Art Essay Examples and Topics

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2,077 samples

If you are studying art, chances are that you will have to write a lot of essays during your time in school or college. To receive an excellent grade on them, it is essential that you learn how to write an art essay. Here are the top tips for writing essays on art:

Choose a subject that is interesting to you. For example, if you are interested in graphic art, focus on it in your essay. If you are not sure of what to write about, try searching art essay topics online and choose the one you like most.

Look for sample papers on the topic. If you want to write about a particular movie, look for a film analysis example featuring it. Using this tip, you will be able to get some ideas and add more depth to your writing.

Find relevant scholarly sources. You can search Google Scholar or your school’s library for high-quality articles and books on the subject. Instead of merely citing the information from sources, try to offer some critique. Are the views shared by the author supported by other scholars? Do you agree with their evaluation and why?

Include a personal response. Many forms of art are subject to personal interpretation, and some tutors want their students’ essays to be expressive. This means that you should share your views on the topic and explain why you think the way you do. Doing so will help you to show your understanding of the topic and earn you some extra marks.

Hopefully, these tips will help you to earn an A on your art and design essays! You can explore our site for free essay samples and topics.

2077 Best Essay Examples on Art

The History of Elizabethan Drama Era

The early Elizabethan dramas were not performed in permanent theaters. In most cases, traveling troupes performed these plays in the courtyards.
  • 5
  • Subjects: Theater
  • Pages: 6
  • Words: 1009

Mona Lisa’s Elements and Principles of Art

The image involves a half-body portrait of a woman, and the enigmatic smile of the lady reflects the artist's idea of the connection between nature and humanity.
  • 1
  • Subjects: Paintings
  • Pages: 2
  • Words: 590

Photograph Description: Nature

The photograph reflects a marvelous landscape combining the elements of human interference in the form of buildings; it is necessary to underline the fact that the picture is to be referred to as representational [...]
  • Subjects: Photography
  • Pages: 2
  • Words: 465

Arguments for Graffiti as Art

Given the comprehensive nature of art and the time and care necessary to produce a piece of graffiti, it should be considered a form of art.
  • Subjects: Visual Arts
  • Pages: 3
  • Words: 850

Greek and Roman Theatre Differences

The design was further involved in the seat arrangement that ensured that the actors were clearly heard by the people on the uppermost semicircular bench of the theater.
  • 1.8
  • Subjects: Theater
  • Pages: 4
  • Words: 1124

Why Was the Globe Theatre Important to Shakespeare?

The role of the Globe Theatre in Shakespeare's life is significant because the possibility to participate in the theatre's The Lord Chamberlain's Men Group and to write plays for the theatre's performances contributed to the [...]
  • 3.8
  • Subjects: Theater
  • Pages: 4
  • Words: 1089

Mona Lisa and the Last Supper Paintings

The naming of Mona Lisa and the Last Supper paintings is based on the themes represented in the paintings and situations at the time.
  • 4.2
  • Subjects: Paintings
  • Pages: 6
  • Words: 1674

Comparison and Contrast of Art History

Daniel Strobel, Jr.and Her Son, George is one from the pair of neoclassical portraits of the Strobel family Daniel Strobel, the American Diplomat in France, and his wife, Anna Church, the daughter of the first [...]
  • Subjects: Paintings
  • Pages: 5
  • Words: 1401

Art Appreciation

The works of Art in the Ancient culture were of various forms which included architecture, sculpture, and graphic arts. Architecture and sculpture are the oldest forms of art that existed and still exist in the [...]
  • 4.3
  • Subjects: History of Art
  • Pages: 2
  • Words: 676

Contemporary Art Practices Essay

Speaking about contemporary art, people usually mean the objects of art and artistic techniques that began to be used in the middle of the twentieth century.
  • 5
  • Subjects: Art Movement
  • Pages: 11
  • Words: 2962

Two of Shakespeare’s Sonnets (18 and 55) Analysis

In Shakespeare's sonnets, human perfectibility and love of praise occupy a prominent place, making the great poet's ideals the exemplifications of the themes of Renaissance humanism.
  • Subjects: History of Art
  • Pages: 2
  • Words: 631

The Starry Night by Van Gogh

Different colors represent different emotions and feelings in a work of art such as a painting; perhaps one of the most important facts in the use of color is the ability to actively involve the [...]
  • Subjects: Paintings
  • Pages: 4
  • Words: 1166

