Scholastic Bowl Questions - Fine Arts pt1

Name the French mime who introduced the character named "Bip."

(Marcel) Marceau

Name the form of textile embellishment, traditionally practiced by Native Americans, whose name comes from a porcupine product that is used as a decorative element.

Quillwork

What Johann Strauss II opera's title is translated as, "The Bat"?

Die Fledermaus

Flowers, household items, and other inanimate objects are often the subjects of what type of painting?

still life

Invented by Ben Franklin, what instrument is known as a mouth organ?

Harmonica

What was the world's first successful photographic process?

Daguerrotype (dag-er-o-type)

What English composer mingled English folk songs and Tudor church music in his works, which include "Concerto for the Bass Tuba" as well as music for the Queen Elizabeth II coronation in 1953?

(Ralph Vaughan) Williams

Which group of unknown individuals shaped the high standard for quilting techniques through their use of color and simple lines in American quilting?

The Amish (or Mennonites)

What is the curtain called that is used for special effects and, depending on the lighting, is either transparent or opaque?

scrim

What publishing organization did Stan Lee and Jack Kirby create to market comics such as the Fantastic Four, the X-men, and the Incredible Hulk?

Marvel Comics

In music, what are the four woodwinds and one brass instrument that make up the ensemble known as a woodwind quintet?

flute, oboe, clarinet, bassoon, French horn

Whose work, commissioned by the Russian czars and consisting of 15 jeweled Imperial Easter Eggs, was viewed by 352,000 people visiting the New York Metropolitan Museum of Art?

(Peter Carl) Fabergé

How many strings are on a mandolin?

8

What is the name of the famous sculpture depicting Dante at the gates of Hell created by Auguste Rodin?

The Thinker

Brass musicians sometimes use the clean head of a rubber toilet plunger to alter their sound. In this capacity, what would the plunger be called?

A mute

Used in making fine furniture, what is the darker inactive inner portion of a tree called?

Heartwood

From what Broadway musical did the song "How are Things in Glocca Morra?" come?

Finnian's Rainbow

What is the name of the mid-19th century American art movement embodied by a group of landscape painters whose aesthetic vision was influenced by romanticism?

The Hudson River School

Name this English, Grammy-award winning rock band formed in 1985 in Oxfordshire by bandmates including Thom Yorke, whose albums include "OK Computer" and "In Rainbows."

Radiohead

What material does architect Shigeru (shig-er-oo) Ben use to create his structures?

Recycled cardboard

What tool uses taut horse hair to get the best sound from stringed instruments?

Bow

What artist of the 1905 painting "The Smoke Signal" is better known for his bronze statues of the American West, especially "The Bronco Buster"?

(Frederic) Remington

When a humorist said, "You can't judge Egypt by 'Aida,' " he was referring to an opera by what composer?

(Giuseppe) Verdi

What term is used when building material is exactly vertical to a perpendicular level line?

plumb

What style of music is traditionally played by a sextet consisting of two violins, a piano, a double bass, and two bandoneons?

Tango

What 19th to 20th century sculptor, educated for a short while in Kansas, had almost completed the Mount Rushmore memorial when he died?

(Gutzon) Borglum

Which Romantic-era composer wrote his Third Piano Concerto, and it came to be regarded as the most difficult piano concerto in the standard repertoire?

(Sergei) Rachmaninoff

What name, Italian for pity, is given to any painting, drawing, or sculpture of Mary, the mother of Jesus, holding the dead body of Jesus.

Pietà (pee-ay-TAH)

What is the name of the highly stylized form of Japanese theater which began during the 17th and 18th centuries and is still performed today?

Kabuki

Name the style of art most popular in the 18th century that is characterized by extravagant decorative effects, asymmetry, and artificial pastoral subjects.

Rococco

What famous woman married, then gave up her honeymoon with Joe DiMaggio to entertain troops with the USO in Korea?

(Marilyn) Monroe

Identify the term that comes from the Greek, meaning "love of wisdom"; and is a subject that considers questions stemming from reflections on everyday events in life.

Philosophy

What Czech composer's "New World Symphony" was composed while he was living in the United States?

