The Slide Comparison is a key method of both testing your factual comprehension of the course material and challenging your creative response abilities. In practice, the comparison is run in this way:
- You will be shown two slides on the screen--these are also called "paired slides." They wll be shown for 5 minutes.
- These will be works of art that we've seen and discussed in class.
- The two slides will always have something substantial in common. Substantial means something deeper than, for example, "Both slides show paintings" or "The painting on the left has lots of green in it, while the painting on the right has lots of red in it", to name two classic, but wrong responses from students early in previous servings of this course.
- You will need to give the name of the artist (if known), the title or subject, the bracket date, the location if you are shown a building or an artistic installation intended as a permanent installation or that is too big to pick up and carry away.
- Finally, and this is the most important part: You will write a short essay--about three full sentences--about the comparison. You need to tell me what elements of the work of art are being compared (probably the first sentence); why they are being compared (maybe the second sentence); and then, as a small grand finale, something else--maybe something about the artistic context, how one or both of the works relate to the artists' (or artist's) other work--your choice, as long as it works.
- How to do this: Always take a few moments to think over what you want to say. Note that in terms of the mini-essay there is often more than one relevant observation that can be made. Pick the one you think is best, and then write it out. If you can't quite remember all of the factual information ("Oh, it looks so familiar!") skip down a few lines and start to work on the mini-essay. That should jog your memory, or calm your nerves, whichever comes first.
- Quiz Dates: Please check the Schedule Page for the course in which you are enrolled. You must take the quiz for the section of the class you are in.
- Now try your hand with these two, by now rather familiar, works of art:
LEFT
RIGHT
First, identify each work: artist (if applicable, not here), title, and date by period. You will need to include the location if the work is a building or an object too big to pick up and carry away (ex.: triumphal arch, fresco cycle)
MINI-ESSAY:
These two reliefs are being compared because each is an ivory from Constantinople made during the Early Christian/Byzantine period. Each shows the continuing influence of the classical [or Roman] style, but the St. Michael ivory shows a mixture of this older style with the newer more abstract Byzantine style. [Another sentence on style or the identification of the second ivory as a portrait of the Emperor Justinian.]
Back to the Index Page