Monet’s and van Gogh’s Paintings Comparison

Impressionists showed the development of the urban environment at the end of the 19th century. Monet was the representative of impressionism, whereas van Gogh represented post-impressionism.
  • Subjects: Paintings
  • Pages: 3
  • Words: 896

Exhibition Review

The photographs on the exhibition are all from the permanent section of the museum. The unifying factor in the photographs on this exhibition is the use of Photoshop software in enhancing their appeal.
  • Subjects: Art Exhibitions
  • Pages: 3
  • Words: 818

Formal Analysis: Empress Theodora and Her Attendants

The focal point of the composition is the figure of the empress, highlighted through color and light. The mosaic 'Empress Theodora and Her Attendants' provides a glaring example of how formal elements of design work [...]
  • 4.5
  • Subjects: Art Movement
  • Pages: 2
  • Words: 611

“The Tragedy” by Pablo Picasso

An impression of three people at a beach on the sea creates an open form, and the artist used blue colour to indicate the beach and the sea. Contour lines bring out the shape of [...]
  • Subjects: Artists
  • Pages: 2
  • Words: 613

Art in “Who the Fuck Is Jackson Pollock?” Documentary

Simultaneously, the works of renowned artists increasingly became a property of the art elites, a group of individuals who decide the worthiness of a piece of artwork based on their knowledge and recognition of the [...]
  • Subjects: History of Art
  • Pages: 2
  • Words: 638

Should the Government Fund the Arts?

Since the arts play a big role in the society the government has a moral responsibility to fund the arts as they are primarily unsustainable when exposed to open market forces, art is a necessity [...]
  • 5
  • Subjects: Art Movement
  • Pages: 3
  • Words: 1149

Photos in “12 Million Black Voices” by Richard Wright

It is clear that the author believes that African Americans are victims of the development of the US society. However, 'the Lords of the Land' had the necessary mechanisms to suppress the revolts and make [...]
  • Subjects: Photography
  • Pages: 5
  • Words: 1394

Chapter 2 in “Understanding Comics” by Scott McCloud

The second chapter of Scott McCloud's book "Understanding Comics" is devoted to the vocabulary of comics and all that the reader perceives when looking at the inscriptions in illustrated publications and what he concludes.
  • Subjects: Visual Arts
  • Pages: 1
  • Words: 316

The Theories of Theatre’s Origins

The play's inspiration was the Greek mythology a part of the Greek religion. The governing body of the city convened and decided whether to allow the staging of a Corpus Christi play.
  • Subjects: Theater
  • Pages: 3
  • Words: 1131

The Shaka Triad Sculpture

The sculpture of the Shaka triad has a mandorla, which has an inscription providing a piece of essential information about the date, the author, donors, and the circumstances in which the statue was created.
  • Subjects: Sculpture
  • Pages: 2
  • Words: 530

Descriptive Painting «The Creation of Adam»

The Creation of Adam painting is the most notable as can be seen in the frescoes of the Sistine chapel. Michelangelo uses the enlarged figure of Adam and God in this painting so as to [...]
  • 5
  • Subjects: Paintings
  • Pages: 3
  • Words: 930

The Renaissance Time During Romeo and Juliet

Men and women performed different roles in the household; the man was responsible for farming while the woman took care of the poultry and dairy. In the upper-class, marriages were arranged and the parents chose [...]
  • Subjects: Art Movement
  • Pages: 2
  • Words: 600

”Girl With a Pearl Earring” by Johannes Vermeer

Following is a depiction of the painting: This painting was chosen because the innocence on the face of the girl can be related to one's self and moreover, the choice of colours that Vermeer has [...]
  • 5
  • Subjects: Paintings
  • Pages: 2
  • Words: 630

History of Art and Design

Styles such as still life painting advanced from the use of pencils in the past to the use of colors in the present.
  • Subjects: History of Art
  • Pages: 4
  • Words: 1272

From Modernism to Postmodernism

The desire to move out of the era of modernism to postmodernism was desirable. The change of modernism to postmodernism is an evolution of traditional believes and practices to a modern way of thinking.
  • Subjects: History of Art
  • Pages: 3
  • Words: 881

