ARTH 300 Exam #1 Terms

arbitrary color

(subjective color) how an artist perceives color over audience

art movement

a trend defining the period/style of art at a time

cartoon

a full-scale drawing to be transferred to another artwork

compostion

the way in which elements are laid out on a 2-D space

design

a way the elements are organized in a two/three-dimensional work

content

the depictions in art (subject) and its meaning (message); a historical commemoration

continuous narrative

an artistic storytelling technique where multiple scenes/events are depicted within one composition, often showing a story unfolding over time.

hierarchic scaling

an artistic technique where the size of figures/objects illustrated their importance

iconography

the use of a disguised/subtle symbol

in situ

referring to an artwork that cannot be moved from its original placement

necropolis

a large ancient cemetery or burial site

optical color mixing

the visual blending of colors via optical illusion; paintillism/divisionism created this mixing, where dots of carious colors are placed about to seem like a mixture

optical motion

the effect of perceived movement created by the arrangement of colors or shapes in an artwork

prehistoric art

art produced before the knowledge of writing (before civilization)

historic art

art produced during/after the knowledge of writing

sfumato

the technique of allowing tones and colors to shade gradually into one another, producing softened outlines or hazy forms; implies distance

stele

flat uprising stone/wooden carving used for information sharing

style

a characteristic of a civilization, time period, artmovement, or the individual

subject

recognizable objects, stories, or events being visibly depicted on an artwork

visual literacy

the ability to interpret and create visual messages in various forms

modeling

an indication of light and shade

atmospheric perspective

things closer to the viewer are darker and things farther are lighter

chiaroscuro

an indication of light to dark in subtle changes

tenebrism

a high contrast of light and dark