(Antonin) Dvorak

What is the technical term for the tall, four-sided shaft that gradually tapers to a pyramidal point at the top similar to the Washington Monument?

Obelisk

Used during the 18th and 19th centuries, what is the name for improvisation as part of a performance?

Cadenza

Name the comic artist best known for his one panel comic "The Far Side," which was sometimes divided into smaller sections for the story line.

Gary Larson

Name the controversial American dancer who, known for her Bohemian ways, died from strangulation when her long scarf was caught around the wheel of the sportscar in which she was riding.

(Isadora) Duncan

Name the building which houses the New York Philharmonic and the Metropolitan Opera?

Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts

From what classification of trees do all hardwoods come?

Deciduous trees

Name the musical that features the song "Luck be a Lady" and in which Nathan Detroit is engaged to Adelaide for 14 years.

Guys and Dolls

Name the Kansas born jazz artist whose nickname is "Bird."

(Charlie) Parker

Which branch of philosophy is also known as "moral philosophy"?

Ethics

What brass musical instrument is bandleader Tommy Dorsey most famous for playing?

Trombone

From what classification of trees do all softwoods come?

Coniferous

Name the composer of the song "Summertime," one of the best-known songs from the folk opera Porgy and Bess.

(George) Gershwin

What is the common name for a pattern consisting of rows of short, slanted parallel lines with the direction of the slant alternating row by row?

A herringbone weave

In theatre, what is the name of the area of the stage that is farthest away from the audience?

Upstage

Name the artist who often visited the Lourve to study the French masters as a boy and who created many well-known paintings including "Bathers" and "Girl With a Watering Can".

(Auguste) Renoir

Which style of art, music, and architecture of the 18th century evolved from the Baroque period and is characterized by elaborate ornamentation and gracefulness?

Rococo

Name the three basic methods of hand built construction of pottery.

pinch, coil, slab

What color can be found in shades called sage, pistachio, and hunter?

green

Introduced in 1942 by Bing Crosby in the movie "Holiday Inn," what Irving Berlin song became one of the most widely recorded and performed holiday songs ever?

White Christmas

What stringed symphonic instrument has a pedestal and a crown?

Harp

Name the Spanish artist famous for developing the Cubist style of painting.

(Pablo) Picasso

What rock band performed "Carry on My Wayward Son"?

Kansas

In Edgar Degas' 1875 painting "Uncle and Niece," what is the uncle reading?

a newspaper

During what activity would one hear "honor your partner" or "honor the corner" as part of the instructions?

Square dancing

What are Primitive, Segmental, and Stilted types of architecture topped with a keystone?

Arch

What American tap dancer is famous for his roles opposite Shirley Temple in films such as The Little Colonel?

(Bill "Bojangles") Robinson

What element of art defines the edges and surface ridges of an object?

Contour Line

How many flats are in the key of E-flat major?

Three

What 19th century French artist distanced himself from the Impressionists and painted the scandalous pieces "Luncheon on the Grass" and "Olympia"?

(Edouard) Manet

Name the musical based on the film Monty Python and the Holy Grail.

Spamalot

Developed in Rome during the 1600's, name the style that used exaggerated motion and clear, easily interpreted detail to produce drama, tension, exuberance, and grandeur in sculpture, painting, literature, dance, and music.

Baroque

What ballet great is most well known for his jumps as well as a role in the popular TV series "Sex and the City"?

(Mikhail) Baryshnikov

What form of quilting creates an embossed design by outlining the pattern with single stitches and then padding it with yarn or cotton?

Trapunto

Name the opera by Georges Bizet that was re-envisioned by MTV in 2001 as a "hip-hopera" starring Beyonce Knowles.

Carmen

Name the South Sea island where artist Paul Gaugin (go-gan) went to live in 1891 and which was a subject and background for many of his paintings.

Tahiti

Name the American artist who said, "Just as one can compose colors, or forms, one can compose motions," when speaking of the mobiles he devised.

(Alexander) Calder

Identify the type of dancing that begins with four couples who respond to "calls" such as "bow to your partner," "promenade," and "do see do."

