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B. Reflecting, Responding, and Analysing · Responding to Art: Critical Analysis, Context and Responsible Practice

Responding to Art: Critical Analysis, Context and Responsible Practice: Unit Review

B1.1 B1.2 B1.3 B1.4 B2.1 B2.2 B2.3 B3.1 B3.2 B3.3 C1.3 C2.2 C3.1 C3.2 C3.3About 40 minutes
Learning goals
  • I can use the critical analysis process to respond to, analyse, interpret and evaluate art.
  • I can explain the functions of art and how art reflects and shapes society and identity.
  • I can identify conventions and practise responsible, safe and ethical art making.
  • I can describe skills, opportunities and careers related to visual arts.

Words to know

critical analysis process
Initial reaction, description, analysis and interpretation, informed point of view, cultural context.
function
The purpose an art work serves.
convention
A widely shared way of doing something in art.
copyright
The legal right to copy, publish and adapt a creative work.
portfolio
A selection of an artist's best work and process.

Let's review!

In this unit you learned to respond to art like a critic and a curator: you used the critical analysis process (initial reaction, description, analysis and interpretation, informed point of view, cultural context), explored the functions of art and how art reflects and shapes society and identity, looked at art in Canada through many voices, learned visual art conventions, practised responsible art making (copyright, ethics, safety and the environment), and explored skills, opportunities and careers.

This review has questions from every lesson. Try each one, then press Show answer. If a part feels tricky, go back to that lesson.

Responding to Art(this unit)Critical analysis (B1)1 Initial reactions2 Description, analysis3 Interpretation4 Evaluation, reflectionArt and society (B2)5 Functions of art6 Art as a time capsule7 Art in Canada8 Identity and valuesPractice and futures (C2, C3, B3)9 Conventions10 Copyright, ethics11 Studio safety12 Environment13 Skills, community14 Careers
The unit at a glance: three groups of lessons. Lesson numbers match the order of the lessons in this unit.
Practice painting: “Last Light on the Lake” (made up for this unit)
The practice painting from Lessons 1, 2 and 4. Some review questions refer to it.

The Critical Analysis Process and Initial Reactions

1

What four sentence starters help you write an initial reaction?

2

Put the five parts of the critical analysis process in order.

3

Why is "It's nice" a weak initial reaction?

Description and Analysis: Deconstructing an Art Work

1

Remove the opinions: "A stunning, perfect sunset over a gorgeous lake."

2

Look at the practice painting above. What is the focal point and why?

3

Turn into analysis: "The tree is dark."

Interpreting Historical and Contemporary Art

1

What three parts make a strong interpretation?

2

Who painted The Starry Night, and when?

3

What do Kent Monkman's 2019 paintings for the Metropolitan Museum of Art respond to, and how?

4

Give a theme and a message for the practice image "Two Mugs".

Informed Points of View, Critique and Reflection

1

What's the difference between taste and evaluation?

2

What are the three parts of Praise, Question, Suggest?

3

What should an artist's statement include?

What Is Art For? The Functions of Art

1

Name the main function of a war memorial.

2

Give three functions of Métis beaded moccasins.

3

What does the Two Row Wampum represent?

Art as a Time Capsule: How Art Reflects Society

1

How did tube paint affect the Impressionists?

2

Name the six kinds of context from the lesson.

3

What was Refus global (1948)?

Art in Canada: Land, Identity and Many Voices

1

When was the Group of Seven's first exhibition?

2

Who started the Woodland School?

3

Why do critics question the Group of Seven's "empty wilderness"?

4

Name three members of Professional Native Indian Artists Inc. (1973).

Art, Identity and Values

1

Define values.

2

Give one way viewing art can affect values.

3

Why should you get permission before using a friend's photo in your art?

Conventions in Visual Art: Space, Composition, Genre and Culture

1

Where do receding parallel lines meet in one-point perspective?

2

What is hierarchical scale?

3

Name three comic conventions.

4

Which movement broke one-point perspective by showing several viewpoints at once?

Copyright, Plagiarism and Ethics in Visual Arts

1

How long does copyright last in Canada?

2

Is tracing a photographer's picture and entering it in a contest OK? Why?

3

What did the Michael Snow Flight Stop case protect?

Safe and Conscientious Studio Practices

1

Order these label frames from least to most serious: diamond, octagon, triangle.

2

How should you clean up dry clay?

3

Give two rules for using a craft knife.

Art and the Environment: Responsible Materials and Practices

1

Put in order, best first: recycle, dispose safely, reduce, reuse.

2

Where do old solvents go?

3

Why avoid glitter?

Skills That Transfer and Arts Opportunities in Your Community

1

Name three transferable skills from visual arts.

2

Name two community places with arts opportunities.

3

How many community involvement hours do you need for the OSSD?

Pathways and Careers in Visual Arts

1

Name the visual arts courses for Grades 10, 11 and 12.

2

What is a portfolio?

3

Name a career in each of: design, museums, education.

Just for fun

You've now used the critical analysis process so many times that you might start analysing everything. Cereal box? Strong focal point. Your sock drawer? Bold use of variety, not much unity.

How to use this review

Do one or two lesson sections a day rather than all at once. Answer out loud or in your sketchbook before you check. Mark any question you missed, revisit that lesson's examples, then try the lesson's Challenge questions. For the critical analysis questions, practise on a new art work each time: the process gets faster with use.

Check your understanding

Quiz

1.

Which is the first part of the critical analysis process?

2.

Which statement is a description, not an opinion?

3.

An interpretation should be supported by...

4.

Praise, Question, Suggest is a structure for...

5.

A logo on a cereal box mainly has a ___ function.

6.

Woodblock printing made ukiyo-e prints...

7.

Who was a founder of the Woodland School?

8.

In one-point perspective, the vanishing point is on the...

9.

Copyright in Canada usually lasts...

10.

The best choice in the waste hierarchy is...

For parents and teachers

How to use the review results:

  • Vague or judgemental first reactions → revisit The Critical Analysis Process and Initial Reactions.
  • Opinions in descriptions, or naming principles without effects → revisit Description and Analysis: Deconstructing an Art Work.
  • Interpretations with no evidence, or confusing theme and message → revisit Interpreting Historical and Contemporary Art.
  • "I like it" instead of criteria, or vague next steps → revisit Informed Points of View, Critique and Reflection.
  • Naming only one function, or forgetting evidence → revisit What Is Art For? The Functions of Art.
  • Treating context as trivia → revisit Art as a Time Capsule: How Art Reflects Society.
  • Mixing up the Group of Seven and Professional Native Indian Artists Inc., or past tense for living cultures → revisit Art in Canada: Land, Identity and Many Voices.
  • Vague reflections on identity or values → revisit Art, Identity and Values.
  • Perspective lines not meeting, or confusing conventions with techniques → revisit Conventions in Visual Art.
  • Believing online images are free, or missing credits → revisit Copyright, Plagiarism and Ethics in Visual Arts.
  • Unsafe tool habits or ignoring labels → revisit Safe and Conscientious Studio Practices.
  • Pouring paint water or solvents down the drain → revisit Art and the Environment.
  • Naming skills without examples → revisit Skills That Transfer and Arts Opportunities in Your Community.
  • Course codes or career options mixed up → revisit Pathways and Careers in Visual Arts.

Ask your child to use the critical analysis process aloud on a new image each week: it's the core skill of this strand, and it carries straight into AVI2O in Grade 10.