808 and 1814.

Francisco Goya

Kara Walker's piece Insurrection!... references the well-known Southern historical novel .

Gone With the Wind

Why does Kiki Smith view herself as a populist artist? Explain your answer thoroughly

Growing up in a working class environment, Smith witnessed the lack of accessibility faced by second-class citizens. Smith views herself as a populist artist because her intention is to send a message to the masses, her mission and purpose behind her art is to convey that art is for everyone. Smith's works more accessible because they are extremely personal; especially her emphasis on the human body and the female form. Her style is clarifying and informative as opposed to complicated. Furthermore, figures/people in her works are ambiguous with the intention that the viewers may be welcome to incorporate themselves within.

What did René Magritte express to his viewers when he wrote "Ceci n'est pas une pipe" ("This is not a pipe") on his work The Treachery of Images?

He was expressing that people must think more deeply and abstractly about art- as he was stating that the pipe was in fact a picture of a pipe and not an actual physical pipe. The picture is simply what is sitting right in front of someone, it is up to the beholder to find the meaning in it

Shazia Sikander makes miniature paintings and large installations. What similarities and differences do you notice in her small scale and large scale work? How do veils appear in each? What do veils represent to her? What do they represent to you?

Her color schemes and style overlap in both her small and large scale works. Veils seem to appear simultaneously with women in her works, as if it is a key part of their story/identity. Veils are her way of portraying that she explores the Hindu-Muslim border. Veils to me seem to represent the unity of two otherwise differently categorized cultural identities.

In one of his lithographic images, this French artist depicted the aftermath of a violent incidence of police brutality, where a family was killed in a case of mistaken identity.

Honore Daumier

Which of the following artists created Paradise Garden in Summerville, Georgia?

Howard Finster

Robert Rauschenberg made his own artwork by erasing parts of another artist's creation. Do you think that the eraser is a valid artistic medium when used in this way? Which of the two artists do you think deserves more credit for this work? What factors affect your decision?

I do believe that the eraser is a valid artistic medium when used in this way, because who's to say that the absence of certain elements of a work of art can't be equally as meaningful or valued as their presence? I believe that both artists should be recognized, similarly to the way that singers are recognized when other artists cover their songs. The original creator always deserves acknowledgements, but that is not to say that creating a unique change to a work should discredit the work on the basis of "copying."

Why do you think that Andy Warhol chose the process of silkscreen printing to depict his subjects, be they famous icons or humble cans of soup? What does the process he used add to the meaning of these artworks? Do you think that they would have been as effective if they were paintings?

I think Andy Warhol was attempting to capture the vibrant energy that encapsulates all things. Color is one of the most effective and immediate ways to convey a feeling or vibration, and the use of so many vibrant, contrasting colors creating a burst of life from an inanimate printing (whether it be of a living or non-living thing.) I do not think that quite the same effect could have been achieved with painting, the print technique itself adds a certain powerful universal effect to the works.

Compare ancient Greek ideal human proportions with the art of the Yoruba. In your opinion, which culture uses proportions that are most descriptive of the human figure? Why?

I think that Greek ideal human proportions are more physically descriptive of the human figure because they are more realistic/life-like. However, I think that the Yoruba use proportions that are more emotionally and culturally descriptive of the human figure, because certain elements are emphasized as "more important" than other parts. For example a statues head and breasts would likely be larger than the torso to show that those parts have more value.

Printmaking is a process-oriented art form. The artist must be methodical and determined to get the best results. Which of the processes discussed would allow the most spontaneity? Which seems the most rigid and elaborate? Which process would you use to create a self-portrait that expresses your personality? Why?

I think that block printing is the most rigid printing process overall because it seems to have the least wiggle room and room for creativity or change. Oppositely I think that either embossing or monotprinting have the most elaborate methods, with embossing allowing for the most spontaneity. I would likely use embossing to create a self portrait because I consider myself a very different and unique person and so I would want my self portrait to be expressive, and more importantly one of a kind.

Name three brand logos that don't use words. Do you think these logos are more powerful because they don't incorporate words? Why or why not?

I think that these logos are more powerful because they don't incorporate words. Lack of words implies that the company and logo speak for themselves, and have a straight forward mission. It also alludes that they have thought of everything, and are efficient.

In ancient Peru, people placed a high value on objects made of wool. In Japan, ceramic tea bowls are a greatly esteemed form of art. What form of art do you consider to be the highest? Explain your answer. Do you prefer this art form for personal reasons, or do you think you are influenced by the opinions held by your culture or society? How is your answer influenced by such concepts as beauty, value, and craftsmanship?

