GENERAL INFORMATION

Visit an art museum; select an artwork; and write about it and the artist.

IMPORTANT NOTE: READ EVERYTHING
Adhere to the requirements outlined or your grade will be affected. In some cases, failing to follow the guidelines will result in a failing paper.

A NOTE ABOUT TIMELINESS

Make your museum visit as early as possible to allow ample time to select an artwork and artist and to obtain research materials, which can take several weeks to arrive (see below).

If You Want Advice

You are encouraged to submit preliminary drafts to the instructor for review and advice.

Museum Visit

To verify your visit, attach your admission receipt to your project paper. Any research   paper submitted without an admission receipt will be rejected.

Select more than one artwork. Information about your first choice may be difficult to obtain.

Most museums are closed Mondays. Many have reduced or free admission on certain days, and a few are free at all times. Some discount admission for students or members of organizations like AAA. Contact the museum or visit its web site to find out about operating hours and admission policies.

Checklist of Requirements

• Binder or folder to hold your term paper and other materials.
• Name at the top of each page and each page numbered.
• Original admission receipt from art museum.
• Reproduction of the artwork reviewed, as well as of any related images
• Bibliography on the last page, with sources cited in the body of the text





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TERM PAPER

The length is 1500-2000 words plus bibliography presented in a binder or folder. 

Include

• Original admission receipt from art museum.
• Reproduction of your chosen artwork, plus reproductions or illustrations of support material. Images can often be obtained by selecting “Images” in your web browser and then entering your artist’s name. It is sometimes helpful to type the artwork’s title after your artist’s name; enclosing the title in quotes may improve your search. Make sure your spelling is accurate.

Your Views:
Although this is largely a research project, it is expected that you will digest, analyze, assimilate, and interpret what you see and read in order to provide your own original views and opinions, as well as your own understanding.

Your paper is to address three
primary topics:

• The Artwork
  
• The Artist
• The Historical Period

The Artwork

• Give basic information such as dimensions, materials, and date of creation.
• Analyze the techniques and materials used to make the artwork.
• Question the significance of the work, including its influence upon other artworks and artists, any practical function it may have served, and the meaning behind the imagery.
• Consider how the work fits into its historical period and the artistic style(s) of its time.

• Provide your own views of the artwork, along with supporting arguments. For example, do you find it compelling or is it unpersuasive?
• Research critical events during your artist’s lifetime, especially those that occurred around the time your artwork was created and which may have had an influence. 

The Artist

• Include a brief personal and artistic biography of the artist.
• Please do not bore me with a string of events and dates. I don’t need to know that Bob Smith had an exhibit at Main Street Gallery in June 1837, and another in October 1837 at Seaside Hotel, and another at…well, you get the idea. It might be interesting to know that Frida Kahlo was severely injuring in a streetcar accident on 17 September 1925, but it is much more interesting to learn that during her hospital stay she began to pursue art with increased seriousness and that many of her images are portrayals of the consequences of that accident.
• Discuss how the artist was influenced by the culture, technology, politics, and predominant philosophy of the time.
• Investigate who the artist was influenced by, as well as artistic styles that had an impact upon your artist’s work.

The Historical Period

• Place your artist in the context of the times. Investigate how people lived and the character of the culture.
• Discuss the culture, technology, politics, and predominant philosophy of the time and how they may have affected your artist or artwork.

• Research critical events during your artist’s lifetime, especially those that occurred around the time your artwork was created and which may have had an influence.

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RESEARCH

Research may be done on the Internet and in published books and journals.

Requirements

• Consult at least 5 sources
• No fewer than 2 must be books
• No more than 2 internet sites may be consulted and they must be respected educational sources. The college subscribes to a number of acceptable sites. For help, consult with the librarian.
• Include a bibliography of sources at the end of your treatise. Papers without a bibliography will not be accepted and will receive a failing grade.

• Cite passages from a source that you quote or that you paraphrase.



How to obtain books for research

• Begin at the college and local libraries. Use CLUES to find locally available books. If you are not familiar with CLUES, ask the college librarian for help.
• If no books are available locally, request them through the interlibrary loan service. Through this service, books can be borrowed from any member library in the country. Keep in mind, however, that it often takes several weeks to obtain the books.
• To order a book, provide the librarian with the author’s name, publisher, and year published. You may not know what book(s) to ask for. If so, see “Researching Book Titles” below.

Researching Book Titles

• If your artist is a 20th-century painter, books may be listed on the instructor’s web site: www.kaplanpicturemaker.com. To find out, select “CCC: Painting.” Then choose either “Artists” or one of the “Bibliography” pages from the sub-menu.
• Check art school library web sites and commercial sites like Amazon Books for books that have been published about your artist or artwork, and then request an interlibrary loan.
• Amazon and library web sites for several art schools in the region are listed below.

Amazon

PAFA

UArts

Pratt Institute

Plagiarism

Plagiarism is not tolerated, it’s that simple. Papers with plagiarized material receive a grade of zero.

Good Writing

• A well organized paper written in clear, concise language will receive a better grade than a paper arranged in a haphazard or confusing way or in which the author’s meaning is unclear.
• There is no excuse for poor spelling. Use a dictionary and the spell-check feature of your word processing program. Even with a spell-checker, review your paper carefully; there are things a spell-checker cannot effectively correct.
• Use vivid and interesting language; refer to a thesaurus so that every seventh word isn’t “interesting.” There are many other interesting words besides “interesting” that mean “interesting” or something similar to “interesting,” so find interesting ways to make your paper more interesting.
• Grammar is considered when grading. Poor grammar results in poorly communicated and, therefore, poorly understood, ideas and explanations.
• Give your paper a central focus or theme.



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