Art Critique
oral or written discussion strategy used to describe, analyze, interpret and evaluate works of art |
Doing art criticism is like playing a detective. You must assume that the artist has a secret message hidden inside the work. Your job is to solve the mystery and find the message |
Thesis Statement
A thesis statement is the main idea or main point of an informational text. It serves as a roadmap of the text you are reading. Simply, the thesis statement provides direction or purpose to the text (can be explicit or implicit) |
Guide Questions for a Strong Thesis Statement
What is your topic? |
What is your stance of claim? |
What is your rationale (basis) for this stance? |
What acknowledgement will you make to qualify your stance and consider opposition? |
Qualification + Stance + Rationale = THESIS |
Use of Counterargument
A counterargument involves acknowledging standpoints that go against your argument and then re-affirming your argument. It is a standard move used in academic texts because it shows readers that you are capable of understanding and respecting multiple sides of an argument. |
Have a Thorough Understanding of the Work
Study the work under discussion |
Make notes on key parts of the work. |
Develop an understanding of the main argument or purpose being expressed in the work |
Consider how the work relates to a broader issue or context (e.g societal, political, racial). |
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Four-steps System Method
Description |
describe the work without using value words such as “beautiful” or “ugly” |
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What do I see? |
Analysis |
describe how the work is organized as a complete composition |
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How is the work organized? |
Interpretation |
describe how the work makes you think or feel |
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What is the artist trying to say? |
Judgement |
present your opinion work’s success or failure |
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What do I think of the work? |
or Major Areas of Art Criticism (adapted from Holland Central School District)
Critique Paper
A critique is a type of academic text that involves evaluating and analyzing a specific piece of work. It provides a critical assessment of the strengths and weaknesses of the work being reviewed, offering insights and suggestions for improvement (Booth, W.C. Colomb, G. C., & Williams, J. M., 2009). |
What works do we critique?
Creative works |
novels, exhibits, films, images |
Research |
monographs, journal articles, reviews |
Media |
news reports, feature articles |
Why do we write critiques?
a knowledge of the work’s subject or related works |
an understanding of the work’s purpose, intended audience, development of argument, structure of evidence or creative style |
a recognition of the strengths and weaknesses of the work |
Writing Vocabulary
Analytical Verbs |
Different verbs have different meanings or suggest different relationships between authors, readers, characters and ideas. |
Connectives |
words we use in between sentences to join them |
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allow us to be more precise about the relationships between statements |
Audience Positioning |
When discussing audience, you can also use the words 'reader' or 'viewer' |
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Theories in Judging Art
Imitationalism |
It is when people think that art should imitate what we see in real world. |
Formalism |
It is when people feel that art uses the principles of design and the elements of art. |
Emotionalism |
It is when people believe that art must speak to the viewer through their emotions. |
Key Elements for a Strong Thesis Statement
It is not a fact |
A fact is irrefutable. Writing a fact as a thesis makes no argument. |
It is not a question |
A question does not express one's claim or comment about a topic. |
It is not an announcement |
avoid saying what you will discuss in the text |
It is not too broad |
Avoid making vague and confusing thesis statements by making a specific and focused thesis |
It is a complete sentence |
A phrase does not convey complete ideas or thoughts. Stating the thesis in a complete sentence makes it easier for the reader to understand the main idea of the text. |
It requires support |
Facts, surveys, reports, etc. should be used as proof or pieces of evidence to support your claim/opinion on the topic to make it persuasive |
It takes a stand |
The thesis should clearly show your claim about a subject/topic |
It is arguable |
The thesis should be contestable, debatable, or argumentative. It should never be a factual statement. |
Parts of a Critique Paper
Introduction |
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Introduce the work and author |
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Define main argument or purpose |
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Explain context of the work being evaluated |
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Construct a concluding sentence with signposts |
Body |
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Summary (shorter than the critical evaluation) |
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Critical Evaluation |
Conclusion (brief paragraph) |
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overall evaluation of the work |
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short recall of the key reasons why this evaluation was formed |
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in some circumstances, recommendations for improvement of the work may be provided |
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it is important to take note that new ideas or concepts related to the work should no longer be introduced or discussed in this section |
Reference List |
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humss/abm/tvl : american psychological association (APA) |
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stem : council of science editors (cse) |
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