CST Visual Arts Exam UPDATED ACTUAL
Exam Questions and CORRECT Answers
Prehistoric Art - CORRECT ANSWER - -Art objects were created as an attempt to control
or appease natural forces.
-Symbols of animals and people had supernatural significance and magic powers
-Cave paintings (created animal images to guarantee a successful hunt) no background subject
seemed to float in space
-Sculptures were either engraved, carved in deep relief, or fully rounded 3D sculptures
-Architecture 3 basic forms (dolmen, menhir, cromlech)
Archaic Art - CORRECT ANSWER - -Period includes kouros stone figures and vase
painting
Classical Art - CORRECT ANSWER - -Peak of Greek art and architecture
-Idealized figures
-Exemplify order and harmony
Hellenistic Art - CORRECT ANSWER - -Greek-derived style
-Found in Asia Minor, Mesopotamia, Egypt
-More melodramatic than Classical style
Navaho Art - CORRECT ANSWER - -Southwest tribe known for geometric-design rugs
colored with herbal and mineral dyes, especially carmine red.
-Shamans created sand paintings to heal disease, promote fertility, or assure a successful hunt.
Hopi Art - CORRECT ANSWER - -Carved and painted kachina dolls out of cottonwood
roots to represent gods and teach religion
-Also decorated ceremonial underground kivas in Arizona with elaborate mural paintings of
agriculture deities
,Kwakiutl Art - CORRECT ANSWER - -Northwest coast tribe that produced totem poles,
masks, and decorated houses and canoes
-Facial features of masks exaggerated in forceful wood carvings.
Eskimo Art - CORRECT ANSWER - -Alaskan tribe that carved masks with moving parts
used by shamans
-Often combined odd materials in surprising ways
Mayan Art - CORRECT ANSWER - -In Guatemala and Mexico, Mayans created
enormous temples in stepped-pyramid form
-Huge limestone temples were richly carved with relief sculpture and hieroglyphics.
Aztec Art - CORRECT ANSWER - -Produced massive statues of gods who demanded
regular human sacrifices
-Skilled in gold work
Incan Art - CORRECT ANSWER - -Peruvian tribe known for precisely constructed
masonry temples and metallurgy
Byzantine - CORRECT ANSWER - -Refers to eastern Mediterranean art from A.D. 330 to
1453
-Combination of early Christian art with the Greek Oriental taste for rich decoration and color
-Mosaics: intended to publicize the now official Christian creed, so their subject was generally
religion w/ Christ shown as teacher and all powerful ruler, Sumptuous grandeur, with halos
spotlighting sacred figures and shimmering gold backgrounds. Used reflective glass cubes, left
surfaces uneven so it sparkled, wide range of colors, found on walls and ceilings especially
church domes and apses, large cubes in stylized designs
-Human figures were tall, slim, with almond-shaped faces, big eyes, and solemn expressions
gazed straight ahead without the least hint of movement. They were flat, stiff, and symmetrically
placed, seeming to float as if hung from pegs. No perspective or volume.
, -Icons (Small wood-panel paintings believed to possess supernatural powers. The image of saints
or holy persons were typically rigid, frontal poses often with halos and staring wide eyes)
-Architecture: Central-dome church
Example: Hagia Sophia
-Place: Constantinople, Turkey
Romanesque - CORRECT ANSWER - -Mosaics: used opaque marble cubes, pieces had
smooth/flat finish, colors were limited due to use of natural stones, typically found on floor of
private homes, subjects were secular (battles or games), used minute pieces for realistic detail,
background represented landscape
-Frescoes and stylized sculpture
-Architecture: Barrel-vaulted church
Had round arches and stylized sculpture
horizontal, modest height, multiple units, rounded arch, piers & walls for support, barrel & groin
vaults, dark & solemn ambiance, and a simple & severe exterior
Example: St. Sernin
Place: Toulouse, France
-Sculptures taught religious doctrine by telling stories in stone, realism yielded to moralism
(bodies were distorted to fit the masonry niche, they were elongated with expressions of intense
emotion)
-Manuscripts: considered sacred objects containing the word of God, decorated lavishly (covers
made of gold and studded w/ precious gems)
Gothic - CORRECT ANSWER - -Architecture: Pointed-arch cathedral
vertical, soaring height, unified/unbroken space layout, pointed arches, exterior buttresses for
support, ribbed groin vaults, airy & bright ambiance, and an exterior that was richly decorated
with sculpture
Huge stained glass windows (illustrated the bible-like gigantic, glowing, illuminated
manuscripts)
Believed that a church's beauty would inspire parishioners to meditation and belief
Example: Chartres
Place: Chartres, France
Exam Questions and CORRECT Answers
Prehistoric Art - CORRECT ANSWER - -Art objects were created as an attempt to control
or appease natural forces.