Biographical Profile of Jamaal Barber

Notably, he won the JOSA Award of Excellence in Drawing in 2002 and got first place in the graphic design competition of the Rebel Magazine.
  • Subjects: Artists
  • Pages: 6
  • Words: 1702

Balinese Interpretation of Shakespeare’s “The Tempest”

The Balinese performance was more impressive than the Utah Valley University play because Shakespeare would have chosen the far more delicate quality of this performance to emphasize his ideas on the colonialism theme in "The [...]
  • Subjects: Theater
  • Pages: 2
  • Words: 564

Michelangelo’s Artwork

Michelangelo was taught sculpture by Bertoldo di Giovanni. Michelangelo was a renaissance artist and his works were greatly influenced by humanism.
  • Subjects: Visual Arts
  • Pages: 24
  • Words: 700

Picasso’s Painting “Guernica”

Guernica is a painting by an influential 20th-century artist, Pablo Picasso, that was created in 1937 in response to the bombing of the city of Guernica in the Spanish Civil War.
  • Subjects: Paintings
  • Pages: 2
  • Words: 582

“Into Bondage” a Picture by Aaron Douglas

Aaron Douglas was a bright representative of the Harlem Renaissance, a movement that appeared in the first half of the 20th century and was aimed at attracting public attention to problems of African American people [...]
  • Subjects: Paintings
  • Pages: 5
  • Words: 1413

Comparison of Indian and Chinese Art

Brief History of Indian Art The history of Indian art is said to be as old as the Indus Valley civilization itself where each period in history has provided the nation with unique modes of [...]
  • Subjects: Visual Arts
  • Pages: 6
  • Words: 1675

Art and Design Analysis

The drawings are purely handmade and they show that the artist spent a lot of time to come up with these drawings. There is a clear evidence of thinking in the mind of the art [...]
  • Subjects: Visual Arts
  • Pages: 2
  • Words: 606

Image Analysis of “American Progress” by John Gast

The telegraph cable that the woman is stretching across the continent, the book in her hand, the trains and the ships, and the bridge on the right everything is empathizing the progress of the European [...]
  • Subjects: Paintings
  • Pages: 2
  • Words: 553

“References to Salvador Dali Make Me Hot” by Rivera

These are: "Why does the author of the play depict Gabriella either nude or in some light bed-like clothes?", "How does the clothing style reflect Gabriella's feelings?", "How do the costumes of Gabriella relate to [...]
  • Subjects: Theater
  • Pages: 7
  • Words: 1111

Prometheus Bound by Peter Paul Rubens

In creating the art, Rubens ensured that the major theme of the painting is shown through the boundary that separated the other parts of the cliff and the fire.
  • Subjects: Artists
  • Pages: 5
  • Words: 1651

Is Photography an Art and Why?

In brief, photography is an art since it uses a variety of human actions to create aural, visual, or performative artifacts that show the author's creativity or technical proficiency and are intended to be admired [...]
  • Subjects: Photography
  • Pages: 2
  • Words: 561

Renaissance Versus Baroque

The era of baroque was an outcome of the struggle of the artists who denied a chance to exhibit their talents in the renaissance period.
  • Subjects: Art Movement
  • Pages: 4
  • Words: 1315

David Sculpture by Donatello: Analysis

David the protagonist of a statue, was prototyped after the hero of the biblical story in the Book of Samuel David and Goliath.
  • Subjects: Sculpture
  • Pages: 4
  • Words: 1280

Art and Society: Goals and Duties of Artists

Therefore, it can be asserted that one of the roles of art is to preserve the cultural trait and heritage of a community or society. This is both to the user of the artistic material [...]
  • Subjects: Visual Arts
  • Pages: 5
  • Words: 1752

“Starry Night” by Vincent van Gogh

The cultural influence on the theme and manner of the work The Starry Night presented by the author can be evaluated through the complicated world look of its nature. The exaggeration of the drawing lines [...]
  • Subjects: Paintings
  • Pages: 5
  • Words: 1555

Visual Analysis: Untitled Film Still #21

Hence, the analysis of this piece is feasible from the perspective of demonstrating the importance of the sociological underpinning of cultural products and the way visual techniques are used for transmitting the message.
  • Subjects: Visual Arts
  • Pages: 5
  • Words: 1414

