Visual Art

Question 1

two-dimensional art

Answer 1

Traditionally this refers to drawings, paintings and prints. These art pieces are normally created on a flat surface and have height and width but little or no physical depth.

Question 2

three-dimensional art

Answer 2

Traditionally this refers to sculpture but it can also refer to newer forms of art such as fabric hangings and holographic images. This is art that has height, width, and depth.

Question 3

composition

Answer 3

The way in which an artist organizes forms, line, mass, and color in an art work.

Question 4

line

Answer 4

A long thin mark, a color edge, or an implication of continuation of a thin mark or color edge.

Question 5

scale

Answer 5

The relationship of a form to the size of the human body.

Question 6

representational art

Answer 6

Art that maintains the appearance of observable reality.

Question 7

non-objective art

Answer 7

Art in which there can be found no clear reference to observable reality. Non-objective art is abstract but not all abstract art is non-objective.

Question 8

abstract art

Answer 8

Art that 1) emphasizes only stylized representation of visible reality or 2) is totally non-objective. This differs from non-objective art in that it can contain symbolic or stylized references to objects found in the natural world.

Question 9

representation/distortion/abstraction

Answer 9

A way of analyzing the picture or sculpture, a continuum from observable reality, to an altered-but-still-visible reality, to elimination of any recognizable object.

Question 10

content

Answer 10

What the art work is about or what the artist is trying to communicate through the art work, the subject matter.

Question 11

classical art

Answer 11

The art of ancient Greece and Rome.

Question 12

balance

Answer 12

A sense of equilibrium among all parts of an art work. Balance can be symmetrical or asymmetrical.

Question 13

symmetrical balance

Answer 13

A balancing of an art work by placing similar shapes or color forms on either side of a central axis. Absolute symmetry is when one half of the artwork is the mirror image of the other half.

Question 14

asymmetrical balance

Answer 14

A sense of balance that is maintained by placing dissimilar forms on either side of a central axis.

Question 15

focal area

Answer 15

The spot or spots in an art work to which a viewer’s eye is naturally drawn.

Question 16

dynamics

Answer 16

A sense of movement or energy in an art work.

Question 17

open form

Answer 17

A composition that allows the eye to escape the frame. In sculpture this is also a reference to sculptures that contain negative space (openings).

Question 18

closed form

Answer 18

A composition where the eye is continually drawn back inside the frame or back to the sculpture. Also refers to sculptures with little negative space.

Question 19

articulation

Answer 19

The manner in which various components of the artwork are joined together.

Question 20

format

Answer 20

The shape or layout of the picture -

Question 21

horizontal

Answer 21

A picture that is wider than it is high, a common format for landscapes.

Question 22

vertical

Answer 22

A picture that is higher than it is wide, the common format for portraits.

Question 23

diagonal

Answer 23

A non-traditional shape that stresses a diagonal axis

Question 24

circular

Answer 24

A round composition, which is uncommon but not untraditional.

Question 25

tempera

Answer 25

A paint used since ancient times that mixes color pigments in an egg yoke or gum binder. This is the paint traditionally used in frescoes and works on paper.

Question 26

oils

Answer 26

A painting medium invented at the beginning of the 1400’s in which the pigments are suspended in oil, often a linseed oil.

Question 27

watercolors

Answer 27

A transparent type of paint made from pigment in a water-soluble binder.

Question 28

acrylic

Answer 28

A synthetic paint invented in the 20th century that is water-soluble but that also dries very quickly and dries nearly as hard as rubber or plastic.

Question 29

fresco

Answer 29

A painting done directly on the plaster of a wall. The most stable frescoes are done directly onto wet plaster, allowing the paint to dry into the wall.

Question 30

hue

Answer 30

The color family or all the variations of a particular primary or secondary color.

Question 31

primary colors

Answer 31

Yellow, blue and red – the colors that cannot be made by mixing other colors together.

Question 32

secondary color

Answer 32

Green, violet and orange – the colors that can be made by mixing equal amounts of any two primary colors.

Question 33

warm colors

Answer 33

The colors in the yellow, orange, and red hues (color families).

Question 34

cool colors

Answer 34

The colors in the green, blue, and purple hues.

Question 35

value

Answer 35

The comparative lightness or darkness of a color or of any part of a black and white art work.

Question 36

saturation

Answer 36

The purity of the hue. As white is added, the color becomes less saturated.

Question 37

palette

Answer 37

1) The device on which an artist places paint just before applying it to the art work, or 2) the range of colors used by an artist in one artwork, the overall use of color.

Question 38

linear perspective

Answer 38

The creation of a sense of depth in a two-dimensional art work through the use of line and foreshortening. Objects in the “distance” are become progressively smaller.

Question 39

atmospheric perspective

Answer 39

The creation of a sense of depth in a two-dimensional art work through the use of color or the brightness of light. Objects in the “distance” are shown in progressively muted colors and blurred detail.

Question 40

foreshortening

Answer 40

A technique for creating depth in two-dimensional art by making parts of a single form that is “closer” to the viewer larger than the parts of a form that are further away.

Question 41

chiaroscuro

Answer 41

(kee are oh SKOO roh) The use of gradations of light and dark to produce the effect of modeling (three-dimensionality) in drawn or painted forms.

Question 42

full round

Answer 42

Sculptures that can be viewed from any side and stand independent of any wall.

Question 43

relief sculpture

Answer 43

Sculptures that emerge from a larger background but are still attached to it, intended to be viewed from one side only.

Question 44

high relief sculpture

Answer 44

Sculptures that emerge far from the background.

Question 45

low relief sculpture

Answer 45

Sculptures that barely emerge from the background, such as on coins.

Question 46

form

Answer 46

The shape of the sculpture.

Question 47

subtraction

Answer 47

Sculptures made by carving away material to create the form.

Question 48

addition or construction

Answer 48

Sculptures that are built. The elements are put together or assembled to create the sculpture, for example, pieces of steel welded together.

Question 49

substitution

Answer 49

Sculptures that are cast with molten material being poured into a mold and then hardening to create the final form.

Question 50

linear

Answer 50

Sculptures constructed from long thin materials such as wire or neon tubes.

Question 51

manipulation

Answer 51

The shaping of material, such as clay, by hand to create the form.

Question 52

ephemeral

Answer 52

Sculptures meant to last only for a short time.

Question 53

bust

Answer 53

A sculptural portrait of a person that usually begins at the shoulders or neck and extends to the top of the head.

Question 54

mass

Answer 54

The physical bulk of a three-dimensional form.

Question 55

negative space

Answer 55

An opening or empty space in a sculpture.

Question 56

color

Answer 56

The actual color of the final sculpture. It can result from the colors naturally found in the material used to create the sculpture or it can be manipulated.

Question 57

patina

Answer 57

1) A film that forms on the surface of a material such as bronze as it ages. Bronze and copper will turn green if left in the open air. 2) A chemical treatment applied purposely to a sculpture to create a color or texture, or to protect the art from the elements.

Question 58

texture

Answer 58

The roughness or smoothness of the surface of a sculpture.