-Symbols of animals and people had supernatural significance and magic powers
-Cave paintings (created animal images to guarantee a successful hunt) no background subject
seemed to float in space
-Sculptures were either engraved, carved in deep relief, or fully rounded 3D sculptures
-Architecture 3 basic forms (dolmen, menhir, cromlech)
Archaic Art - CORRECT ANSWER - -Period includes kouros stone figures and vase
painting
Classical Art - CORRECT ANSWER - -Peak of Greek art and architecture
-Idealized figures
-Exemplify order and harmony
Hellenistic Art - CORRECT ANSWER - -Greek-derived style
-Found in Asia Minor, Mesopotamia, Egypt
-More melodramatic than Classical style
Navaho Art - CORRECT ANSWER - -Southwest tribe known for geometric-design rugs
colored with herbal and mineral dyes, especially carmine red.
-Shamans created sand paintings to heal disease, promote fertility, or assure a successful hunt.
Hopi Art - CORRECT ANSWER - -Carved and painted kachina dolls out of cottonwood
roots to represent gods and teach religion
-Also decorated ceremonial underground kivas in Arizona with elaborate mural paintings of
agriculture deities
,Kwakiutl Art - CORRECT ANSWER - -Northwest coast tribe that produced totem poles,
masks, and decorated houses and canoes
-Facial features of masks exaggerated in forceful wood carvings.
Eskimo Art - CORRECT ANSWER - -Alaskan tribe that carved masks with moving parts
used by shamans
-Often combined odd materials in surprising ways
Mayan Art - CORRECT ANSWER - -In Guatemala and Mexico, Mayans created
enormous temples in stepped-pyramid form
-Huge limestone temples were richly carved with relief sculpture and hieroglyphics.
Aztec Art - CORRECT ANSWER - -Produced massive statues of gods who demanded
regular human sacrifices
-Skilled in gold work
Incan Art - CORRECT ANSWER - -Peruvian tribe known for precisely constructed
masonry temples and metallurgy
Byzantine - CORRECT ANSWER - -Refers to eastern Mediterranean art from A.D. 330 to
1453
-Combination of early Christian art with the Greek Oriental taste for rich decoration and color
-Mosaics: intended to publicize the now official Christian creed, so their subject was generally
religion w/ Christ shown as teacher and all powerful ruler, Sumptuous grandeur, with halos
spotlighting sacred figures and shimmering gold backgrounds. Used reflective glass cubes, left
surfaces uneven so it sparkled, wide range of colors, found on walls and ceilings especially
church domes and apses, large cubes in stylized designs
-Human figures were tall, slim, with almond-shaped faces, big eyes, and solemn expressions
gazed straight ahead without the least hint of movement. They were flat, stiff, and symmetrically
placed, seeming to float as if hung from pegs. No perspective or volume.
, -Icons (Small wood-panel paintings believed to possess supernatural powers. The image of saints
or holy persons were typically rigid, frontal poses often with halos and staring wide eyes)
-Architecture: Central-dome church
Example: Hagia Sophia
-Place: Constantinople, Turkey
Romanesque - CORRECT ANSWER - -Mosaics: used opaque marble cubes, pieces had
smooth/flat finish, colors were limited due to use of natural stones, typically found on floor of
private homes, subjects were secular (battles or games), used minute pieces for realistic detail,
background represented landscape
-Frescoes and stylized sculpture
-Architecture: Barrel-vaulted church
Had round arches and stylized sculpture
horizontal, modest height, multiple units, rounded arch, piers & walls for support, barrel & groin
vaults, dark & solemn ambiance, and a simple & severe exterior
Example: St. Sernin
Place: Toulouse, France
-Sculptures taught religious doctrine by telling stories in stone, realism yielded to moralism
(bodies were distorted to fit the masonry niche, they were elongated with expressions of intense
emotion)
-Manuscripts: considered sacred objects containing the word of God, decorated lavishly (covers
made of gold and studded w/ precious gems)
Gothic - CORRECT ANSWER - -Architecture: Pointed-arch cathedral
vertical, soaring height, unified/unbroken space layout, pointed arches, exterior buttresses for
support, ribbed groin vaults, airy & bright ambiance, and an exterior that was richly decorated
with sculpture
Huge stained glass windows (illustrated the bible-like gigantic, glowing, illuminated
manuscripts)
Believed that a church's beauty would inspire parishioners to meditation and belief
Example: Chartres
Place: Chartres, France
