CLEP Humanities : 2D Visual Art

Study concepts, example questions & explanations for CLEP Humanities

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Example Questions

Example Question #1 : Analyzing The Form Of 2 D Visual Art

What twentieth century artist made large-scale screen prints of famous photographs in outlandish colors?

Possible Answers:

Mark Rothko

Robert Rauschenberg

Andy Warhol

Jackson Pollack

Wasily Kandinsky

Correct answer:

Andy Warhol

Explanation:

Andy Warhol sought to make art that directly engaged and confronted popular culture in unique and surprising ways. Warhol also liked to experiment with methods that had a sense of automation, such as screenprinting. Both of these aspects of Warhol's work were shown in a series of paintings he did in the 1960s, which had images of celebrities like Marilyn Monroe, Elizabeth Taylor, and James Dean reprinted in bright pinks, blues, and greens.

Example Question #1 : Analyzing The Form Of 2 D Visual Art

The kind of artwork that features many pieces of glass or tile arranged into a portrait or other image is called a __________.

Possible Answers:

fresco

diptych

mural

devotional

mosaic

Correct answer:

mosaic

Explanation:

While "mosaic" is a very broad term, it refers to any artwork made by assembling together small pieces of glass and tile. Roman artists and architects frequently used mosaics to create artwork in homes and buildings, and these were frequently realistic depictions of people or landscapes. Mosaics are still used by artists today, but can often take on abstract forms.

Example Question #452 : Ap Art History

Which of the following artistic movements was heavily influenced by the freeform nature of jazz music?

Possible Answers:

Abstract Expressionism

Futurism

Cubism

Bauhaus

Impressionism

Correct answer:

Abstract Expressionism

Explanation:

The eclectic, improvisational nature of jazz had a wide influence in other artistic forms. In particular, visual artists sought to take some of jazz's extemporaneous elements and apply them to painting and sculpture. This idea greatly influence Jackson Pollock's "drip method" and other aspects of Abstract Expressionist art from the 1940s and 1950s.

Example Question #3 : Analyzing The Content Of 2 D Visual Art

Markers of the artistic style of the Dutch painter Rembrandt van Rijn (1606-1669) include all of the following EXCEPT __________.

Possible Answers:

a use of very rich and dark colors

the insertion of himself into his group paintings

portraits of individuals

dramatic use of lighting

large-form landscapes

Correct answer:

large-form landscapes

Explanation:

Rembrandt van Rijn was one of the great masters of the Dutch Golden Age of painting during the seventeenth century. His style was notable for featuring bold colors and dramatic lighting in "everyday scenes" of commonfolk, as well as portraits and scenes out of the Bible. Almost all of Rembrandt's paintings featured people, and he almost never drew landscapes.

Example Question #4 : Analyzing The Content Of 2 D Visual Art

The painter Gilbert Stuart was most well-known for his __________.

Possible Answers:

still lifes

landscapes

domestic scenes

portraits

historic paintings

Correct answer:

portraits

Explanation:

Gilbert Stuart (1755-1828) was one of the very first well known American painters. During the Revolutionary Era, Stuart became essentially the "court painter" of the early American government because of his portraits of leading figures. Stuart's work includes the most famous portraits of George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, and many other of America's Founding Fathers.

Example Question #1 : Understanding Terminology That Describes 2 D Visual Art

An artwork described as "pastoral" indicates that its subject matter is __________.

Possible Answers:

religious

rural life

classical

historical

urban life

Correct answer:

rural life

Explanation:

"Pastoral," derived from the same root as "pasture," typically indicates something having to do with shepherds or other kinds of livestock keepers. In art, a "pastoral" piece depicts figures in rural life in some form, even if not necessarily a scene of herding. After the Industrial Revolution, such paintings were made to evoke a country life that was seen as gone.

Example Question #2 : Understanding Terminology That Describes Seventeenth And Eighteenth Century 2 D Visual Art

When describing how an artist arranges elements in a drawing or painting, one is referring to the work's _________________.

Possible Answers:

Composition

Medium

Collage

Matte

Study

Correct answer:

Composition

Explanation:

A study is done before a work is finished, and does not refer to how elements are put together in a work. Matte refers to a non-glassy surface or finish. A collage may incorporate different style or mediums (the material the artist works with), but does not refer to how these are arranged. Composition describes how the elements come together to create the work.

Example Question #1 : Answering Other Questions About 2 D Visual Art

The artist Francisco Goya is from what country?

Possible Answers:

Brazil

Spain

Argentina

France

Italy

Correct answer:

Spain

Explanation:

Francisco Goya is from Spain.

Example Question #2 : Analyzing The Form Of 2 D Visual Art

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The above image is a woodblock print, meaning it __________.

Possible Answers:

can be easily replicated in the same form

can be enlarged and miniaturized easily

can only be shown in a large format

can have its colors easily changed

cannot be moved from the place it was first drawn

Correct answer:

can be easily replicated in the same form

Explanation:

The woodblock format, popular throughout Asia, is an artistic format that is produced by having a large piece of wood cut into and dyed by the artist. Thereafter, this woodblock can be printed onto canvas or paper, making it extremely easy to duplicate the work of art again and again.

Example Question #1 : Analyzing The Form Of 2 D Visual Art

Still-life-with-skull-1898.jpg_blog

The composition above is a painting in the genre of __________.

Possible Answers:

portrait

still life

nude

history painting

landscape

Correct answer:

still life

Explanation:

The painter of this work, Paul Cézanne, was particularly noted for his still lifes. The one in this question, "Still Life with Skull," was painted in 1898 and is particularly notable for the inclusion of a skull, a notable feature of Cezanne's later work from the 1890s on. Cézanne's use of broad brushstrokes, layered color, and different perspectives helped create a bridge from impressionism to modern art movements like cubism.

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