Critique Art

Rubric for Art Critique Paper


Understanding Visual Art

ARH – 1000






What NOT to do:

  1. Do not spend any time describing the art museum, unless architecture is what you are writing about.

  2. Do not spend a lot of time writing about the artist. Sometimes a quick mention of his or her artistic style is appropriate, or some background information to explain content, but that is it.

What TO do:

  1. Explain all content-related matter through the observation of visual elements. Remember, content is a combination of all things visual, plus the apparent meaning or feeling of the work of art.

  2. Introductory Paragraph – Write about where you went, and what exhibit was currently on display. You may want to mention your initial feelings and/or observations upon entering the space.

  3. Body of Work – Write about style, form, and content. Use 1.5 line space. Use your notes on style, form, and content to break down each work of art.

  4. Write about a small number of art works. You may even want to write about a single item. I recommend doing a Compare/Contrast between two works of art—either two different subjects by the same artist, or perhaps the same subject as represented by two different artists. This is just a suggestion.

  5. Summary – This is not required, but if you’d like to sum things up, please don’t go over one short paragraph.