Art 110 Terms What are terms? How do I find definitions of terms? What terms do I need to know for this class?

What are terms?

In the terms section of the midterm exam, you will be asked to provide identifications or definitions of words that we have used in our study of art history. These might be technical terms having to do with the production of art, proper names of people and places associated with history and art patronage, or foreign words that we use in discussing art generally. Terms might be artists' names or titles of artworks.

In most exams, you will be given a choice of terms to identify, and you will be asked to name a work of art associated with each one.

How do I find definitions of terms?

You will learn the definitions of many terms by reading your textbook and knowing how the words are used. In addition, Stokstad's Art History (revised edition) contains a Glossary in the back, easily marked by gold edged pages. Words appearing in the glossary are in boldface in the text.

Regular dictionaries often contain usable definitions of art terms, and many specialized dictionaries exist for this purpose. Ask the art librarians to direct you toward reference materials. Hint: Art books are in the 700s in the Dewey Decimal system, and Reference works will be found in the 070s on the first floor.

Online, check the following sites:

Pelletier Library Connections Page will allow Allegheny College students and employees to access Webster's Dictionary and Encyclopedia Brittanica, subscription databases.

ArtLex, the visual arts dictionary.

Words of Art

Okanagan University Fine Arts department maintains the page, still partially under construction.

The Getty Vocabulary Program is run by the Getty Research Institute to provide a structured vocabulary of terms, particularly useful in cataloguing and describing art. See the following special databases:

AAT, the Art and Architecture Thesaurus

ULAN is the Union List of Artist Names

TGN, the Getty Thesaurus of Geographical Names

The Grove Art Dictionary is probably truly the most comprehensive online resource. Unfortunately, it is available to subscribers only. See the hardbound copy in oru library: The Dictionary of Art, ed. Jane Turner, New York: Grove's Dictionaries, 1996, Reference: 703 D561.

Here are some (not all) words, proper nouns, places, and other items that you might find in the terms section of the exam. Don't forget that the test might ask you to identify artists and artworks as well.

• Midterm One
• Midterm Two
• Final Exam

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http://merlin.alleg.edu/employee/a/acarr/art110/terms.html
Last updated December 15, 2000