Using Art Terms and Vocabulary in a Design Analysis
The first IQ Reading covers two Elements of Art, 1) Line 2) Shape and one Principle of Art, and 3) Contrast. There are many types of line that the IQ Tool classifies for you, from organic to geometric, to spiral and directional. It is essential you take notes when using the IQ Tool so you will have the art terms and vocabulary needed to apply to your DA Analysis for the Art Work you have chosen. Then when writing your DA Analysis you can refer to your hand-written notes and apply the terms you learned. This process will improve your visual perception only if you learn to observe with your own eyes. Copying text from a website will not help you write a design analysis.

Weekly Key For IQ Reading and Writing a DA
The Elements and Principles lay the groundwork for for interpreting art. Each week you will read about a set of two or three Elements and Principles of Art in InQuizitive (IQ). The InQuizitive Reading Tool presents information in a quiz format. Don’t think of it as a quiz. It is a Reading Tool, not an assessment tool, a teaching tool. You don’t have to know the answer before you begin the quiz. The IQ Tool is software located on the web. Think of the IQ Tool as a reading resource that each week introduces you to two or three foundational principles of art and design. Choose a work of Art from Google Arts and Culture website each week, then apply what you learn in the IQ Tool to the Art image on Google, or the other way around works too.

Google Arts & Culture IQ IQ Reading
B1 Artist Line, Shape, Contrast (19)
B2 Artist Form, Volume, Mass, Texture (42)
B3 Medium Implied Depth: Value & Space (28)
B4 Medium Color (45)
B5 Art Movement Time & Motion (22)
B6 Art Movement Unity, Variety, Balance (31)
B7 Art Movement Scale & Proportion (23)
B8 Historical Event Emphasis and Focal Point (23)
B9 Historical Figure Pattern and Rhythm (24)
B10 Place Content and Analysis (45)
How to Work with Images for a Design Analysis
• Include an image from Google Arts and Culture site. Some students report that screen shots work the best, while others report they can save as to their desktop with a right mouse click. Experiment.
• Keep image proportions; don’t skew or squish images when transferring to your DA Analysis from your desktop.
• Trying keeping longest side of the image to 600 pixels or 4”.

Page 2 of 2 of Writing Your Design Analysis
Design Analysis Writing Instructions
Part 2 - Steps 1-6
Include the numerals 1-8 for the following items:
0 Under your Name place the picture of the Artwork
00 Under your Name the one Element or Principle you have chosen here, under the picture.
1 Citation – Captitalize titles of Artworks. Then, either use quotation marks around titles or use italics:
Example: Heavy Metal Sunshine, Frank Davis, Sculpture, Steel Plated Iron, 8’3” x 4’2”, Paris, France, 1957.
Include commas between each of the following:
Title of the Artwork [Italicized or in Quotes, and also Capitalize the nouns in titles of Artworks]
Artist’s Name, the Collective’s Name (or the Civilization if artist/s names are unknown)
Process and/or Techniques
Medium
Scale and/or Dimensions in inches [Convert metric measurements, to inches or feet for your American audience].
City and/or Country of Origin
Date the work was finished or first exhibited, or a date range the work was under construction. (Add BCE or CE to dates prior to 1400 CE)
2 Context – Name a world event taking place around the time that might have influenced its making. You may mention a personal story or tragedy if it affected the artist, but also seek out a historical, cultural, or societal, or material invention that might have helped define the work of art you see before you.
3 Describe – First, say right off whether the work is Abstract or Representational. Then use nouns to name what is representational in it, such as humans, buildings, landscape elements. If the work is Abstract name the colors and shapes and their visual occurence in the work. In either case, name only what is factually observable by you. Pretend you are asking a five year to name what they see in the work. The child will use nouns; no adjectives or verbs. Do not copy or paste words you have read when you describe because five year olds don’t write books! Use your own eyes and you will get better at this most fundamental skill of simple observation as the course unfolds.
4 Analyze – The Element of Principle of Art you are analyzing should be written in the first sentence here, name it right off the start (it should be the same one you put under your picture on the document. One Essential Element or Principle of Art is your focus and it is the only one you Analyze here. The IQ Reading Tool may introduce you to more than one, but you are to choose only one for this Analysis. Simply tell where do YOU see that one Element or Principle at play in the artwork? Then tell us for what purpose might the artist have used it to get your attention or message across to the audience? Your skill for analyzing the Elements and Principles of Art will improve so don’t expect perfection from yourself when you start doing your Analyses. I look for improvement.
5 Interpretation #1 – Off the top of your head and in your own words, what do you think the artist was trying to say with this artwork? What is something you see, with your own eyes, in the work that makes you think this.
6 Interpretation #2 – Artists Teach Us About Cultural Beliefs. Now look at yourself and your ideals. What is a personal bias you held before studying this work? What is an opinion you held that has changed since gave this piece of visual art some of your time and your attention?

Using Art Terms and Vocabulary in a Design Analysis The first IQ...