Exam on Art History: Reformation, Counter Reformation, Rococo, and Neoclassicism

Instructions

The following questions are designed to examine how you have absorbed and digested the material we’ve covered in Units 7-12. You should be able to express key concepts and demonstrate them through works of art that you select in response to the questions below. This is not a research paper. Instead, your responses should be a distillation of what you’ve learned from your text, class meetings and video lectures.

Answer both of the questions below using examples of artworks in your response to make your points. As we’ve practiced all semester, call attention to specific details in the works to illustrate your discussion. Each response requires at least two pages, of text double spaced (12 point Arial, 1 inch margins) I won’t deduct points for exceeding this amount, but I will for not meeting it.

Question 1: Discuss the Reformation and Counter Reformation through art works and styless.

Question 2: Compare and contrast the Rococo and Neoclassical styles in relationship to the Enlightenment.

Images: You must refer to works of art to develop your exam responses. If it helps you to supply images of the works in your paper, you may, but make sure they are properly identified. Make sure that you do not count the images toward your page count. The first time you mention the work, you should use the artist’s last or common name, the title in italics, followed by the figure number in parentheses. Example: Pietro Cavallini, Last  Judgement (14-7). You may refer to it afterwards in any way you see fit. As long as it is clear to me, you do not need to use the full name, title or figure number each time, unless, in certain instances you feel it clears up confusion (using two works by the same artist, for example). Titles must always be italicized, and artists are always referred to by their last name (p. ex. Cavallini, once they are first fully named).

Submission details: This exam is due by 11:59 pm eastern on Monday, December 20.  Submit by clicking on the Midterm Exam link and follow the instructions to upload your document (Word.doc or PDF only). which is used to measure plagiarism. Your exam will be submitted through Safe Assign,

Plagiarism: Be very careful to use your own words. You do not have the space to quote other people. However, if you need to refer to facts that you have taken from elsewhere, please make sure to make cite your source correctly. Even rephrasing something you have read calls for the original idea to be cited. SafeAssign will show me everything that has been taken from another source, whether you have cited it or not. A plagiarized exam will receive zero points and be turned in to the University for them to pursue their own course of action.

Select your own artworks: Part of this test is to see which art you select as emblematic. So, be careful to ask yourself, “What are the hallmarks of art at this time?” and, “Is this work sufficiently representative of the question topic?” Just because an artwork appeals to you or is famous does not make it the best representation of a period or concept.

Use art to make your points: Art History is about understanding how art is a reflection of its environment. Explain how and why the works you choose are products of their periods in relationship to the questions I’ve posed. A good place to start when writing is to assume that I don’t agree with what you’ve written and that you have to prove it to me, by connecting ideas to images and offering evidence of your thinking. The more evidence you give, the more you convince me.

This is not a research paper. This is your biggest opportunity to show me what you have learned so far in class. Use vocabulary and concepts that the lectures and texts have covered to validate the scope of your new knowledge and to demonstrate that you have faithfully done the reading and followed the video lectures. Make sure all your comments reflect a valid response to the question and avoid filling space by giving details that are not pertinent to the exam questions. An essay exam requires you to demonstrate that you have made connections across eras of art, and between the social-political environment and the art that is a product of it. Reciting facts about art without demonstrating an understanding of the impetus behind their creation will not be successful.

Use formal writing: Avoid references to self (I/we/our/etc.) Omit contractions (won’t/hasn’t/couldn’t). Avoid colloquialisms and anachronistic terms. Avoid qualitative assessments of the works of art (good/excellent/beautiful), rather view them as products of their environment. Edit the document to ensure that margins, font and spacing are normal and that spelling, grammar, punctuation, etc. are correct. Word processing software usually comes with settings to monitor these for you.

How carefully you read these exam directions gives me a clue as to how carefully you are reading your texts.