Art History: Female Figures in Ancient Greek Sculpture

The development of female figures in ancient Greek sculpture was noticeable during those times; each period added something new; the influence of other countries and their cultures was reflected in almost each piece of work, [...]
  • 5
  • Subjects: Sculpture
  • Pages: 4
  • Words: 1031

The Play “Fifth of July” by Lanford Wilson

The rebirth can be connected to the launch of new events in the lives of the characters. Shirley, being the youngest in the Talley's in the play, is seen the progression factor of the Talley's [...]
  • Subjects: Theater
  • Pages: 3
  • Words: 925

Jackson Pollock’s “Convergence” Painting

Jackson Pollock mastered this technique and while such paintings look like a mess of colors, careful inspection reveals that the paintings have very intricate patterns that put a living form for the painting.
  • Subjects: Paintings
  • Pages: 2
  • Words: 561

Frida Kahlo’s Paintings Analysis

Although the first painting is a symbolic self-portrait and the other one is a realistic portrait of a woman, both of these works strike the audience with the powerful depiction of the women's experience of [...]
  • Subjects: Paintings
  • Pages: 5
  • Words: 1393

Impressionism in Music and Art

The natural light appears in a variety of types which gives the impressionist artist much freedom to alter the details of the objects in the painting using the natural light in different types.
  • 4.3
  • Subjects: Art Movement
  • Pages: 7
  • Words: 2018

Cimabue’s and Giotto’s Madonna Enthroned Paintings

Cimabue's paintings has many of the similar Byzantine icons of the era and some of them are folds in the garments are pressed and almost standardized, the halo is golden hue and plate sized, all [...]
  • Subjects: Paintings
  • Pages: 4
  • Words: 1165

Nudity vs. Pornography When Used in Artwork

Nude art forms date back to the ancient Greeks who had the utmost respect for the sanctity that is the human body even though the same cannot be said in the present day where artists [...]
  • Subjects: Visual Arts
  • Pages: 4
  • Words: 752

“The Two Fridas” painting analysis

The mirror-reflexion of the two Fridas constitutes the foreground of the painting. The two figures on the picture are being either linked in the inner world, which is being illustrated by the unity of the [...]
  • Subjects: Paintings
  • Pages: 4
  • Words: 1099

The Rent Broadway Musical’s Analysis

This is a musical, and the type of performance is an ensemble since the majority of songs are performed by a group of actors, although there are several solo performances as well.
  • Subjects: Theater
  • Pages: 2
  • Words: 562

Renaissance and Realism Art Periods

The paintings of the time alongside the artwork were presented mythically and also depicted the religious aspect. The presence of the monarchial administration helped most merchants to come up, something that led to the development [...]
  • 5
  • Subjects: Art Movement
  • Pages: 5
  • Words: 1431

Public Art: “Balloon Flower (Red)” by Jeff Koons

Still, Koons's sculpture can be discussed as a good and influential piece of public art because it not only catches the public attention, but it is also discussed as attractive due to the fact the [...]
  • Subjects: Sculpture
  • Pages: 6
  • Words: 1696

Sculpture and painting

A look at the military sculptures in many city parks shows that, they were meant to inspire patriotism while at the same time instigate and boost the pride of a country where the sculptures stand.
  • 4
  • Subjects: Visual Arts
  • Pages: 2
  • Words: 653

Carlos Schwabe’s “The Death of the Gravedigger”

He also drew the image of "Death" in his masterpiece painting The Death of the Grave-Digger from her. The figures of the woman angel and the old man standing inside the grave are in the [...]
  • Subjects: Paintings
  • Pages: 4
  • Words: 1214

Chapters 7-9 in “Understanding Comics” by McCloud

Despite the strict logical organization of the stages from the basic understanding of purpose to sharpening the specific skills related to the form of art, the author claims that many artists tend to learn these [...]
  • Subjects: Visual Arts
  • Pages: 3
  • Words: 877

Positive Impact of Islamic Art on Society

Its impact of social and cultural development of the Islamic World and other cultures can be considered to be positive because it has introduced uniqueness, originality, and unity of Islamic culture, architecture, media and politics.
  • Subjects: Art Movement
  • Pages: 3
  • Words: 832

The Shiva as Lord of Dance (Nataraja) Sculpture

In the sculpture, Shiva is dancing within a halo of flame, in his right hand holding the damaru, which is a hand drum that made the first sounds of creation, and the agni in his [...]
  • Subjects: Sculpture
  • Pages: 1
  • Words: 229

How Has Technology Influenced the Creation of Art?