Square (Dancing)

What term describes the distinctive and recurrent feature of theme, shape or figure in a work of art?

motif

What famous jazz trumpeter is known for his groundbreaking album "Kind of Blue"?

(Miles) Davis

What is the term for paintings and drawings of arrangements of inanimate objects?

still life

Name the clarinetist and band leader nicknamed "the King of Swing" whose most famous songs include "Sing, Sing, Sing" and "Let's Dance."

(Benny) Goodman

What is the name of the Cuban ballroom dance that is typically performed by a group following a single leader in a single line and consists of three steps forward followed by a kick?

Conga

What revolutionary technique was introduced by Georges Seurat (zhorzh sooh-RAH) in his painting entitled "Sunday Afternoon on the Island of the Grande Jatte (zhaht)"?

Pointillism

The wife of a Florentine merchant, Lisa Ghirardini (gear-ar-DEE-nee), posed for a famous portrait which is known by what title in English?

The Mona Lisa

What composer, most famous for his work in films, wrote the music for the movies, "Charade," "Hatari," "The Great Race," and most famously, "The Pink Panther"?

(Henry) Mancini

Name the 20th-century Mexican painter and husband of Frida Kahlo who is known for his murals that glorify farms, peasants, and revolutionary fervor.

(Diego) Rivera

What is the name of the style of jazz which originated in New Orleans and combines the elements of ragtime and blues?

Dixieland

Who wrote the book and music for the Broadway smash hit The Producers, which was derived from his 1968 film of the same name?

(Mel) Brooks

Identify the embroidered cloth nearly 230 feet long, which depicts the events leading up to the Norman Conquest of England and culminating in the Battle of Hastings.

The Bayeux Tapestry

Which orchestral work by Sergei Prokofiev (SER-gay Pro-KO-fee-eff) is subtitled Symphonic Tale for Children?

Peter and the Wolf

What is the process of coating sculptures or architectural ornaments with gold leaf?

gilding

Name the device invented by J.N. Malzel in 1816 to indicate the tempo of music with a pendulum.

metronome

Auguste Bartholdi (bar-TOLL-dee) designed "Liberty Enlightening the World." Who was the structural engineer responsible for its construction in New York harbor?

(Gustave) Eiffel (ay-FELL)

Name the Greek philosopher who laid the foundation of western philosophy and who founded the Academy in Athens around 385 B.C.

Plato

What is the name of the special type of reed that oboes, bassoons, English horns, and bagpipes use?

Double (reeds)

What famous photographer do we associate with stunning wilderness pictures of Yosemite Valley, the Grand Tetons, and the Redwood forests of California?

(Ansel) Adams

What opera by Gian-Carlo Menotti tells the tale of the Magi's visit to view the Christ child?

Amahl and the Night Visitors

What subjective style of art tends to distort reality for an emotional effect, such as Edvard Munch's The Scream?

Expressionism

Give both the first and last name of the composer who wrote a series of concertos between 1718 and 1721 collectively entitled The Brandenburg Concertos?

Johann (Sebastian) Bach

What is the architectural style of the Jefferson Memorial, the U.S. Capitol Building, and the Supreme Court Building?

neoclassical

Name the opera by Giacomo Puccini (JAH-co-mo pooh-CHEE-nee) which debuted in 1904, and which is set in Nagasaki, Japan, with characters including Pinkerton, Cho-cho San, Suzuki, and Kate.

Madame Butterfly

What is the title or name given to the person who creates a dance or dance routine?

choreographer

Name the German artist, sometimes referred to as the "Leonardo of the North," who is famous for his woodcuts that include The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse and Praying Hands.

(Albrecht) Dürer

What is the 20th century artistic style in which dreams, fantasy, and the subconscious served as the inspiration for the artists?

Surrealism

Which German composer of four symphonies is better known for his namesake "Lullaby," the Academic Festival Overture, and A German Requiem?

Brahms

Name the French Impressionist artist who specialized in capturing movement, especially in ballerinas and race horses.

(Edgar) Degas ( pronounced day-gah)

What is the name of the wind instrument also known as "the blues harp" or the "mouth organ" which is sometimes held on a neck rack?

harmonica