Name:________________________
What is good art? Essay
writing assignment:
Part 1- Read some information. (2 points)
Dictionary definition of art:
“Art is the human effort to imitate, alter or counteract the work of nature. Art is the conscious production or arrangement of elements that affect a sense of beauty.” Websters
Subject Matter is the topic or idea in a work of art; a landscape, animals or seascape, for example. It may or may not be something recognizable.
Content is the meaning of a work of art. Content is the mood, feeling or ideas the artist communicates to the viewer. When we talk about the EXPRESSIVE PROPERTIES we are discussing the content of a work.
Form
is the way the artist organizes and uses SENSORY input. For example, vertical lines in
Grant Wood’s American Gothic create a sense of
stability.
Part 2 (5 points) The artists we have studied in
class are: (Circle the names)
| 7th grade Featured Artists Media | |
| Wayne Thiebaud | pastels |
| Nick Parks | stop-motion animation |
| Chinese Opera Theatre masks | |
| Terra Cotta Warriors | clay figures from Qin Dynasty |
| Faith Ringgold | Textiles |
| Matt Groening | cartoonist |
| Michel Gondry | video |
| Martin Puryear | wooden ladder |
| Jun Kuneko | clay |
| Julie Taymor | theatre |
| Nancy Graves | sculptor |
| Do Ho Suh | Korean American |
| Kerry James Marshall | African American |
| Matthew Richie | Drawing is idea |
| The Way Things Go | process |
| Robert Arneson | Ceramics |
| Objectified | Industrial Design |
| Automorphic | Creative automobile statements |
| Animation shorts | animation by various artists |
| May Lin | Japanese American Sculptor and Architect |
| Paul Pfeiffer | Digital artist |
| American Photography | Photography history |
| Vincent Van Gogh | Dutch Impressionist artist |
| Wayne Thiebaud | Pop artist |
| Andy Warhol/ Roy Leichtenstien | Pop artists |
| Cindy Sherman | Photography (mask) artist |
| William Kentridge | South African Animation artist |
Part 3- To help you get organized, jot down a few ideas on planning guide below:
Include the names of the artists whose work interests you:
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Tell when you think an artist is successful in making art.
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Describe a time or project when you were successful with artwork.
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Describe an artist or object that is NOT art:
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Part 4- Write one to two pages on the topic:
“What is good art to me?”
| Criteria | Points |
Write a thesis statement, telling your main ideas that answer the question.: "What is good art to me?" For example: Art is good in my opinion when it shows personality, communicates meaningfully and creates an environment. |
10 Points |
Include three supporting ideas and details with the names of at least three artists we studied. For example: Artists who show their personality in their work are Jun Kaneko, Kerry James Marshall and Do Ho Suh. |
10 points |
| Write at least one page, including at least four paragraphs. | 10 points |