Visual description and Analysis

MUSEUM PAPER PART I- Visual description and Analysis

For this first part, I expect you to write a visual description and analysis of a work from any culture from Ancient World to Gothic that you will choose from a museum website of your choice in the United States. I expect this draft of the paper to be at least two (1) typed page, double-spaced. To do this, please follow the steps outlined below:

Step 1: You will go to the museum website, of one of the many found across the US to find an example of the kind of art from Mesopotamia to Gothic Art, (i.e., Metropolitan Museum, Brooklyn Museum, the Smithsonian Museums of the American Indian in New York, etc.). You can only write about original works of art; not replicas/facsimiles. Choose one artwork that represents a culture different than our own, that is, an artwork that comes from any country other than that of your own culture. You can choose a painting, sculpture, drawing, etc. Please choose a work of art that fits within the parameters of the course C.3,000BCE -1300 CE (choose any painting, drawing, sculpture or other).

Step 2: Note the artist’s name(if known), the title of the work, the medium in which it is made, the date of the work and the size or approximate size of the work (especially in relation to other objects in the room). Much of this information will be on the label.

Step 3: Make a rough sketch of the way the artwork looks. This sketch will not be graded, but it must be included in your draft that you turn in to me. The sketch will help you to remember the details of the image. I will not accept a postcard or photograph of the image.

Step 4: Take detailed descriptive notes on the work you chose. You should have enough notes on the artwork so that you can write approximately two (2) typed pages, with at least one and a half pages of description.          This should consist of a description of the work as you see it. I would like you to address the following questions:

• What was it that made you choose this work of art specifically? What was your first impression of it? What mood does the artwork convey?
• Medium and technique: is the work a painting or a sculpture, etc.? What is the artwork made from? What type of brushwork is the artist employing?
• Composition and organization: is the work representational, non – objective, abstract, ? What colors are being used (describe all colors)?
• Subject Matter: what is the style and the subject matter of the work? Who or what is being represented? 5- Provenance: where was the work made? For whom? Is it typical of the art of a geographical area?

6- Location: where is the work of art now? Where was it originally located? Does the viewer look up at it, or down at it? If it is not in its original location, does the viewer see it as the artist intended?

Audience: assume that the reader of your paper is not me but someone else (a family friend, a brother or sister, etc.), that is, someone who may not know much about art or who may not know which work you chose. This will help you to write a better, more detailed description of the artwork. However, this does not mean that you should write in an informal manner; this is a college-level assignment and should be treated as such. I suggest you have a friend / family member read over your paper before handing it to me to see if it makes sense to them.

Format: The paper should include the title, an introductory paragraph, and a concluding paragraph. Papers must be typed on clean white paper, double – spaced, with no more than 1″ margins all around and using a font size no larger than Times New Roman 12. Please run the spell check feature before turning the paper in to me; spell check will not catch all errors, but it will clean up some basic and minor spelling issues. Attach the receipt and/or button, the sketch, and the three typed pages, and attach a cover sheet with the title of your paper, your full name, and the course number.

Expectations and Grading Criteria: the paper is divided in two drafts, and as such will not be given a number grade but will be evaluated in terms of the depth and quality of the visual analysis, readability and style and organization and given a ü+, or ü-