Humanities (Art Appreciation)

Prelim Exam
Prepared by SGR

TEST I. (Facts and Information) – 15 points

Plug in the correct answer from the choices in the box below.

aesthetics balance eureka proportion Leo Tolstoy

aesthetic experience beauty flow values Piet Mondrian

art criticism form Betty Edwards

artist descriptive criticism participation Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi

1. It is harmony and symmetry.

2. That which is clarified or revealed in the arts.
3. He/she said that art is intentional “infection” by the artist through a tangible material.
4. The philosophy that studies the nature of beauty.
5. The mental state in which a person becomes completely immersed and focused on a task.
6. He/she contended that art requires intense study, practical application of theory and
methodology.
7. The magic moment of the creative process.
8. He/she said that artists enter the state of flow when they create.
9. He/she helps us see the world in another perspective.
10. It is an infection of emotion which union gives joy to the beholder.
11. The act of uniting with the art work which gives aesthetic experience.
12. The meaning of a work of art.
13. It includes the materials, the composition, the elements and the principles used in the work of
art.
14. Describes the important characteristics of the composition in order to improve our
understanding of the part-to-part and part-to-whole interrelationships.
15. The size relationships between one part to the whole or one part to another part.

TEST II. (Skills – True or False) – 15 points

Write PRESENT when the statement is true or correct; otherwise, write PREVENT

1. Our taste is connected with our deep feelings.

2. Anyone can question or challenge our taste.
3. Balance is always formal or symmetrical.
4. Rhythm, movement, proportion, and balance are elements of art.
5. The elements of art and principles of design are interrelated.
6. The form is a subject matter revealed.
 7. The artistic form of Mondrian includes the basic elements of lines, primary colors, and the
neutral colors.
8. Piet Mondrian believes that the true vision of reality can be presented in a composition which is
derived from a fragment of reality.
9. The subject matter of Mondrian’s compositions is the mystical energy in the balance of forces
that governed nature and the universe.
10. If you are looking at the interrelationships of parts and elements, you are doing an analysis to
the work of art.
11. In every composition, the final question for descriptive criticism is “Does the work hold
together?”
12. A good judgment in the work of art is finding out what the artist is trying to convey.
13. In describing art, one must look at how form transforms subject matter into content.
14. The totality of any work of art is a continuum of parts.
15. Something is a work of art only when its maker intended it to be a work of art.

TEST III (Meaning) – 15 points

Explain the quotations below in two to three sentences.
1. “Beauty is obscured by the appearance of objects, therefore, objects must be eliminated.” – Piet
Mondrian
2. “No great artist ever sees things as they really are. If he did, he would cease to be an artist.” –
Oscar Wilde
3. “We all know that art is not truth. Art is a lie that makes us realize truth, at least the truth that is
given us to understand. The artist must know the manner whereby to convince others of the
truthfulness of his lies.” – Pablo Picasso

Test IV (Output) – 20 points

Describe and interpret Vincent Van Gogh’s The Potato Eaters.

Brief background:

The Potato Eaters, completed in 1885, is considered by many to be Van Gogh's first great work of
art. At the time of its creation, Van Gogh had only recently started painting and had not yet
mastered the techniques that would later make him famous. This could attribute to the
interesting look of the piece as well as the overall feeling produced from the painting.

Source: http://www.vangoghgallery.com/