Okay so I have an exam next week. I am coming 1st so far in art as the other two assessments were practical. I am so much better at practical where as others in my class are a lot better at writing. I really want to keep 1 but we have been doing practice exams and my teacher keeps telling me to not be so logical. I cant help it, I am good at maths and science not english and the theory of art. I just cant seem to understand the emotion etc. Any tips for sentence starters and understanding the artwork etc? Please I need help
I miss the art exams from yrs 7-10!
This a sample that I was shown-- it may point you in the right direction:
Somehow, the red does not look quite as red as it might. There is no shortage of red in this painting and you would expect that it would dominate. It occupies over half of the field and the only colours counterbalancing it are the relatively minor squares of blue and yellow, plus bands of white and thick black lines.
It is a consequence of the neutral elements of black and white balancing the positive element of the red that means these elements are not allowed to have a neutral function. They have a certain agency induced upon them by virtue of answering the primary colours. They are activated by the structure of the painting, which is curiously dynamic in its push and pull of presence. This could explain why the red is not as overpowering as it might otherwise be.
The challenge of this painting, as of all abstract painting, is what to say about it. To describe the colours as being activated suggests a kind of formalism or invokes the formalesque, which involves observing how the work is harmonious, but does not consider how it reveals meanings. The mood evoked by this painting and the careful placement of colour suggests, however, that it has a meaning deeper than mere formalism would allow.
There is no figure in this painting to act as a surrogate for the viewer, yet the work seems nevertheless to be about the sublime and the uncontactable. The large red zone, which is suspended by borders that are in turn suspended around the edges, invites unmediated contemplation of the essential. It is an absolute or elemental component of visuality, namely the colour red. You cannot get more basic than that, other than the fellow primary colours, yellow and blue. Add the two primary tones of black and white and you have an allegory of essence (or being) in minimal physical form.
Gori has provided an excellent response- as long as you provide a statment and support it with evidence you will be fine. Also using the big words (metalanguage) shows your understanding/knowledge to the marker (although you have to be careful that you are using the word in the correct context).