In the modern conditions of the development and manifestation of the possibilities of humanity, new creative cultural products and directions appear, the boundaries between art and technology are erased, and they are connected.
  • Subjects: History of Art
  • Pages: 2
  • Words: 618

Death of Socrates, Painting Analysis

The setting of the painting is a prison that has arches on the window and an arch in the hallway. On the right-hand side of the painting, the orange tunic echoes the red and yellow [...]
  • Subjects: Paintings
  • Pages: 4
  • Words: 1211

Analysis of Modernist Painting by Clement Greenberg

Analyzing Greenberg's work requires three components: reviewing his arguments, assessing the strengths and weaknesses of the text, and showing examples of art that demonstrate the author's principal points.
  • Subjects: Paintings
  • Pages: 2
  • Words: 600

Drama: Staging “Trifles” by Susan Glaspell

In its turn, this explains why in Glaspell's play, the characters strive to act in the manner fully consistent with what used to be assumed accounts for the social roles of the representatives of each [...]
  • 5
  • Subjects: Theater
  • Pages: 6
  • Words: 1700

Modern, Modernism, and Modernization

Modern, modernism, and modernization are the notions which may be easily defined in human mind, it means that one can understand what modern, modernism, and modernization mean, however, when it comes to formulation of the [...]
  • Subjects: Visual Arts
  • Pages: 2
  • Words: 565

Analysis of “The Falling Man”

The theme of the article was unified by the photograph of the falling man which branched out to several stories surrounding it.the story of the photographer who took the picture, the story of the family [...]
  • Subjects: Photography
  • Pages: 4
  • Words: 1306

“Hope II” by Gustav Klimt: Formal Analysis

The painting is called Hope II, which indicates that the artist wanted to emphasize not the doom and sadness of the death of a child but the hope of the women depicted in the painting.
  • Subjects: Paintings
  • Pages: 1
  • Words: 462

Bruegel’s “Children’s Games”

Bruegel's paintings portrayed the life of peasants during that time.'The Children's Games' and 'Winter Landscape with Skaters and a Bird Trap' are some of the most famous paintings of the artist.
  • Subjects: Paintings
  • Pages: 10
  • Words: 2854

“The Last Judgement” by Michael Angelo

The painting conveys the act of the second come of Christ, and the apocalypse. It is explicitly seen the way Christ is depicted in the light, in the middle of the painting; just the way [...]
  • 1
  • Subjects: Paintings
  • Pages: 4
  • Words: 1118

Michelangelo’s Madonna of the Stairs

The sculpture is important from a historical perspective because it helps the beholder to grasp the enormity of Michelangelo's genius as well as his unique approach to the canons of Christian iconography.
  • 4
  • Subjects: Sculpture
  • Pages: 6
  • Words: 1728

The Black Madonna of Breznichar

The prominence of the Black Madonna is majorly due to the miraculous character it poses to the pilgrims. Since the black Madonna is a representation of the Virgin Mary, there are people of Catholic denomination [...]
  • Subjects: Paintings
  • Pages: 4
  • Words: 863

Da Vinci’s Last Supper: Artwork Analysis

Of all famous paintings in the history of humankind, Leonardo Da Vinci's Last Supper takes a very special spot, representing the pinnacle of both Da Vinci's artistic development and the progress of the Renaissance era.
  • Subjects: Paintings
  • Pages: 1
  • Words: 305

“The Old Guitarist” by Pablo Picasso: Critique

Pablo Ruiz Picasso When the discussion comes up about the subject of the monochromatic color schemes, I usually think of Picasso and his famous "Blue Period", especially about "The Old Guitarist" painting."The Old Guitarist" painting [...]
  • Subjects: Paintings
  • Pages: 4
  • Words: 1123

Sculpture Modeling Methods

A prime example of an assembled sculpture is Community Power Figure made by Songye peoples and housed in the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
  • Subjects: Sculpture
  • Pages: 3
  • Words: 915

Painting: “The Great Wave off Kanagawa”

In the far distant center of the painting, is a mountain, still and motionless, in contrast to the dynamic furious sea wave. The shape and size of the wave create the imagery of force in [...]
  • Subjects: Paintings
  • Pages: 3
  • Words: 841
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