I would consider marble statues to be some of the highest value art. In general when I think of high society art, I immediately think of sculptures and statues. Marble and ivory are very expensive, especially for large statues, and the statue of David is always a reference of mine for fine art

An example of a representational artwork

Johannes Vermeer's Girl with a Pearl Earring

Taking four years to complete, the Sistine Chapel ceiling was painted by this artist in sections using the buon fresco method.

Michelangelo

Frank Gehry's Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao, Spain, and Louise Bourgeois's sculpture Maman exemplify many of the themes of this chapter. Identify two of the elements or principles discussed in this chapter that either the architect or sculptor have used in creating their artwork. How have these artistic devices been employed, and what effect do they have on the viewer?

Louise Bourgeois does a stunning job of using size as a means to convey meaning in her work. Maman is a very large sculpture thats meaning would likely be lost if not for its size. Because of it's enormous stature, Borgeois is truly able to express the 'protector' element of her mother. Frank Gehry Guggenheim emphasizes shape and color in order to achieve his style. The silver/reflective uniformity of the buildings combined with their unique compilations of shapes creates unique, eye catching architecture.

The work now known as the Watts Towers was in fact given a different title by its creator. That title was ________.

Nuestro Pueblo

Compare the prints of Adam and Eve by Dürer, Beckmann, and Rembrandt (2.3.8 , 2.3.9 , and 2.3.10 ). Each uses a different intaglio method. Describe the visual differences between the images, the technical differences between the processes, and explain why you think each artist chose that particular method. How does each process affect the final image? What might the different processes and artistic styles imply about the character of Adam and Eve?

Remembrandt's process creates an ethereal, foggy, and almost story-book like feel to the scene, whereas Durer's process seems to capture the more naturalistic elements surrounding Adam and Eve while simultaneously enhancing their more adult form of nakedness. Meanwhile, Beckman's more spacious, minimal, and colorful method produces a different essence from the scene entirely, Adam and Eve appear more simply human, less corrupted with original sin.

Compare and contrast the work of Laylah Ali and Sarah Sze. What were your initial reactions to each artist's work? How are the two artist's approach to making their work different? Do they share any similarities in their approaches or final outcomes? What do you think each artist intends to communicate to audiences through their work?

Sarah Sze's work initially made me think of scrapbooking, as it was very much collage-style work. I thought she had a much more abstract approach. Laylah Ali's work reminded me of something I might have seen in a children's illustrated book. While her work had somewhat of a pasted-together construction paper like effect, it was more graspable and concrete than Sze's work. Sze bases her work around "the every day" and utilizes seemingly mundane materials to create "big picture," expansive works. Her work has a graphic design element to it because it is precise. This is similar to Ali's meticulous style, although Ali is far more particular in her paintings. I think that Sze tries to communicate that the small things in life are what create the bold, tantalizing experience that is life. Ali, very oppositely, uses very minimal "clutter" in her work to make large statements out of seemingly small figures.

The Nazca Lines are engraved into the surface of the earth, but the image can only be seen from above. Since this artwork was made before man had the ability to hover above the Earth, what reasons might the artist(s) have had for creating this work?

Some of the theories that have been suggested are that it dictates some kind of agricultural or religious calendar or possibly a map.

Why might the Buddhist monks who make sand mandalas employ radial balance and symmetry in their work? Do you think that using these principles creates a gestalt unity between the visual look of a mandala and the ideas that it expresses?

The monks do this because the process of creating the mandala is just as much, if not more, important than the finished work. Using these principles creates a gestalt unity between the visual look of the mandala and the ideas that it expresses. It is physical proof of the process.

Before making a painting Shazia Sikander often stains the paper with tea.

True

Why is it important to understand the context in which art was made?

Understanding the context of art helps us understand the art more fully. It can indicate religious or economic inspirations, and reveal information about the artist or patron.

In a letter to his brother Theo, Vincent van Gogh wrote about The Night Café: "I have tried to express with red and green the terrible passions of human nature." Discuss what Van Gogh meant by this statement, and how color helps communicate this idea.

Van Gogh was referring to the gawky mix of people he observed at this cafe (such as prostitutes and local drunks) being depicted in the "ugly" and loud contrasts between the red and green hues of the walls and pool table. The uncomfortable conflict of the colors perfectly convey's his distaste for the cafe.

In Kara Walker's work Insurrection!..., the viewer's shadow is projected into the scene. What purpose does this serve, according to Walker?

Walker states that the viewer's shadow is incorporated into the work to encapsulate the collective history of slavery (from all racial perspectives.)

