The first part of the final is simply TEST 3 ­ non-cumulative ­ and will cover material SINCE test 2

IDENTIFICATION QUESTIONS

 3 minutes each
 5 points each (2.5 points data, 2.5 points comment)

Numbers 1. through 5.

give the fullest information you can about this object -- IN THIS FORMAT on separate lines:

 artist
 title
 date
 culture of origin
 if a building, give city

Then give some idea of its stylistic characteristics or significance to the history of art. (ask yourself ìwhy is he putting this on the test?î  or ìwhat about this is characteristic of its style?î)

Number 6,  An Unknown ­

NAME paintings and artists that this reminds you of first, THEN identify using the regular data (as much as possible) at the end.  Be sure to explain WHY you think it might be by that artist.  Be sure to give a possible artist and date!

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CUMULATIVE ESSAYS

    I will choose 3 of the numbered questions.  You must answer the last question.  Plan to take about 15 to 20 minutes for each.  Be sure to construct a thesis statement, to support your thesis with evidence, and to identify the examples you refer to clearly and completely by name and by artistsí names.

1. The name 'Impressionism' was NOT coined by a painter but by a hostile critic.  The name 'Realism' was coined by a painter.  The name 'Baroque' was not invented until the 18th century, long after the style had ended.  After the year 1900 group after group of young artists wrote manifestos to establish their art ideas and to promulgate their chosen names.  Give at least 5 examples from the 19th and 20th centuries of movements or styles and their names.  Are the names ACCURATE and descriptive?  Are the names POSITIVE?  Compare the names of these styles to the names of political and social movements in the same modern period.  Be sure to link styles to works of art by title, artist, and date.

2. The APPLICATION of PAINT to CANVAS is the subject of much mid-20th century art.  Though some artists of the Renaissance through the 19th century preferred a very smoothly finished surface, there are exceptions.  Give  examples of artists whose with perceptible interest in creating paint-on-canvas effects from the 17th, 18th, 19th, and 20th centuries.  Give at least one example per century.  Compare the effects they create and the goals the artists are pursuing with paint.
 

3.   Giotto and Jackson Pollack, at the two temporal extremes of our course, might not agree about all the answers to the question, but they might have more in common that you think.
 Think about how the conditions for art making have changed since 1300.  What preconditions started Giotto (or any other early renaissance artist) on the way to making a painting?  How are those different that for artists who work without patrons?  What is better (or ëmoreí) about painters who work for patrons?  What is better (or ëmoreí) about painters who work without patrons?
 

4. Art historians sometimes make the distinction between Renaissance and Baroque architecture by saying that Renaissance architecture is graphic while Baroque buildings are sculptural.  What does it mean for a building to be ìlike a sculptureî?  How can something built in 3 dimensions be ìlike a drawingî?  Give examples from at least 4 different centuries of buildings that are and are not like sculptures.
 

5. Female and male artists both make self-portraits.  Your book has tended to illustrate a higher percentage of female self-portraits, which is not an entirely fair representation of their output.  Why show them to you?  Do we see differences between female and male self-portraits?  Discuss with as many examples as you can give.

REQUIRED:  You are curating a museum show aimed at charting the rise of the middle class as subject and owners of art.  There are NO considerations of loan fees or insurance, so you can go for the best known works (i.e., those in your book).  Choose 10 works of art which you will not only display but will illustrate in the show catalog with color plates.  Name them fully and explain how they will help viewers understand the point of your show.  Try to distribute the works across the periods covered.
 
 

Prepare to answer these questions.
You may (and should) work with others
You may not bring notes to the exam.
 

General Principles for Tests

"what about this object seems characteristic of its society?"

"is there a particular object to which we always compared this?"

"is this an early or a late example of its type -- is it the first known one?"

"why would he ask us this?"