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Critical Writing I: Description / Intepretation Worksheet
Critical Writing I: Description / Intepretation Worksheet
- Terry Barrett
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DIRECTIONS:
1) Choose one artwork from class presentation to write a descriptive interpretation about.
- Cai Guo Qiang, Black Ceremony, 2011, gunpowder
- Marina Abramović, The Artist Is Present, 2010, performance
- Sam Taylor Wood, Still Life, 2001, video
- Patricia Piccinini, The Young Family, 2002-3, silicone, acrylic, plywood, human hair, leather,
timber
- Banksy, One Nation Under CCTV, 2008, paint on city wall (Oxford Street, London)
3) Form (formal elements; for example, is the work realistic? Or abstract?; color usage;
composition; kind and level of expression; etc.)
(2-3 pages)
Description is accurate, lively and engaging. Writer is enthusiastic and actively persuades the
reader to experience their feelings about the work. Elements in the work are discussed with
insight. Description is based on general value, rather than personal biases or preferences.
The subject is described and its meaning is interpreted. The writer distinguishes between subject
(outward appearance) and subject matter (inward meaning/symbolism) and discusses relationship
between them.
Specific materials in the work are identified. Dimensions and presentation are noted. Choice of
materials and techniques is evaluated. There is an exploration of how the medium might affect
the viewer’s reaction to the work.
Appropriate discussion of how important formal elements are in the work and how they are used
to evoke a response from the viewer.
Further research on relevant facts about the artist’s biography, education, interests, etc. Place the
work within its historical context. The art work’s relationship to its discipline and genre, other
objects in art history, etc. is used for interpretation.