Henry Ossawa Tanner, The Banjo Lesson (1893), oil on canvas
ARTH 210- Instructions for writing the Introduction Art Historical Critique Essay
The Art History Critique (AHC) process takes a deep look into an individual work of art. Each
Critique begins with a work of art, which will be assigned by the instructor. The Art History
Critique process involves analyzing different aspects of the work of art:
1) Description/Subject
2) Formal Analysis
3) Interpretation
4) Historical/Cultural Context.
Process: The instructor will provide students with work of art as a separate assignment in the
course shell. Using the course resources and other scholarly sources, students will complete the
sections of the AHC process as described below.
**PLEASE NOTE: Wikipedia entries and personal blogs are not a scholarly sources, but most
Wikipedia entries do have bibliographies at the end that can be helpful. You are welcome to use
your textbook and any information you find at www.smarthistory.com in crafting your
response.**
Deliverable: You will write an essay in a Word document or PDF document that will be
submitted in the Blackboard course shell. Google docs links and other formats will not be
accepted. Your essay should be organized into well-developed paragraphs, using correct college-
level grammar and punctuation. Each section must be a minimum of one cohesive paragraph,
although you are not limited to this.
Use of sources: Information from the provided sources can be paraphrased or directly
quoted. Direct quotes should make up no more than 20% of the paper and must be in quotation
marks. Cite the sources in MLA format in the text of the paper and in a Works Cited list at the
end. If you are not sure what MLA is or how to cite quoted text, a quick internet search will be
able to help you or you can contact the ECSU Library for some assistance.
THERE ARE FOUR REQUIRED SECTIONS FOR THIS ASSIGNMENT:
Description/Subject: As the introductory paragraph for your essay, this section should include
the artist, title, date, and medium of the work; a brief description of the work; a summary of the
story and/or subject; and your rationale for selecting it. Statements like “I picked it because I like
it” or “I chose it because the colors pop” are not appropriate rationales. Your answer should be
based on information about the object and what you thought was interesting about this
information. In other words, it should not be based only on what you see. This summary should
include specific information gathered from your resources and will serve to establish the topic to
be considered.
Formal Analysis: In this section, you will analyze the form of the work of art. The form is the
physical object, independent of any discussion of subject matter, interpretation, or context. The
form includes its size (scale), the type of work (i.e. sculpture, painting, print, drawing, etc.), and
the media used (i.e. oil paint, watercolor, relief sculpture, pencil drawing, etching, etc.). To
analyze the form, the student must also describe the way that the artist used specific elements of
art and the principles of design.
**Do not attempt to describe how the artist used all of the elements and principles, but you
should discuss a minimum of two. Select those that are dominant in the work and that are the
most important for understanding the meaning and context of the work.
**Do not address that meaning or context in this section.
Depending on your experience with art, you may or may not be familiar with the elements of art
and the principles of design. If you are not, you will need to gain a basic understanding of them
by using the resources provided in the textbook and other online sources you find using internet
searches.
Interpretation: In this section, use evidence from the sources provided to draw conclusions
about what the work of art was intended to communicate to the viewers for whom it was
made. Focus on what the work of art meant in its time and place, not what it means to you
personally or to people now. A work of art can have many different layers of meaning to its
viewers. Levels of interpretation can include political, emotional, and cultural. Interpretation
can also include how the artist intended for the viewer to use the object.
Context: In this final section, use evidence from the sources provided to draw conclusions about
the historical, cultural, and/or artistic context of the work of art. The Subject, Formal Analysis,
and Interpretation sections investigate what a work of art is. They represent the end result of a
deliberate series of choices made by the artist. In this section, you will consider WHY the artist
made those choices. What was happening socially, politically, culturally, etc. and how did these
events and currents influence what the artist decided to do in this work? Use the sources
provided to guide you in understanding the context of the work of art that is the subject of this
critique. Be specific and focused in your explanation of the context. Provide rationale for your
conclusions from information gathered from provided sources.
Please reach out to me with any questions about the assignment- I am here to help!
ACN
