The lazy way to ace art exams with ease (short guide for risk takers only) (1 Viewer)

Confound

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[Partly finished]

Warning: I actually do not recommend taking this advice. It is quite risky and it's only suited for the lazy student.
This is the route I took and it proved successful as evident in results (trial hsc: 94%. Actual hsc: 94% exam mark, 94% assessment, 94 final hsc mark. Can't seem it get past 94 lol), however I do not recommend it for everyone, only those who are not afraid to fail. This guide should not be used as a prime approach, you've been warned

It's highly recommended that you know your frames/conceptual framework. They are very easy to remember. My personal opinion of Art exams is that if you are able to bs, make things up and improvise, you'll be fine (given that they relate to the question).

Section I - questions 1, 2 and 3

Step 1: Develop the mindset of a widely acclaimed art critic who can identify obvious and hidden meanings in any artwork or sculpture. I'm other words, be positive and pretend you have already aced the exam before it even started. It always worked for me lol

Step 2: Identify any elements in the plates you have been given to analyse. (E.g lines, strokes, colour, shape blah blah)

Step 3: Read the question carefully and determine what the question is asking for, remember the frames/conceptual framework and determine whether the question links to any if the frames/conceptual framework. Most of the time it will

Step 4: Describe and analyse the elements. LINK EVERY ELEMENT TO A MEANING (e.g. light blue coloured duplicated shapes in the form of kites depicted on the face of the female figure, makes reference to a mental image of tears rolling down a woman's face in the minds of the audience and thus represents an emotion of sadness and grief blah blah). Make up a meaning if you must, just as long is it's possible and makes sense.

Step 5: Always, always link your answers back to the question or else your answer will be useless. Just basically write a lot of bs regarding the question

Recommended amounted of writing per question
Question 1 (5 marks): 1/2-1 page of bs (5 minutes max)
Question 2 (8 marks): 2-3 pages of bs
Question 3 (12 marks): 2-3 pages of bs

Time management is very important. Quality over quantity is suggested, but if you're going to be writing effortless bs then you better make sure that there's a lot of it lol

Section II (Coming soon)
 
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umbreller

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^ actually, this approach is pretty effective. For bonus points: memorise 5+ vaguely appropriate long words before the exam and use them opportunistically. Especially in long response. Also, don't forget little details like title and size - these are free bs points.
 

rumbleroar

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Another good tip is to memorise a few quotes from art critics, it shows you're really in with the art scene and stuff :p I studied the night before my art exam and got 23/25 for my essay, only remembering a few works from two artists and a critic quote for each haha
 

Confound

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Another good tip is to memorise a few quotes from art critics, it shows you're really in with the art scene and stuff :p I studied the night before my art exam and got 23/25 for my essay, only remembering a few works from two artists and a critic quote for each haha
That's not even necessary tbh, in my section 2 responses I completely made up all my artist quotes and critic quotes, but I made sure that they sounded like they could be legit. I knew my teachers would be lazy and won't bother to research whether the quotes are legit so I took advantage of that. And I also took a gamble in the hsc exam and made up all my quotes in there too, and it turns out hsc markers don't bother to research the legitimacy of quotes either? Well they sure didn't check mine lol

But of course it's recommended that you memorise some quotes, but if you can't remember any, don't be afraid to improvise and make some up on the spot, as long as it's appropriate
 

umbreller

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If this isn't the ideal way to study for VA exams I don't know what is... Also for internals obv: know your teachers c: VA teachers can be pretty biased, and will be impressed if you know and relate to an artist/style they're very fond of.
 

Confound

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oh sht I never got around finishing this did I lol
 

Confound

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What even happens in Section II Visual Arts exam again?? lol
 

tacorrito

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What even happens in Section II Visual Arts exam again?? lol
Brilliant post! Section II is the essay.

I mean, considering you pretty much can't prepare for Section I, the mindset of the widely acclaimed art critic is extremely important. And as Confound said, being an 'art detective' and analysing even the small details such as scale helps greatly as well.
 
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tacorrito

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You could also easily rote essays...
So true- I feel that right before the HSC I was pumping out the same essay with the same four artists over and over again. I think it's quite easy to write a memorised essay that addresses most of the essay's points, but it just takes an extra step to mould the points of the essay to the question 100%.
 

milkytea99

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I'll use this approach for my Half yearlys haha. My half yearlys are less than 6 weeks time lol
 

tacorrito

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I'll use this approach for my Half yearlys haha. My half yearlys are less than 6 weeks time lol
Good luck! If you need any help with art theory or prac, hit me up! I was in the Top 3 for 2014 and got into the Art Gallery of NSW.
 

tacorrito

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I commented on traditional Chinese tropes while exploring aspects of art history.
 

Kel_ch

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Another good tip is to memorise a few quotes from art critics, it shows you're really in with the art scene and stuff :p I studied the night before my art exam and got 23/25 for my essay, only remembering a few works from two artists and a critic quote for each haha
Hey, I'm still a year 10 student writing some essays for the first time. Where can I find critic quotes?
 

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