ap art history essay examples

ap art history essay examples

Analyzing and Interpreting AP Art History Essays: A Comprehensive Guide

1. Introduction to AP Art History Essays

An artist often leaves to posterity clues about the politics, religion, or social structure of his or her time. Select two works of art from two different countries. The challenging aspect of this essay is the discussion of both works and the situation they illustrate. Almost anything can fit. Understand what the country, period, and isolate the setting in terms of time and place, and then elaborate on what the artist might have intended. Understand the macrocosm. Think about how the artist projects him/herself into the future. This will give you some sense of the reality of the time being depicted. Understand the microcosm. What does the artist have to say about this particular moment? Are there clues left behind visible to posterity? Answering a Question 3 essay gives you a chance to score those WRIT points that the other essays may not inspire. Be sure you are aware of what the work is not a product of. It might help you define the essence of the work. Write an essay. Use the writing organization. Since there are a variety of possible ideas that will simply prove your understanding, you should have no trouble.

There are three essays on the AP Art History Exam which look to accomplish the following tasks: • Free-response Question 1: Visual (formal-analytical) Analysis. The first essay is an analysis of a visual and/or the introduction of supporting evidence. Without using subject-specific knowledge to discuss a work of art is a common doing on any account. Maybe a rough speed drawing with some watercolor added for good luck. • Free-response Question 2: Artists and patrons often hold different views of a work of art. Choose a single work of art to respond to. Never anything else. Your response should be such that a person could infer something of the work’s cultural and/or contemporary contexts. • Free-response Question 3: Interconnections among art-making, the present, the past, and the present.

2. Key Components of a Successful AP Art History Essay

Introduction which includes a clear thesis that states the two or three specific things that will back and support the thesis. Definition of the terms used within the introduction, or alternatively, within the body of the essay. This is important because it shows that you know what you are trying to convey and that you understand the art. Remember that Giorgio Vasari and Johann Joachim Winckelmann invented art and good art history, the attempt at writing about sensibility is a fundamental undertaking. Concise yet descriptive overview of the selected works and provide proper information on each work. At a very minimum, mention the artist’s name, name of the painting, date, and the period. You can also add more details such as ten things you see straight away in the painting or work. Keep it simple, but be informative and try to connect the bridge between the two paintings in about one to two paragraphs. This should be the end of your introduction.

An AP® Art History class covers art beyond European masters and the Renaissance period. The class goes beyond simply creating a great piece of art to include why pieces have been created, as well as who, what, and how. An AP® Art History student is required to take a different approach to their studies compared to students who favor subjects like computer science. While the latter is required to complete a practical issue or report, the former is required to complete an essay with similar components. So before you set out to write the essay, consider mastering the key components detailed below successfully.

3. Analyzing Sample AP Art History Essays

The sample AP Art History essays below were taken from previous exams. The comments provide thoughtful insights as well expectations for what points to mention as student respond to these questions. While students may not provide the same anomalies each time, it is expected that they will adhere to the information and guidance provided by the College Board. Additionally, beginning in 2018, students are asked to incorporate relevant examples from outside the required course content. This will help deepen your students’ overall understanding of the essays while also helping to prepare them for the new question 6 format. Scoring guidelines for both the 130-minute and 160-minute essays are included below. It is beneficial to reference the scoring criteria and rubric each time an essay topic is being reviewed with the class.

4. Common Mistakes to Avoid in AP Art History Essays

Be specific in your comparison when you compare works within the same essay. For instance, compare Mathew Brady, Abraham Lincoln, and James Nachtwey, Ground Zero, NY within one photograph to see how the two artists and their images are similar through the way in which the subject is dressed, the position of their hands, the gaze of their eyes, the way in which they show age in their face, etc. Did Brady pose Lincoln with the same facial expression as Nachtwey took in this photograph, or use the same framing techniques? These characteristics will help you see how the two artists and their images are similar or different. Conversely, do not try to compare vastly different works of art within the same essay. It will be nonsensical to try to compare Michelangelo’s David to the Fijian Split pendants, as their functions and forms are so different. Discuss how the women in Matisse’s Large Reclining Nude are more similar to the women in Velázquez’s Rokeby Venus, rather than attempting to bring in works that are clearly different.

As you write your essay, be sure to do the following: introduce the name of the work of art, its medium, and its artist at the beginning of your essay, and refer to the work of art by its formal name within the rest of your essay. Do not use the informal approach of referring to the work of art as “the photo,” “the painting,” “the object,” or “the artifact.” Avoid addressing the reader directly. Although you should approach your essay with the knowledge that someone will be reading it, you should write your essay as if you are writing to an educated adult, not to a class. Avoid using the pronoun you. Do not use overused words, such as “obviously,” “clearly,” “perfectly,” “very,” or “lots.” These terms tend to detract from rather than enhance your argument.

5. Tips for Improving Your AP Art History Essay Writing Skills

2) Study examples of successful essays. Start with your own. As soon as you receive your first graded essay, read the comments and consult the Art History Rubric, the Prompt Snaps, and the general information on the AP® Art History site. Also, read the “Student Writing Guide” offered on the College Board site. Additional good essays may be posted on the Website. While reading these examples, think about the following questions. Do the essays address the elements of the question? Do they provide evidence from the artwork of mastery of these areas? Do they offer an interpretive or evaluative thesis, or do the student writers provide descriptive analysis only? What islands of coherence have the writers bridged?

1) Read, read, and read some more. The more you read and look at art, the more you expose yourself to the language and imagery necessary to make connections and conclusions. The next time the bell rings, settle in and focus your attention on the artwork. Even an unfamiliar work of art can be more objective if you forget the little voice that tells you of your developing hatred of the most recent history test. An artist’s original intention is always veiled to some extent by time and our inability to ever completely know another person, but the effort you are making to appreciate beauty and to derive meaning from the work will lead to a deeper understanding of people in general.