When Raphael was preparing to paint his fresco The School of Athens he did a large drawing called ________ to help place the design on the wall.

a cartoon

The ancient Egyptian depiction of the journey of the Sun god Re (0.0.1) was painted on ________

a coffin

In a two-dimensional work, when the figure becomes the background and the background becomes the figure, we perceive ________

a figure-ground reversal

The German word that refers to something in which the whole seems greater than the sum of its parts is ________.

gestalt

The sphere that designer Saul Bass created for the AT&T logo is not defined by a continuous boundary. This type of shape, which can be suggested by dots or lines that do not connect, is termed ________ shape.

an implied

contextual analysis

analyzes the ideas (religious, historical/societal, biographical) from a particular time or culture that the artwork itself reflects

When objects are far away they lack contrast, detail, and sharpness of focus because of the interference of air. Artists take advantage of this when they use the process called:

atmospheric perspective

True or false: if you wanted to create a poster that displayed exactly the same information, and could be reproduced in thousands of copies, mono printing would be a good process to use.

false

True or false: if Alexander Calder's Untitled mobile was powered by a small motor, rather than air currents, it would not be an example of actual motion.

false actual motion means the artwork has to physically move in some way

In Leonardo da Vinci's design for a flying machine he used a ________ as his inspiration

birds wing

Recent findings, derived from studying the finger lengths from the handprints that surround the spotted horses, have caused researchers to believe that most of the paintings were done by ________.

female artists

The pose, facial expression, and landscape background of Leonardo da Vinci's Mona Lisa communicate to the viewer a mood of _______

calm and introspection

Samples of this drawing medium have been dated back to 30,000 bce

charcoal

Colors that are on opposite sides of the color wheel are radically different in wavelength and are called ________.

complementary colors

The dark printed words on the page of a book are easily read because they are printed on a light ground. This is an example of the principle of ________

contrast

In order to create value in his drawing Head of a Satyr, Michelangelo used both hatching and ________, a variation where the lines overlap, allowing for the depiction of darker tones.

cross-hatching

stylistic analysis

focuses on a particular combination of characteristics that typify the work of an individual, a group of artists in a movement, or a particular time and/or place

A two-dimensional object is called a shape, and a three-dimensional object is known as a ________.

form

By orienting lines so that they attract attention to a specific area of a work of art the artist is using ________.

directional line

formal analysis

examines the work visually, observing how the elements and principals of art are used

True or Fasle: Henry Darger is one of the very few artists to become famous during his lifetime.

false

True or false: an artwork that uses many hues but only one value is called monochromatic.

false

psychological analysis

investigation of the artwork considers the state of the individual artist's mind

Why do we presume that the head of a woman from Benin (0.0.22) was made for someone wealthy?

it was made from rare ivory (thus was expensive)

Gustav Klimt's portrait of Adele Bloch-Bauer was famous partly because it was ________

looted by Nazis

The transparency of oil paint allows a painter to use a process called glazing in order to add a high degree of ________ to a painting.

luminosity

The kind of scale used for objects that appear larger than they are in real life is called ________ scale.

monumental

In Japan, ceramic tea bowls were appreciated because _______

of their shape, subtle colors, and irregular surface

The lines that create the image of the Nazca Spider "drawing" define the ________ of a ________

outline//// shape

This component of paint has traditionally been extracted from minerals, soils, vegetable matter, and animal by-products.

pigment

Color associations vary by culture. For example, an American bride would probably wear white, while her Asian counterpart might wear ________.

red

A three-dimensional surface that is designed to be viewed from only one direction is known as a ________.

relief

In her work Object, a fur-lined teacup and saucer, the Swiss artist Méret Oppenheim employed subversive texture to contradict conscious logical experience. She belonged to the ________ art movement, which drew on ideas and images from dreams and the unconscious mind.

surrealist

Color ________ can be relative to the other colors nearby. For example, violet can be warm if we see it next to a hot color like red, or cool if we see it next to a colder color like blue.

temperature

To evaluate a work of art properly, we must analyze it in the context of:

the culture/society that produced it

Ascending and Descending, by M. C. Escher, uses ________ perspective.

three point

Romare Bearden depicted a hectic street scene in his work The Dove. He created a sense of unity and stability in the busy composition with an implied ________ shape.

triangular

True or false: it does not matter if a sculptor is creating a human statue on a monumental scale, or a figure much smaller than lifesize: if the sculptor applies the ratio of the Golden Section, the sculpture will have naturalistic proportions.

true

Masaccio was one of the first artists to use one-point perspective. In his large fresco, Trinity, the ________ is centered in the middle of the horizon line, directly ahead of the viewer.

vanishing point

Compositional unity strikes an interesting balance between the monotony of too much similarity, and the chaos of too much ________ in a work of art.

variety

One of the advantages of acrylic paint is that it can be cleaned up using this liquid

water